Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization in the Wood and Wood Products Sector of the Lao PDR

The document analyzes the wood and wood products sector in Lao PDR, highlighting how illegal logging and an underdeveloped processing industry contribute to forest decline and biodiversity loss. It emphasizes the need to shift from low-value exports to value-added domestic processing and improved forest management to ensure sustainability.

• The wood-processing industry in Lao PDR suffers from low efficiency due to the use of outdated machinery and low technology, resulting in low recovery rates and a lack of export certification for processed products.
• Environmental degradation, including forest decline, biodiversity loss, and the loss of watershed services, is being driven by illegal logging, timber exports that reduce local supply, and an under-resourced local processing industry.
• Regional demand for Lao wood is high, particularly from China, where timber product imports grew from 14 million to 45 million cubic metres over a 10-year period.

APA

Manivong,, S. S. (2008). Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization in the Wood and Wood Products Sector of the Lao PDR. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-trade-liberalization-wood-and-wood-products-sector-lao

Chicago

Manivong,, Sousath Sayakoummane,Vongxay. Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization in the Wood and Wood Products Sector of the Lao PDR. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2008. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-trade-liberalization-wood-and-wood-products-sector-lao.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Manivong, |first1=Sousath Sayakoummane,Vongxay |title=Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization in the Wood and Wood Products Sector of the Lao PDR |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=23 January 2008 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-trade-liberalization-wood-and-wood-products-sector-lao |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{manivong2008environmental, author = {Manivong,, Sousath Sayakoummane,Vongxay}, title = {{Environmental Impacts of Trade Liberalization in the Wood and Wood Products Sector of the Lao PDR}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2008}, month = jan, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/environmental-impacts-trade-liberalization-wood-and-wood-products-sector-lao}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }