Sustainable Development in the Plantation Industry in Laos: An Examination of the RoleC Role of the Ministry of Planning and Investment

The plantation industry in Laos has grown rapidly through overseas investment, but a 2007 national land management meeting found that numerous concessions have caused deforestation, biodiversity loss, and negative impacts on local livelihoods. The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), while the lead agency for investment decisions, currently lacks the capacity, coordination, and monitoring systems to ensure environmental and social outcomes. The paper recommends that the MPI establish an inter-agency environmental working group, create a centralized environmental information and data center, and implement a monitoring and evaluation system to penalize regulatory violations and reward sustainable practices.

• A 2007 national land management meeting determined that extensive land concessions have led to significant environmental and social damage, including deforestation, loss of biodiversity, soil degradation from chemical use, and the erosion of traditional cultures and livelihoods.
• The Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic has suspended the granting of new land concessions for areas exceeding 100 hectares to mitigate the rapid loss of natural resources.
• Planning efforts in the plantation sector are hindered by a lack of centralized data; the Ministry of Planning and Investment does not hold total investment data, and information on provincial projects is often unavailable at the national level.
• The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) currently plays a minor role in addressing environmental and social issues despite its lead role in investment decisions, due to a lack of internal capacity, financial resources, inter-agency coordination, and monitoring functions.

APA

IUCN,, S. V. (2009). Sustainable Development in the Plantation Industry in Laos: An Examination of the RoleC Role of the Ministry of Planning and Investment. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/sustainable-development-plantation-industry-laos-examination-role-ministry

Chicago

IUCN,, Saykham Voladet,. Sustainable Development in the Plantation Industry in Laos: An Examination of the RoleC Role of the Ministry of Planning and Investment. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2009. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/sustainable-development-plantation-industry-laos-examination-role-ministry.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=IUCN, |first1=Saykham Voladet, |title=Sustainable Development in the Plantation Industry in Laos: An Examination of the RoleC Role of the Ministry of Planning and Investment |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=6 March 2009 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/sustainable-development-plantation-industry-laos-examination-role-ministry |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{iucn2009sustainable, author = {IUCN,, Saykham Voladet,}, title = {{Sustainable Development in the Plantation Industry in Laos: An Examination of the RoleC Role of the Ministry of Planning and Investment}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2009}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/sustainable-development-plantation-industry-laos-examination-role-ministry}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }