4th october 2011 :

Since the 3rd of september this year, Xang Noi has opened a new shop and a new Creative and Arts Studio, both located in DREAMLAND Park Nongchan on Khouvieng Road.

The Studio offers a range of activities such as Modeling paste for the small ones, doll painting, canevas or bags, Funny Beady Dough, Finger painting. More activities will added every week.

THe kids can go back home with what they have done and purchase, if they want, supplementary materials in our shop just in front of the Studio.

21 january 2010 :

The compulsory meeting of 16 and 16^th December 2009 at the Ministry of Information and Culture  (MIC)was organised to inform publishers about new law of publishing in Lao PDR.

• During the meeting the MIC wanted to oblige publisher to choose their category for ever. You publish for adult or children but not both ! All presents disagreed on this so the ministry reversed its decision.
• Starting january 1^st 2010, all those who want to publish books must obtain a special permission from the MIC even if they had the permission from ministry of commerce and industry and from the provincial level of information and culture. Publishers may apply and get the form and gather 8 different documents before submitting their application. With this permission, they would not be obliged to submit their future books for reading and censorship as they would bear the entire responsibility of their writing. However, they would still need the number (lek tabien) to publish the book.

• The application form,
• Calendar of publication for 2010 with titles, sale price, printers,…
• Location of their premises,
• Status and structures of the publishing house : employees, persons in charge,…
• Internal  regulations, salaries …
• Biography of persons in charge,
• Diplomas of persons in charge,
• Their police records,
• Pictures.

• The ministry wanted to impose an editor for all lao books a unique one for all before submission to the MIC. This has been refused by all publisher. So the MIC reversed that decision.
• According to the MIC, publishing houses are not private company so names of some of them must changed even if official records to ministry of commerce and industry are already settled.
• Everyone, including other ministries must follow those rules.

17th december 2009 : PUBLISHING BOOKS IN DANGER IN LAO PDR

The Ministry of Information and Culture (MIC) has requested the presence of all publishers for a meeting on 16 and 17th december 2009. Those who would be absent would see the publishing licence cancelled.

The first point was positive as the MIC wishes to low down the taxes on books : taxes on imported paper for printers, taxes on printers, on publishers and on sales of the books.

The other points were directives that are imposed on publishers by the book department :

1. The publishers must choose between publishing books for children or books for adults, there can be both departments in one publishing house. That means the dead of DOKKED or BIG BROTHER MOUSE for example.

2.To publish books and to sell them through a shop, publishers will now need two separate licences.

3. An "Advisor" is impose to publisher to check all their books before presentation to MIC for approval. This advisor will agree or disagree on the story or content of the book. if the advisor do not accept it, no need to go further. to the MIC for permission. The "advisor; for children book is Madame Phannaly, whose quality of writer and neutrality as self-publisher are not positively recognised by her pair.

4.The compulsory informations has to be in a special page. This can force a publisher to have supplementary pages, that means an extra cost when a publisher has to really take care to cost and price in Lao PDR.

Those directives will all have negative effects : shut down creativity, diminish will and investment to publish books thus encourage sales of thai books and endanger, at long term ,the lao language.

November 2009 :

Xang Noï has published two new books:

A serie of two pictures book, a picture encyclopedia in a square format of 21 x 21 cm, The first volume presents the family, the house, the street, the school...

The second volume opens the way to the outside world : sports, music instruments and band, games,...

For children of 3 and up, that will allow them to spend lots of time and raising questions. A pleasure for children and parents included.