VIENTIANE, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Lao Press in Foreign Languages officially launched Chinese language news portals to broaden its customer base and reach a wider audience.
Lao Press in Foreign Languages, the state-run media outlet under Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, on Friday hosted a ceremony to unveil the new internet platforms.
The Chinese language news portals are operated on the popular Chinese social media platforms of Wechat and Weibo.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, Lao Press in Foreign Languages Director General and Editor-in-Chief of Vientiane Times Thonglor Duangsavanh said the introduction of the Chinese language website was part of the newspaper's policy to provide a broader platform for the distribution of information about Laos, especially the country's policies, to the international community with a focus on the Chinese audience.
The launch of the Lao language website aims to reinforce the role of Lao Press in Foreign Languages as an official news platform to provide the local and international communities with reliable information about events in Laos and overseas, he said.
Thonglor also said the new service had been introduced in line with the development strategy of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, which aims for Lao media services to be modern, fast and accurate as well as timely.
Lao Press in Foreign Languages has been working actively to introduce new products as well as provide more services amid growing challenges from both registered and unregistered media organisations which use cheap social media platforms to disseminate information.
Earlier this year, Lao Press in Foreign Language published a special edition in the English and Chinese languages to provide relevant information in support of Visit Laos-China Year 2019.
Deputy Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Savankhone Razmountry praised the launch of the two new websites by Lao Press in Foreign Languages, saying it was necessary for Lao media outlets to stay up-to-date and make changes to cope with the changing media environment.
He urged the mainstream media in Laos to focus more on human resource development as well as incorporating new knowledge and technology, adding that improved media services would make a significant contribution to the task of national protection and development.
Zhao Chenggang, the political counselor at the Chinese embassy in Laos, said the Chinese embassy welcomed the launch of the Chinese language news portals and thanked Lao Press in Foreign Languages for playing a key role in strengthening the relationship between China and Laos.
Zhao believed that the the portals will provide Chinese readers with more timely information about Laos. He said that China is willing to continue to strengthen cooperation with the Lao media and relevant authorities to promote media exchanges and promote the sharing of information resources, mutual support and common development, thus to make new contributions to the building of the China-Laos community with a shared future.
