Director-General of Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA) signed the Letter of Understanding between TICA and Luxembourg Agency for Development (LuxDev) on Human Resource Development Cooperation in Lao People's Democratic Republic for 2020-2025 in areas of public health, technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and local/rural development.

On 21 October 2020, Ms. Pattarat Hongtong, Director-General of Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA), Ministry of Foreign Affairs, participated in the signing ceremony of the Letter of Understanding between TICA and Luxembourg Agency for Development (LuxDev) on Human Resource Development Cooperation in Lao PDR. H.E. Jean-Paul Senninger, Ambassador of Luxembourg to Thailand was present at the signing ceremony representing the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

The said Letter of Understanding aims to establish the framework for development cooperation between Luxembourg and Thailand in Lao PDR. The areas of cooperation is drawn from the combined expertise and experience of Thailand and Luxembourg in human resource development cooperation, based on the needs of Lao PDR, and as determined by all partners. The areas of cooperation to be taken include public health, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), and local/rural development. Delivering the remarks at the ceremony, Ms. Hongtong and Ambassador Senninger reaffirmed the importance of this cooperation, as it marks the beginning of trilateral cooperation between the two countries. Ambassador Senninger also reiterated that the cooperation provides an opportunity to learn from Thailand’s expertise in many fields including the application of the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP) for sustainable development which suits the current context as we take on the challenges of COVID-19.    

The Letter of Understanding is formulated under the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand and the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg on the Third Country Training Programme, signed in Bangkok on 10 October 1999. The cooperation under the Letter of Understanding also marks the occasion of 60th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Thailand and Luxembourg in 2019. Following the expression of interests to pursue trilateral cooperation in Lao PDR, the two countries dispatched a joint fact-finding mission, consisting of members from the two countries, to Lao PDR on 18-20 November 2019. The outcomes of the said mission became the basis of this Letter of Understanding.