Coping with tragedy: a legacy of war in Laos

Peter Kim, a young bomb survivor, at the COPE centre
© UNICEF/Laos 2012/Andy Brown

Peter Kim is a victim of the Vietnam War. But he’s not a Vietnamese or American veteran; he’s a 20-year-old Lao youth living in Vientiane. Four years ago he lost both his hands and eyesight to one of the millions of unexploded bombs that still litter the Laos countryside almost four decades after the war ended.

Global Hand Washing day 2012

Directory of Essential Services for Children and Youth

The Vientiane Capital Lao Women’s Union (LWU), with support from UNICEF, UNFPA and World Vision, launched the first edition of the ‘National Directory of Essential Services for Children and Youth in Lao PDR’ on Wednesday at the Vientiane Youth Centre for Health and Development.

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Samphan's Story

"All children should be protected from violence, abuse and neglect, and governments should protect them," Article 19, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The following testimony was recorded for UNICEF Lao PDR with the help of the Peuanmit Centre Vientiane. All names and voices have been changed to protect the anonymity of those involved.

Breast Milk... and Nothing Else

An informed communications campaign addressing infant and young child feeding, with an initial focus on the promotion of the WHO/UNICEF recommended indicator on exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first six months of life has been identified as a key intervention toward improving child survival rates in Laos.