(Vientiane Times) Vientiane residents could save around 110,000 KW of electricity simply by switching off lights for one hour, leading to cash savings of more than 62 million kip.

These were the figures cited by Electricite du Laos after the capital joined more than 4,000 cities and towns in 92 registered countries on Saturday night to participate in Earth Hour.

Last year saw 88 countries around the world get involved.

Head of the Water Resource and Environment Administration Ms Khempheng Pholsena and Deputy Prime Minister Asang Laoly officially switched off the lights at 7pm at the Patouxay Monument in front of more than 1,000 people.

The event was designed by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to raise awareness of climate change and to give people a voice in the future of the planet.

Ms Khempheng said Earth Hour was about households and businesses turning off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour to highlight how the small actions of every person can make a collective difference.

She said climate change was not only a problem for the international community, but presented particular challenges for developing countries like Laos.

She also called for developed countries to assist the developing in attaining clean technology to meet their increasing energy needs.

Saturday was the first time Laos has participated in the Earth Hour campaign, which has been running since 2007.

Ms Khempheng said she hoped it would encourage the public to understand the importance of saving energy, saving the environment and dealing with climate change.

“If people could simply make this sort of energy saving a habit, it would be easier to make Laos a green and clean country.”

Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia, when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off for one hour to make a stand against climate change.

A year later, Earth Hour had become a global sustainability movement with more than 50 million people across 35 countries participating.

Global landmarks such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge, The CN Tower in Toronto, The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Rome's Colosseum all stood in darkness.

more pictures click here: http://www.wrea.gov.la/somoula/PicturesShow/index.php?imgdir=2010-03-27%20Patuxay