Nakai Nam Theun National Park. --Photo World Heritage Management Division

Plans progress for UNESCO recognition of cultural traditions, national park

The government is moving forward with efforts to secure UNESCO recognition for additional outstanding features of Laos, with plans to nominate the iconic larb dish (a spicy meat salad) and the Baci ceremony, along with a request for listing of the Nakai Nam Theun National Park as a World Heritage Site.

Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mrs Suanesavanh Vignaket chairs a meeting to discuss UNESCO proposals.

The progress of these plans was reported at a meeting of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Monday to review the implementation of the 2025 culture and tourism plan and the plan of work for 2026.
The meeting was chaired by the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mrs Suanesavanh Vignaket.
Mrs Suanesavanh said it was beneficial to summarise the lessons learned in 2025 and set a clear agenda for 2026.
The most important thing was to integrate the country’s cultural traditions with tourism, to create a strong economic pillar in line with the Party and State’s guidelines, she added.
“We are holding this meeting today to summarise and evaluate the implementation of cultural and tourism activities in the past year and set the direction of the 2026 plan,” she said.
Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Mrs Darany Phommavongsa said the nomination of larb and the Baci ceremony for UNESCO recognition reflects the country’s commitment to safeguarding its cultural heritage and sharing it with the international community.
At the same time, authorities are expediting documentation for the proposed listing of the Nakai Nam Theun National Park as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, highlighting its ecological and conservation significance.
In addition, the government has set ambitious tourism targets for 2026, aiming to attract more than 4.4 million foreign visitors and generate over US$1 billion in revenue.
It is also expected that about 4.3 Lao citizens will take holidays or short breaks around the country, contributing about US$707 million to the economy.
To support these goals, the government is rolling out the Visit Laos-China Year campaign and developing a tourism marketing strategy for 2026-2030 to strengthen the country’s global presence.
Efforts will also focus on producing multilingual promotional materials, organising media and influencer visits, and increasing engagement across digital tourism platforms.
In addition, infrastructure development will continue along the Laos-China railway corridor, while road upgrades in Vangvieng are expected to be complete by the middle of this year, Mrs Darany said.

Officials from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and ministers gathered in Vientiane yesterday for a meeting.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest UpdateApril 7, 2026)