Audrey Dubot-Pérès of the Lao-Oxford-Mahosot Hospital-Wellcome Trust Research Unit (LOMWRU) in Lao PDR will establish a pilot respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) genomic surveillance system to determine disease burden and monitor strain circulation in Lao PDR. RSV is the leading cause of viral pneumonia in young children in low-income countries. Accurate data on disease burden, transmission and viral evolution are critical to successfully introduce emerging vaccines and therapies.