Vientiane Capital, Lao PDR, February 11th, 2025 - Lao Securities Commission Office (LSCO), in collaboration with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Lao PDR and Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LSE) conducted the first Capacity Building Workshop to provide the foundational and technical knowledge and enhance the readiness of the Government of Lao PDR, potential corporate issuers, commercial banks, and securities company toward the first thematic bond issuance in Lao PDR.
Capacity Building Workshop titled “Enhancing the Readiness of the Government and Private Issuer toward the First Thematic Bond Issuance in Lao PDR” aims to equip key participants with the knowledge and tools to implement the innovative financial instruments. This workshop seeks to foster a robust sustainable finance ecosystem that can support the country’s environment and sustainable development goals. The workshop also opens as a Stakeholder Dialogue between LSCO, Agricultural Promotion Bank, Luxembourg Stock Exchange, and other participants.
At the current stage, the Government of Lao PDR is building a financial ecosystem to support the Thematic Bond Issuance. This includes developing the regulations, supporting the corporate issuer, and building capacity. Therefore, this workshop is part of preparatory activities aimed at assisting corporate issuers develop a Green Bond Framework to ensure the Green Bond Issuance aligns with the applicable standards.
Thematic Bond Issuance, particularly Green Bond in Lao PDR, will serve as an essential financial instrument for mobilizing capital resources toward the Eligible Green Projects, as defined by the International Capital Market Association (ICMA)’s Green Project Mapping. This capital mobilization is obligated to support investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency, pollution prevention, clean transportation, sustainable waste and wastewater management, green buildings, and climate change adaptation projects and etc.
This workshop brought over 40 participants to the event from related government stakeholders and private sectors. It was co-chaired by Madam. Phengsy Phengmuong, Director-General, LSCO, Mr. Thomas Lammar, Chargé d’affaires of Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Embassy in Laos, and Dagmar Zwebe, Country Representative of GGGI Lao PDR and other key participants includes Mr. Ekalath Sisane, Deputy Director-General, LSCO, Mr. Philavanh Sophabmixay, Managing Director, Agricultural Promotion Bank Co., Ltd, and Paul Chahine, Sustainable Finance Manager, Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
Workshop chairs: Dagmar Zwebe, Country Representative of GGGI Lao PDR; Madam Phengsy Phengmuong, Director-General of LSCO; and Mr. Thomas Lammar, Chargé d’Affaires of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Embassy in Laos
About Accelerating Corporate Thematic Bond Issuance in Lao PDR Project:
This workshop was made possible through the project “Accelerating Corporate Thematic Bond Issuance in Lao PDR”, supported by the Global Trust Fund on Sustainable Finance Instruments (GTF). This one year and a half project initiated in April 2024 with the assistance from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.