Revealing the hidden effects of land grabbing in Laos through better understanding of farmers’ strategies in dealing with land loss Diana Suhardiman, Mark Giordano, Oulavanh Keovilignavong, Touleelor Sotoukee Land and Poverty Conference World Bank, Washington DC, USA March 2015

Structure of the presentation Current research on the impacts of land grabbing New frontiers of land control in Laos Research methodology Farmers’ strategies to cope with land loss Discussions and some policy implications

Current research on the impacts of land grabbing Focuses on farming households who have been forced out of agriculture (Baird, 2011; Dwyer, 2007) How farmers have been adversely incorporated into concession and contract farming (Dwyer, 2014; Shi, 2008) Linking the differential impacts of land grabbing with farmers’ differing socio-economic status and political connections

New frontiers of land control in Laos Laos has conceded a significant amount of land to foreign investors Far reaching internal resettlement policies From security to capitalization turning “battlefields into market places” Land Forest Allocation policy The central positioning of land concession: turning land into capital

Research Methodology In-depth case study of Nadee village Key informant analysis Survey of 80 randomly selected households Focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews

Farm households by type and land loss, Nadee village, Laos, 2014 Source: Authors’ survey (April 2014) * excluding landless

Farmers’ various strategies in coping with land loss Land tenure protection through rubber plantations Acquiring access to new land for commercial or to support subsistence Transitioning from on-farm to non-farm

Discussion Control over land has always been an important element in the state’s agricultural development policies Territorialization and legalization as means to secure control over land Farmers used a variety of other strategies beyond tax payment in response to land loss The choice of strategy was related to socio- economic and political status

Revealing hidden effects of land grabbing Impacts of land dispossession are not equal across farming households It illustrates a variety of ways in which direct loss of land can increase vulnerability

Conclusion Impacts of land dispossession are not equal across farming households It illustrates a variety of ways in which direct loss of land can increase vulnerability

Some policy implications The problem of land grabbing The government’s moratorium on land concessions Can land concession for agricultural development be regulated in accordance with farmers’ development needs?

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