Part 1 – A Rapid Participatory Biodiversity Assessment - IUCN

NA, 21 October
2003
Forestry Strategy
2020 (2005)
organisations for legal use. One of the land user’s obligations is to protect the
environment, and that land use must not result in land degradation and
negative impact on the natural and social environment.
In July 2005 the Government of Lao PDR adopted its Forestry Strategy to the
Year 2020. This is an official document to guide the sustainable management
and development of the forestry sector in line with national policies, strategies
and priority programs for national socio-economic development and
environmental conservation. It identified 146 actions to be tackled including
actions for the conservation and protection of biodiversity. As a
comprehensive package, biodiversity conservation the FS2020 calls for
improving the legal and regulatory framework, improvement of the
management and development of the country national protected area system,
controlling wildlife trade, enhancing conservation awareness and
strengthening research.
4.2 A snap shot of the management of biodiversity in the study area
Despite the legal framework presented in table 4.1, there remain significant constraints with the
implementation and enforcement of legislation due to the limited institutional capacity and financial
resources of the responsible government agencies. These constraints are particularly acute at the
provincial and local government levels. Through engaging with government officials from across the
study area, the assessment team was able to get a better understanding of these constraints and how
they are impacting on the roll out of these national biodiversity conservation policies.
4.2.1 Government agencies
The management of biodiversity at the central level falls under the mandate of the Department of
Forestry. At the provincial level, the Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Office (PAFO) is responsible for
biodiversity management. Similarly at the district level biodiversity management rests with the District
Agriculture and Foresty Office (DAFO). Province and district offices under the Water Resources and
Environment Agency also have biodiversity conservation responsibilities, including biodiversity and
environment policy dissemination and enforcement.
Despite the assignment of responsibility to these agencies, active management of biodiversity in the
study area was observed as being low. Very few active biodiversity related projects/programmes were
identified during field visits (see table 4.2).
Table 4.2: Current biodiversity conservation programmes in the Study Area
Programme Name District Implementer
Community-based Natural Resource
Management Project
Samoi, Taoy Village Focus International
Sepon Gold and Copper Mine Project –
impact assessment and management
programme
Vilabouri Oxiana-LXML Ltd.
Phou Xang He NPA Management -- Part of Vilabouri, and Savannakhet Forestry Section
routine programme with limited scale of Sepon
in collaboration with offices of
government support
districts concerned
Dong Phouvieng Elephant Conservation
Project – new initiative to be
implemented soon
Nong Savannakhet PAFO
Biodiversity Management in Production
Forests
Taoy SUFORD
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