As part of the International Framework for Court Excellence (IFCE), introduced to the People’s Supreme Court (PSC) of Lao PDR in the years 2022-2023, JIN-ASEAN has continued to support the PSC with self-assessment initiatives to identify areas for improvement.

In 2023, the PSC identified Court User Engagement as a key area for improvement under the IFCE framework. As a result, the PSC developed an improvement plan to strengthen efforts in Court User Engagement with technical support from UNDP. Committed to advancing court excellence, the PSC strategically focused on conducting a Gender Audit.

On 18 March 2024, the PSC and UNDP organized a gender audit workshop in Vientiane. The event aimed to familiarize judges and court staff with the gender audit process, complete a gender audit questionnaire, and begin translating its findings into a concrete gender action plan.

Following data collection, this report summarizes initial findings, highlighting areas with significant room for improvement. These findings reveal substantial opportunities for enhancing gender equality within Lao PDR courts, a move that promises to significantly benefit both court employees and users of court services.