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The third FREPLA2020 Workshop held in Thakhek on the 10th and 11th of March

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The third Workshop of the FREPLA2020 Project organised by the Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) and University of Turku, Finland Future Resource Centre (FFRC) was held in Thakhek in Nakai district on the 10th and 11th of March. The workshop was attended altogether by 30 participants from the different GOL ministries and departments. The two day workshop focused on the concrete planning issues and challenges of different economic sectors in Lao PDR. Several presentations were held on economic and energy related development scenarios on different levels and regions (national, Mekong Region and China) by using scenario development models, like LEAP, LaoLinda and IFs. Senior Technical Advisor of the UNDP Poverty Environment Initiative Ms. Grace Wong gave also an interesting presentation on mainstreaming poverty environment and MDGs in Lao PDR.

The FFRC team (Research Director Jari Kaivo-oja, Prof. Jyrki Luukkanen and Researcher Sari Jusi) organized tutored scenario development in small groups, where the participants discussed on drivers and uncertainties related to economic development of different sectors and built different scenario developments. Policy implications of scenarios were widely discussed by using the TEPSELV analysis among the participants. In TEPSEL analysis the participants discussed about the different changes (technological, economic, policy, social, environmental, legal and value) needed for different scenario developments.

The workshop turned out to be again a very successful arena for information exchange and creating of different economic and energy related development paths and scenarios composed by different GOL ministries and organisations. In the workshop the participants discussed and revealed challenges, potential risks and problems the country may face and need to take into account developing its’ economy and energy sector in the future.