Vietnam and Laos have agreed to focus their cooperation during the 2011-2013 period on raising capacity for staff of the Lao Prime Minister Office.

This was the result of the June 6 meeting between Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Minister-Chairman of the Vietnamese Government Office and Cheuang Sombounkhan, Minister-cum-Chief of the Lao Government Secretariat.

Cheuang Sombounkhan, who is also Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee, is leading a delegation of the Lao Government Secretariat and Prime Minister Office to pay a working visit to Vietnam from June 3-9.

The two sides also reached a consensus on building information, administrative management and archive systems for the Lao Prime Minister Office as well as launching a website for the Lao Government.

During the meeting, Phuc underlined the need to form a management board to oversee their cooperation projects.

Vietnam will dispatch experts to study Laos’ needs to serve the projects, Phuc stated.

Host and guest also touched upon the construction of hydro power dams on the Mekong River and agreed on the need to study their possible impacts on the river’s rich natural resources as well as the life of local people.

After the meeting, they inked a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the two government offices./.