Vietnam always assists and is willing to cooperate with the Lao healthsector, in areas including infrastructure construction, equipmentsupply and personnel training.

Vietnamese Health Minister NguyenThi Kim Tien made this remark at a working session with her Laocounterpart, Eksavang Vongvichit, in Hanoi on Dec. 15.

Shehighlighted the two countries’ long-term cooperation in health care, aswell as the Lao health sector’s development, particularly its investmentin technological modernisation and improvement of human resources.

MinisterTien urged that with the long common borderline, the two countriesshould pay more attention to cooperating in preventive health,especially prevention and control of diseases such as foot-hand-mouth,dengue fever, influenza and cholera outbreaks.

Accordingto the Vietnamese minister, the two health sectors need to closelycoordinate with relevant agencies to prevent cross-border transport ofillegal drugs which were responsible for high HIV infection rates.

Sheaffirmed a commitment to help Laos in personnel training, saying thatVietnam will create good conditions and give preference to Laostudents who want to study at medical colleges and universities inVietnam .

In reply, Lao Minister Eksavang Vongvichit attributedthe Lao health sector’s development in human resources and facilities tothe Vietnamese Government’s assistance.

The Lao Minister said hewants Vietnam to continue to cooperate with Laos to ease difficultiesin such areas as epidemic control, personnel training, equipmentprovision and infrastructure construction./.