Publication: Lao People's Democratic Republic Nam Theun 2 Multipurpose Project : Reports 21A and 21B of the International Environmental and Social Panel of Experts
Loading...
Published
2013-03-12
ISSN
Date
2014-01-31
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
This report details seven recommendations from the International Environmental and Social Panel of Experts for the Nam Theun 2 (NT2) Multipurpose Project in the Lao People s Democratic Republic. 1) Watershed Management and Protection Authority (WMPA) conservation patrols will be repeated at least once a month, including the wet season. 2) The provincial and central government authorities will take effective action to recognize and halt the undermining of village authorities in the Nakai Nam Theun National Protected Area (NPA) for the illegal rosewood trade, including its participants, supporters, and enablers. 3) The WMPA will assure that law enforcement staff is provided at least two reliable, functional vehicles, a boat with good motor, motorbikes and laptops. 4) The organizations responsible for monitoring, patrolling and enforcing management of the reservoir, especially the WMPA and the resettlement-based village fisher groups, will find or develop mechanisms to complement and harmonize their activities to achieve effective management of the reservoir and its fishery. 5) The WMPA will develop rigorous criteria for evaluating which existing WMPA staff meets the present requirements and which do not, and to seek to replace the latter with university graduates or experienced staff from conservation organizations. 6) An institutional review of the WMPA and relevant line agencies will be carried out to consider the functions that the WMPA should implement in accordance with Decree 471. 7) The WMPA will monitor track construction in the NPA, only allow tracks that are in the agreed upon access plan, and actively halt and as appropriate destroy any other track construction.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“McDowell, David; Scudder, Taylor; Talbot, Lee M.. 2013. Lao People's Democratic Republic Nam Theun 2 Multipurpose Project : Reports 21A and 21B of the International Environmental and Social Panel of Experts. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16780 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Smart Green Infrastructure in Tiger Range Countries(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010-09)This report presents the results of extensive work of the smart green infrastructure task force commissioned by the World Bank under the Global Tiger Initiative (GTI). The report benefited from advice, ideas, and information about tigers and tiger-friendly infrastructure development from staff at the World Bank, and from several institutions that promote tiger and biodiversity conservation throughout the world. This study addresses infrastructure's impacts on tigers at international, national, sectoral and project levels in combination with the mitigation hierarchy which is based on avoidance, mitigation, minimization and compensation of impacts. It examines infrastructure policy challenges and opportunities, using lessons learned from case studies, along with regional and in-country analyses. While there are opportunities for improvement in all countries, Russia, India, Bhutan, and Nepal has, in particular, developed good foundations for tiger-related conservation, planning, and policy efforts. Best practices, drawn from case studies in non-tiger range countries, provide additional insights into infrastructure practices that could benefit tiger populations. Avoiding Tiger Conservation Landscapes (TCLs) is the best and cheapest option available to all parties for saving wild tigers.Publication Benefit Sharing in Practice : Insights for REDD+ Initiatives(Program on Forests (PROFOR), Washington, DC, 2012-02)Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and enhancing carbon stocks (REDD+) has raised the profile of benefit sharing in the forest sector. Sharing benefits, however, is not a new concept. Previous work on benefit sharing (associated with intellectual property, forest and agriculture concessions, mining, and so forth) has focused on clarifying the concept and examining how benefit sharing could feed into broader development outcomes. Getting benefit sharing right in the context of REDD+ has a similar objective. The objective of this study is twofold. The first is to examine existing arrangements for sharing benefits and extract insights from existing community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) arrangements that involve sharing benefits, specifically insights regarding how benefits are determined, how beneficiaries are identified, and how the set-up is influencing the effectiveness of the arrangements. The second objective is to provide community perspective on benefit sharing and partnerships in the forest sector. This study examines nine partnership arrangements in three countries Nicaragua, Tanzania, and Uganda. The partnerships include five performance-based PES arrangements (of which two are focused on carbon). The remaining four partnerships involve sustainable management of forests for specific objectives (timber, ecotourism, wildlife conservation, and so forth). All the partnerships took several years to set up, and some have been under implementation for several years. For purposes of this study, benefit