Lao alumni of Singapore Cooperation Programme reunion
(KPL) The Singapore Embassy on Saturday hosted a reception for Lao alumni of the Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) on the occasion of the official visit of Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.
Head of the Committee for External Relations of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee Thongsavanh Phomvihane, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Bounkham Vorachit, the Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and over 100 SCP alumni attended the event.
Minister Balakrishnan visited the Lao PDR at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Lao PDR Saleumxay Kommasith. The official visit kicked off the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Laos and Singapore, according to the Singaporean Ambassador to the Lao PDR Sudesh Maniar.
“The Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) is Singapore's primary platform to share our development experiences and expertise with other developing countries. More than 16,600 Lao officials attended the SCP since its inception in 1992,” said Singapore Ambassador.
Singapore has conducted customised courses for Lao officials such as English language training Notetaking and Report Writing, English Language Interpretation and Translation, Speech-writing and Public Presentation Skills, Audit Techniques and Tools, English for Effective Negotiations, Protocol and Visits and English Language and Communication Skills.
“Singapore is committed to ASEAN and has been working together with Laos to support Laos' 2024 ASEAN Chairmanship through the Singapore-Laos Enhanced Cooperation Package (SLECP). The SLECP was launched during former Lao Prime Minister Phankham Viphavanh’s official visit to Singapore in September 2022,” said the ambassador.
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the Laos-Singapore Cooperation Centre, which forms part of the upgrade of Singapore's IAI Training Centres to support the expansion of capacity building activities in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam (CLMV).