Lao PDR, 24 January 2024: ERIA, together with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, conducted a good regulatory practice (GRP) workshop in Lao PDR as part of the ongoing Piloting of Good Regulatory Practice in Selected Strategic Sectors in ASEAN: Electric Vehicles (EV) and Batteries Industry (Lao PDR).

The workshop was designed to introduce and create awareness of GRP for ASEAN Member States (AMS), as well as ASEAN initiatives for its promotion and implementation, including the ASEAN Good Regulatory Practice Core Principles, the ASEAN Handbook on Good Regulatory Practice, and the principles of regulatory impact analysis; socialising and developing buy-in on the pilot project for AMS regulators; and to develop the preliminary framework for the EV and Batteries Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS).

There were 23 participants comprising the following ministries: Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Ministry of Energy and Mines, Ministry of Public Works and Transport, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, and Ministry of Transportation.

The first day of the workshop began with Itthilith Ngangnouvong, Deputy Director General, Department of Trade Negotiation and Economic Cooperation, Ministry of Industry and Commerce giving the opening speech; and welcoming remarks by Dr Intan Murnira Ramli, ERIA Senior Policy Fellow. This was followed by a context setting on the EV and battery industries in Lao PDR by Sengvisay Khammanivong, Deputy of Head Division, Department of Energy Efficiency Promotion, Ministry of Energy and Mines.

The context setting covered the goals and progress of EV transition, EV manufacturing process and charging station development, challenges and advantages, as well as the licensing and regulatory framework.

Participants were then introduced to the inception of the pilot project, its progress, and key activities undertaken, with the highlight being the issuance of the Inception Report to the AMS on 22 November 2023.

The workshop also discussed the introduction of GRP in ASEAN in 2015 via the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025, and its subsequent progress toward the development of the ASEAN GRP Workplan in 2017, the core principles in 2018, and the handbook in 2022.

The workshop introduced the participants to GRP, methods of implementing GRP in each AMS, preparing a regulatory impact analysis (RIA), as well as discussing in depth the seven elements of RIA: the problem statement, objectives, options, impact analysis, consultation, conclusion and recommendations, and strategy for implementation.

On the second day of the workshop, participants were guided to develop the preliminary framework of the RIS. Participants from the Lao PDR chose Fiscal Incentives to Develop EV Ecosystem as the focus of its RIS. At the end of the day, a preliminary framework for the RIS was developed for elements 1-4 (problem statement, objectives, options, and impact analysis).