MODERN TECHNOLOGY IN A TRADITIONAL SILK SKIRT

To mark the UN’s 71st birthday, the United Nations in Lao PDR welcomed guests to a public event at a local cinema theatre in Vientiane, linking sustainable development to cutting-edge technologies.

During the first part of the evening, the audience listened to a traditional UN Day speech and took an audiovisual tour of the UN’s work through films showcasing the benefits of technologies for communities in Laos. Guests also watched short trailers produced by the UN for global audiences, raising world-wide issues such as climate action with the help of the Angry Birds, amongst others.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, UNITED NATIONS!

VIP guests of the evening included (from left to right) Minister to the Prime Minister’s Office Alounkeo Kittikhoun, Vice Minister of Planning and Investment Dr. Kikeo Chanthaboury and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Thongphane Savanphet, as well as a range of high-ranking diplomats and officials. The all toasted to the cooperation between the United Nations and Lao PDR.

SDG IMPLEMENTATION WITH THE HELP OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES

During the second part of the evening, guests enjoyed an interactive display of mobile technologies with the exhibit of the UN family’s broad range of work across implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Lao PDR. The Government of Lao PDR, together with 192 other member states, has endorsed the 17 SDGs last year. These global goals are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. Their aim is to shift the world onto a sustainable development path, with 2030 as the target date.

Guests at the event learned more about the SDGs at eight interactive stations.

VIRTUAL REALITY FOR LAO PDR'S OWN NATIONAL SDG

The audience had the opportunity to experience the first-ever virtual reality film produced for Lao audiences, which immerses the viewer into the working reality of an unexploded ordnance (UXO) clearance team. The film was produced on the occasion of the national clearance operator UXO Lao’s 20th anniversary by the UN Development Programme (UNDP).

This film underpins the implemetation of the Lao PDR’s own nation SDG 18, “Lives safe from UXO” which was launched on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summits this September, in the presence of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

STOPMOTION, VIRTUAL VOLUNTEERS AND AERIAL IMAGING DRONES

INNOVATIVE COMMUNITY SERVICES AND UN APPS

A SOUTHERN LAO FOREST RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF VIENTIANE

When guests stepped into the Immersive Biosphere Booth, they found themselves in Savannakhet, Southern Laos, a group of threathened Eld’s deer surrounding them, soft forest moss under their feet, the sounds and smells of the jungle all around them.

Major Platinum Cineplex By Huawei, Vientiane, Laos