Ounthuang said that the current priority of Laos is to vaccinate at least 50% of its population against COVID-19 by the end of this year.
As of October 23, only 43.55% of the Lao population had received a dose of COVID-19 vaccine and 37.24% have been vaccinated fully.
Therefore, the country has yet to set a date to welcome the return of vaccinated foreign tourists, the deputy minister said.
According to him, after over 50% of the population is inoculated fully and the pandemic situation gets better, Laos may reopen its borders to vaccinated tourists, with those from neighbouring countries, especially Vietnam, China and ASEAN countries, receiving the priority.