Mr Andreas Zurbrugg
Deputy Head of Mission
As Deputy Head of Mission, I have responsibility for leading the management and strategic direction of our bilateral development cooperation program, the Mekong Water Resources Program, and our political and economic engagement with Laos. Australia is one of the largest donors to Laos, and has provided significant assistance to develop Laos’ human resources, trade and infrastructure connectivity, and learning outcomes for basic education over more than 50 years. The Mekong Water Resources Program is also based in the Embassy in Vientiane. It provides support to the governments, private and civil sectors in Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam to sustainably develop the significant water resources in the greater Mekong region. Our political-economic team works with the Lao government and Australian business to enable greater trade and investment links. In 2016, a major focus for the Embassy will be preparing for our engagement with ASEAN, including a number of expected high level visitors.