Our higher education ties began with the Colombo Plan in the 1950s and, today, we continue this legacy with more than 1,400 talented Lao leaders studying in Australia through Australia Awards Scholarships.

Australia Awards focus on areas of importance to the development of Laos, including education, economics, sustainable development, sustainable environment and health. The Laos Australia Institute (LAI) administers Australia Awards in the Lao PDR. Since 2014, LAI has brought together our scholarships program and alumni engagement with targeted interventions in human capacity building, with a focus on Laos’ future leaders.

A total of 153 new awards were offered to Laos for the 2025 intake, comprising 48 long-term Australia Awards Scholarships as well as 105 short-term awards under 5 Australia Awards Short Courses.

More than 98 per cent of our Australia Awards Scholarship recipients successfully graduate and return home, with most working in fields that support Laos’ development priorities. Half of these scholarships are targeted at the government sector and half are open to civil society and the private sector. The aim is to directly address skills shortages within Laos and improve capacity to create and implement sound policy that contributes to socio-economic development.