sharing or sharing of benefits refers to an intentional transfer of financial payments and payments in the form of goods and services to intended beneficiaries.Publication The GEF-6 Biodiversity Strategy(World Bank Group, Washington, DC, 2014-09-16)The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) defines biodiversity as the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) demonstrated that biodiversity underpins ecosystem goods and services that are required for the survival of human societies and for the future of all life on the planet. In addition, biodiversity generates considerable economic value through the provision of goods such as food, water, and materials, and services such as climate regulation, pollination, disaster protection, and nutrient cycling. Governments, civil society organizations, the private sector, indigenous people and local communities, and others have made some progress in sustainably managing biodiversity and ecosystems at local and national levels, but not at the scale necessary to stem the ongoing tide of biodiversity loss globally. Current estimates indicate that species loss is occurring at 1,000 to 10,000 times the natural background rate. Of all the global environmental problems the world is facing today, biodiversity loss is the only one that is likely irreversible.Publication Investing in Natural Capital for Eradicating Extreme Poverty and Boosting Shared Prosperity : A Biodiversity Roadmap for the WBG(Washington, DC, 2014-06)The World Bank Group (WBG) has a long experience in engaging in biodiversity with world-class expertise in the field. It has been the single largest funder of biodiversity investments since the late 1980s. The WBG investments have largely been of two kinds: (1) investments in biodiversity, aimed at the conservation and sustainable use of species, habitats, and ecosystems that sustain healthy ecosystems, while enhancing people's livelihoods and safety nets. These investments have also been providing jobs and economic development in frequently impoverished rural areas for example by supporting protected areas and an increasingly important tourism industry; and (2) investments that add value to projects in other sectors, such as irrigation, hydropower, and infrastructure, by increasing their environmental sustainability. The WBG is a global center of excellence that provides economy wide technical and economic knowledge and expertise on biodiversity and ecosystems. It has the standing and convening power to facilitate participatory dialogue between client countries and networks of other relevant stakeholders on matters of biodiversity and climate change concern, such as loss of ecosystem resilience, forest law enforcement and governance, wildlife trade, and overexploitation of natural resources.Publication Managing the Miombo Woodlands of Southern Africa : Policies, Incentives and Options for the Rural Poor, Volume 1. Main Report(Washington, DC, 2008-05)Miombo woodlands stretch across Southern Africa in a belt from Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in the west to Mozambique in the east. The miombo region covers an area of around 2.4 million km. In some areas, miombo has been highly degraded as a result of human use (southern Malawi and parts of Zimbabwe), while in others, it remains relatively intact (such as in parts of northern Mozambique, and in isolated areas of Angola and the DRC). From a conventional forester's perspective, miombo is fundamentally uninteresting. It supports relatively few good commercial timber species. The management of commercial species has been problematic. The best areas were logged over long ago. Except in a few areas, remaining commercially viable stocks are relatively small and difficult to access. Public forestry institutions have, for the most part, failed to put in place effective management systems for forests, preferring instead to limit their role to regulation and revenue collection, rather than to management per se. The objectives of this paper are threefold, and the paper is structured around these objectives. First, in section two, the paper describes some of opportunities for improving the use and management of miombo woodlands. Second, in section three, outline some of the barriers which are preventing households, communities, and countries from adopting better and more sustainable woodland management practices. In section four, by exploring some of the policy opportunities for removing these barriers, with the objective of strengthening miombo's contribution to reducing risk and vulnerability of poor rural households through sustainable forest management.