Speaking to reporters on Jan 27, he said that Singapore can work closely with Laos to maximise its economic potential through education and training, as well as provide assistance to help it plug into the global markets, including in the sale of carbon credits.
Over the course of the day, Dr Balakrishnan met Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith and the head of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party external relations committee, Mr Thongsavanh Phomvihane.
Laos, one of the world's few remaining communist states, is curslowing with rently grappling growth, rising debt and inflation that averaged 31.2 per cent in 2023.
"They have also been quite open and candid that their fiscal circumstances have also been quite tight.
And yet they do want to move forward, and they want to look at the opportunities," Dr Balakrishnan told reporters of his discussions with the senior Lao leaders.
"We are now at the start of another technological revolution characterised by advances in artificial intelligence, quantum computing, digitalisation, synthetic biology and the need for renewable energy to create a more sustainable and safe world." These present opportunities for Laos, which has plentiful supplies of renewable energy, especially hydropower, that can be a source of carbon credits.
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