Since 2006, LCG has served as the lead or principal Lao firm on an unbroken series of ADB-funded water supply and sanitation programmes in Lao PDR — providing nearly two decades of continuous Project Implementation Assistance (PIA) to the Government of Lao PDR across four successive contracts. Together, these engagements have supported ADB’s long-term programme to expand access to safe piped water, strengthen the institutional capacity of provincial water supply utilities (PNPs), and improve drainage and sanitation conditions in small towns across the country’s northern, central, and southern regions. The four projects are: Northern and Central Regions Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project (Grant 0016 and 0205-LAO, October 2006–March 2013); Small Towns Water Supply and Sanitation Project (Grant 0143-LAO, August 2010–September 2018); Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project (Loan 3041 and Grant 0363-LAO, July 2015–June 2025); and Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project – Additional Financing (Grant 0604-LAO, December 2018–June 2025), the last of which was awarded to LCG on a direct contract basis — a recognition by ADB and the Government of the depth of institutional knowledge and quality of performance LCG had demonstrated across the preceding engagements.

Across all four contracts, LCG led the full spectrum of Project Implementation Assistance in joint venture with international partners including Montgomery Watson Harza (New Zealand) – Contract 1 and Nippon Koei (Japan) – Contracts 2 to 4. Core services delivered consistently across the programme included: project planning, coordination, and management support to the central Project Coordination Unit (PCU) and provincial Project Implementation Units (PIUs); establishment and strengthening of institutional, regulatory, and financial frameworks for the water supply sector; feasibility studies, engineering investigations, topographical and geotechnical surveys, groundwater drilling and pump testing, and water quality testing; detailed design of water treatment works, transmission mains, service reservoirs, distribution networks, and metered connections; preparation of bid documents, bid evaluation, contract administration, and construction supervision; non-revenue water (NRW) surveys and management programme development; drainage and public sanitation design and supervision; community action, participatory planning, and health and hygiene awareness programmes; Village Environmental Improvement (VEI) sub-project design and supervision; safeguard compliance including social and environmental assessments, gender planning, and resettlement planning; and tariff studies, financial management support, and corporate development assistance to local PNPs. Under later contracts, LCG also supported the development of twinning arrangements between Lao water supply authorities and neighbouring Thai utilities, and provided long-term capacity development to district-level public works offices and village development committees for ongoing O&M of completed works.

Worked with the Ministry and Nam Papas to develop stepped tariffs that are an integral part of moving the Nam Papas towards a self-sufficient parastatal entity.

Taken together, LCG’s four-contract, two-decade engagement on ADB’s water supply and sanitation programme in Laos represents one of the most sustained and consequential contributions any consulting firm has made to the sector in the country. The programme has directly improved water supply access for an estimated 364,000 residents across 40 small towns— collectively extending safe, reliable piped water services to communities across the northern, central, and southern regions of Laos. LCG’s support has been instrumental in advancing the corporatization of provincial water supply utilities, establishing the sector’s regulatory architecture, and building the technical and financial management capacity of local institutions that will sustain these services long after project completion.