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Continental Drying: A Threat to Our Common Future(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-04)Grounded in new evidence from satellite data, “Continental Drying: A Threat to Our Common Future” presents the first global assessment of freshwater reserves over the past two decades. The findings expose an alarming trend of “continental drying,” a persistent long-term decline in freshwater availability across vast landmasses. Not only are droughts and deluges becoming more unpredictable, but the total amount of freshwater available for use has also significantly declined. Continental drying, driven by global warming, worsening droughts, and unsustainable water and land use, is a silent but accelerating crisis—largely unknown to the public—that reshapes the global water narrative. Continental drying raises profound risks. This report reveals new empirical evidence showing how freshwater depletion leads to major job losses, reduced incomes, wildfires, and biodiversity threats. In the long term, the combined effects of drying and warming could push societies toward a tipping point where damage accelerates rapidly and adaptation becomes increasingly difficult. Against the backdrop of continental drying, global water consumption rose by 25 percent between 2000 and 2019, with about a third of this increase occurring in regions already experiencing drying. Compounding the pressure, a substantial share of water use in drying regions remains inefficient. Continental Drying identifies hot spots where rising demand and declining supply converge and explores where and how water savings can be realized. This report recommends a three-pronged approach to address the crisis: managing demand, augmenting water supply, and improving water allocation. Five cross-cutting levers—strengthening institutions, reforming water tariffs and repurposing subsidies, adopting water accounting, leveraging data and technological innovations, and valuing water in trade—are essential for effective implementation and to attract private investment to finance the approach. Beyond water, addressing trade barriers, investing in education and skills development, and improving access to markets and financial services are critical for strengthening job and livelihood resilience amid a continental drying crisis.Publication Direct and Indirect Impacts of Transport Mobility on Access to Jobs: Evidence from South Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-12)Access to jobs is essential for economic growth. In Africa, unemployment rates are notably high. This paper reexamines the relationship between transport mobility and labor market outcomes, with a particular focus on the direct and indirect effects of transport connectivity. As predicted by theory, wages are influenced by the level of commuting deterrence. Generally, higher earnings are associated with longer commute times and/or higher commuting costs. Local accessibility is also important, especially for individuals with time constraints. Both direct and indirect impacts are found to be significant in South Africa, where job accessibility has been challenging since the end of apartheid. For the direct impact, the wage elasticity associated with commuting costs is significant. Returns on commute are particularly high for women. Local accessibility to socioeconomic facilities, such as shops and health services, is also found to have a significant impact, consistent with the concept of mobility of care. To enhance employment, therefore, it is crucial to connect people not only to job locations but also to various socioeconomic points of interest, such as markets and hospitals, in an integrated manner. This integration will enable individuals to spend more time working and commuting longer distances.Publication Kyrgyz Republic Country Climate and Development Report(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-03)This Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) on the Kyrgyz Republic aims to support the country’s development goals amid a changing climate. The CCDR considers two policy scenarios up to 2050: the business-as-usual (BAU) and high-growth scenarios. As it quantifies the likely impacts of climate change on the Kyrgyz economy between now and 2050, the report highlights key government actions to best prepare for and adapt to climate impacts (referred to as “with adaptation” measures), with a particular focus on the time horizon up to 2030. The CCDR also outlines a path to net zero emissions by 2050 (referred to as “with mitigation” measures, “decarbonization,” or, simply, “net zero 2050”), highlighting associated development co-benefits.Publication Taxes, Spending, and Equity: International Patterns and Lessons for Developing Countries(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-17)Taxes and public spending underpin the basic administration of government and finance the human capital and infrastructure investments needed for economic growth. They can also have a significant and immediate impact on poverty and inequality. The question of how public finance can support longer-term growth objectives while promoting equity has become even more important in recent years, given the high fiscal deficits and debt levels most countries emerged with in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. These included the increasing cost of debt and the need to restart environmentally sustainable growth while helping households address the learning losses and other social scars caused by the pandemic. This paper examines the global evidence on which households pay which taxes and who benefits from what spending, and critically, the net effect on different households across the income distribution. The aim is to identify the patterns and lessons that emerge for designing progressive fiscal policies. A global dataset of 96 countries is assembled, spanning all regions of the world and all national income levels, grounded in the Commitment to Equity (CEQ) approach to fiscal incidence.Publication Digital Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13)All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.