After an extended calm in COVID-19 cases, Mr Thongloun Sisoulith, Prime Minister of Lao People’s Democratic Republic, addressed the nation to speak to the success of the country in containing its first outbreak. He praised the National Taskforce Committee for implementing rapid and effective control measures and the public’s contribution and sacrifices in observing restrictions. He also thanked international partners and different internal government sectors for their timely and effective support. Dr Howard Sobel, WHO Representative to Lao PDR, commended the Lao government’s success in containing the country’s first COVID-19 outbreak, calling it “exemplary.” As the country still remains vulnerable to the threat of COVID-19, WHO is working with the Lao Ministry of Health and with other ministries and development partners to further strengthen the country’s defenses against COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. This includes training health workers, enhancing the capacity of national laboratories, and further developing alert systems. Many development partners have been supporting the work of the Ministry of Health and WHO, among them the governments of Australia, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Luxembourg, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States (USAID) and Viet Nam, as well as the European Union.
Read how Lao PDR celebrated its successful early containment of COVID-19 on WHO's site
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