A lucky Lao woman says she plans to use some of her lottery winnings to build a new house for her family, saying that family is her top priority. She also said that she will spend some of her winnings on travel, adding that South Korea, Japan and Vietnam are on the top of her wish list. The 33-year-old added that her phone has not stopped ringing since news of her victory spread, and that her inbox is overflowing with notifications, texts and calls from friends, family and strangers.

A state official speaking on condition of anonymity meanwhile warned of the need to address illegal lotteries, saying private business interests are responsible for drawing the national lottery and they encourage people into habitual betting. He added that those businesses include families of Lao politicians and should not be in charge of the lottery.

The official said that the state lottery enterprise will reduce the number of lotteries it issues from four to two a week and end the scratch lottery. He also said the lottery should return to being entirely managed by the government. In addition, he said investment was needed to develop technology that could be used to track those involved in illegal lotteries.