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Socio-Economic Perspectives on Shifting Cultivation Landscapes in Northern Laos

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Abstract

Despite the rapid agricultural transition that has occurred in the past decade, shifting cultivation remains a widespread agricultural practice in the northern uplands of Lao PDR. Little information is available on the basic socio-economic situation and respective possible patterns in shifting cultivation landscapes on a regional level. On the basis of a recent approximation of the extent of shifting cultivation landscapes for two time periods and disaggregated village level census data, this paper characterizes these landscapes in terms of key socioeconomic parameters for the whole of northern Laos. Results showed that over 550,000 people live in shifting cultivation regions. The poverty rate of this population of 46.5 % is considerably higher than the national rural rate. Most shifting cultivation landscapes are located in remote locations and a high share of the population comprises ethnic minorities, pointing to multi-dimensional marginality of these areas. We discuss whether economic growth and increased market accessibility are sufficient to lift these landscapes out of poverty.

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Acknowledgments

We acknowledge support from the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) North-South, co-funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern, Switzerland. Furthermore, this research has benefited from collaboration and support of the I-REDD+ project by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Research Programme, the Agro Biodiversity Initiative (TABI) in Laos, as well as the Global Land Project (GLP).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Development and Environment (CDE), University of Bern, Hallerstrasse 10, 3012, Berne, Switzerland

    Andreas Heinimann, Cornelia Hett, Peter Messerli, Michael Epprecht & Thomas Breu

  2. Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) North-South, Institute of Geography, University of Bern, Hallerstrasse 10, 3012, Berne, Switzerland

    Kaspar Hurni & Thomas Breu

  3. NCCR North-South, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resource, Prime Minister’s Office compound, P. O. Box 1438, Vientiane, Laos

    Andreas Heinimann, Cornelia Hett & Michael Epprecht

  4. Department of Geography and Geology, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 10, 1350, Copenhagen K, Denmark

    Lars Jørgensen

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  1. Andreas Heinimann
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  2. Cornelia Hett
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Correspondence to Andreas Heinimann.

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Heinimann, A., Hett, C., Hurni, K. et al. Socio-Economic Perspectives on Shifting Cultivation Landscapes in Northern Laos. Hum Ecol 41, 51–62 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-013-9564-1

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