Introducing new courses, updating existing ones based on market response, and strengthening quality assurance meant to increase workforce participation and improve employment prospects will enhance the relevance and effectiveness of the program.
Public finance management (PFM) reforms are complex and require a long-term high level political commitment and flexibility to maximize the development impact. The progress made under PFM reforms can also be non-linear in nature, which requires greater effort to revisit reforms and to embed and institutionalize complex reforms as part of the “norm” in core government processes such as policy planning and budgeting.
Institutional and technical capacities to effectively implement PFM reforms remain weak, and absorptive capacities remain low. This can often be further compounded by frequent changes in leadership and staffing, which can cause further delays. ADB's continued engagement with the Ministry of Finance must be at all levels of the administration (management and operational levels) to strengthen the institutional and organizational capacity and reduce the impact of staff turnover on reform impact.
Close coordination with other development partners working in PFM reforms is necessary to create synergies with ADB's support and interventions. Subprogram 1 was designed and developed in close consultation with the IMF and the World Bank to ensure a coordinated approach to PFM reforms. These lessons have confirmed that the reforms require a long-term perspective to achieve the intended objectives and that reforms need to be underpinned by significant efforts in sustained capacity building to ensure capacity constraints do not impact the overall quality of reforms.
Implementation is strengthened by the provision of coordinated and responsive capacity-building support, with key actions categorized as short, medium, and long term to provide a more specific time frame and indicate the sequencing for each category.
SME policy reforms require strong ongoing political commitment by key government agencies. The Second Private Sector and Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Program (PSME2) supported government agencies on this agenda to improve the regulatory business environment, the effectiveness of business enterprise processes, access, capacity, and responsiveness.
implementation anchored in a national law. Some output targets—building technical skills and institutional capacity, engaging with SME participants, facilitating the adoption of new processes, and institutionalizing the changes—required a longer time for effective implementation.
Realistic timelines are essential, given government agency capacities and the institutional, policy, and behavioral changes required. Introducing new regulatory frameworks required a sequential building-block approach, from diagnostics to pilot implementation, expansion of pilots, and national
The PSME2 demonstrated the critical role that TA plays in supporting policy, planning, awareness raising, change processes, training, and skills, and in institutionalizing SME reforms. Furthermore, using post-program partnership framework (P3F) support is important in facilitating ongoing SME reform and institutionalizing SME processes.
As the government continues the reform program with assistance from other development partners and the private sector, detailed ongoing assessments of government budget commitments and financing needs, and capacity development are required, with related work plans. This support needs to include working with the Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry as a key partner, expanding the SME Service Centers and outreach, and enhancing access to finance. It will also require government decisions on legal, regulatory, and financial aspects, to fully operationalize an e-commerce platform.