Attachments
SITUATION OVERVIEW
• The Lao People's Democratic Republic is a
landlocked, least developed nation with a population
of 7.8 million. As of 2024/2025, about 15 percent of
its people live below the national poverty line of USD
1.10 per day. Despite poverty dropping by over half
in the past twenty years, the 2024 Global Hunger
Index rates the country's hunger as “moderate.”
• Climate change is a major challenge facing the rural
population and the country is vulnerable due to its
low adaptability and heavy dependence on climatesensitive
natural resources. Changing climate
patterns, limited access to markets and varied
livelihoods, further worsen the situation in remote
upland areas, where over 20 percent of households
are food insecure (national average: 8 percent).
Chronic malnutrition affects 33 percent of children
under five, while micronutrient deficiencies are high
and overnutrition is on the rise in urban areas.
• WFP has been present in Lao PDR since 1976.