Chapter 2: Datasets on land deals and methodology of data analysis
In order to enhance knowledge on land deals in the Lao PDR, existing data on land deals was updated, and new data was collected through two separate but interlinked data campaigns. Firstly, a new, nation-wide inventory of all land deals in the primary sector was conducted6. Secondly, an assessment focusing on a wide range of quality aspects of land deals, which includes a selection of deals from the land deal inventory, was carried out. The following sections detail the data collection methods, the data used for different analyses, as well as the methodology for creating a metric to rate the quality of land deals.
A new inventory of land deals in the Lao PDR The land deal inventory is the result of nationwide collection of data on land deals, and was focused on providing an update and enhancement to the first inventory of land concessions and leases in the Lao PDR7, created in 2012 (Schönweger et al. 2012). The endeavour had two main goals: to develop a cross-ministerial collaboration for collecting, updating and evaluating data on land deals using a shared database; and to re-evaluate land deals according to key attributes. The first inventory on land concessions and leases (Schönweger et al. 2012) revealed that deals in the primary sector (focused on natural resource use and extraction) constituted 91% of the total land area granted for investment in the Lao PDR. Hence, for the new inventory presented here, data collection and analysis is limited to the primary sector, comprised of three subsectors: agriculture, tree plantations, and mining. Data on land deals for the secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy (including land deals for infrastructure, manufacturing, and hospitality), as well as land deals in special economic zones are omitted. As the electricity market is soaring in the Lao PDR, the development of hydropower projects is a particular point of debate. In this inventory update, hydropower projects were included in the data collection so as to establish a foundation for further characterization and analysis of this subsector8. This report, however, largely focuses on deals in the agriculture, tree plantation, and mining subsectors. For this inventory, key attributes were collected for each deal including location, product, stage of operation, and year of approval. These key attributes match those used in the first inventory. Beyond data on area granted, a new land deal inventory features data collected on the area developed under land deals. This was assessed primarily through participatory mapping of developed areas with stakeholders, and using high-resolution satellite imagery and aerial photos as a basis for digitization. 6 7 8
Data for the land deal inventory were collected by field teams consisting of representatives from the line agencies of MAF, MoNRE, MEM, and MPI (see Box entitled “Updating and enhancing the data on land deals in the Lao PDR through an inter-ministerial collaboration”). A core team from the central government took the lead and was joined by government staff at the province and district levels. The teams followed a standardised approach, which included the collection and comparison of official GoL documents from which the information of the selected key variables could be derived, and enquiries at the responsible GoL agencies for data which was otherwise not available. Data on land deals were obtained by comparing, cross-checking, and evaluating multiple sources: (1) databases of GoL agencies at the central level; (2) information obtained from GoL line agencies at central, province, and district levels; and (3) official documents for deals signed at any administrative level. Additionally, participatory mapping at the district level was conducted to capture the current extent of areas developed under land deals (see Hett et al. (2018) for more details related to the methodology of data collection). In 2014, the data collection approach was piloted in Luang Prabang and Xiengkhouang Provinces, and the procedures in the field were optimized accordingly. The data from all other provinces were collected in 2016 and 2017. Hence, the inventory can be seen as representative of the situation regarding land deals granted as of 2016-17, with the exception of Luang Prabang and Xiengkhouang Provinces. Figure 1 gives an overview of the collected data and the time of collection in each province. Selected key variables describing land deals used in this report A series of key variables were collected for each identified land deal. An overview of the key variables included in the inventory database is provided in the Annex. The technical terms and selected variables used in this report are defined in the following sections. Definition of a land deal in the database A land deal is an activity involving resource extraction or use for the production of goods (agricultural or tree) for which an investing individual or enterprise has been granted land use rights through concessions or leases of state land. A project9 is defined by an activity generating one or several products. In most cases, a project activity refers to the production of one product, e.g. raising pigs or planting rubber. In some cases, multiple products may be listed if, for example, a mining project extracts different types of mineral ore. A project
Referred to as the land deal inventory, or the 2018 inventory, throughout this report Referred to as the first inventory, or the 2012 inventory, throughout this report. Data on hydropower deals were in part collected through the field data campaign, and were complemented by integrating data from an existing database from the DEPP and DEB under MEM. 9 Throughout the report, the terms “project”, “land deal”, “deal”, and “land investment” are used interchangeably.
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