The national competitiveness of developed or developing economies is widely known in either old and modern literatures. Meanwhile, minimal research exists on thoughtful the national competitiveness of less developed countries (LDCs). In the case of Laos, the findings suggest three key factors are critical for enhancing Lao competitiveness, including factor endowments, the role of government, and global integration. Nevertheless, the country faces challenges of value addition to the existing natural resources, developing and leveraging human capital, and further improvement in rules and regulations to be compliant with regional and international requirements.