MDG 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development

MDG 8 was not reported upon in the MDG Report 2004. Targets in Goal 8 relate to official development assistance, market access, debt sustainability, access to essential drugs, and access to telephone, internet, and cellular services. The government, in consultation with the international community, has developed locally relevant indicators and targets that are both useful and possible to consistently report on over time.

Lao PDR’s exports are concentrated to very few products, namely garments, wood and wood products, electricity, coffee, forestry products and, more recently, mining. There is little in-country processing and thus only limited value addition. The share of mining exports have grown rapidly since 2000, and accounted for over half of the country’s total export volume in 2006. Overall, expanding exports play a major role in Laos’ growth, growing at more than 11% per year to account for 24% of the GDP in 2005 – up from 9% in 1990.

There is still a large gap between domestically-generated resources and what is needed to implement the NSEDP (2006-10), and Lao PDR needs continued commitment from its development partners to achieve the MDGs by 2015. To this end, it is critical that more resources be devoted to basic social services, for the benefit of all categories of the population in an equitable manner.

Official Development Assistance (ODA) plays an important role by funding both the Lao government’s overall public expenditure and its Public Investment Programmes (PIP). PIP projects generate recurrent funding needs in the form of salaries and wages, materials and other operation and maintenance costs. With increase in capital projects, the pressure on the government’s recurrent budget has increased. Donors and the government need to jointly identify alternative ways to meet the increasing development demands, while examining the recurrent expenditure implications in ODA project selection and efficiency.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can play an important role in the fight against poverty, and be an effective tool in helping countries to achieve the MDGs. In the NSEDP (2006-10), the government is committed to encourage investment in computer technology and facilitate the use of the internet, particularly in remote and poor areas.

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