A key challenge for reducing emission from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) in developing countries is to balance the power of various stakeholders in decision making. This study explores the forms of stakeholder participation in the implementation of three pilot projects in Laos, with a focus on who actually makes decisions on project activities. We found that stakeholder roles in making decisions were imbalanced. The central government and development partner organizations were the ones who actually fulfill the roles of decision-makers in most project activities. Although local communities were not the key stakeholders in decision making in most activities, their roles seem to have increased in the activities where participatory approaches were applied. Participation of the private sector, non-governmental organizations, academic and research institutes and mass organizations was limited. Opportunities to reach decision-makers regarding project activities came through service contract agreements. Our findings suggest that an understanding of who fulfills the key roles will support a decentralization of decision making by balancing power and redistributing the roles from dominant to weaker stakeholders. In addition, the private sector’s participation may enhance opportunities to harmonize their investments for supporting REDD+ development and reduce the negative impacts on the forests and the environment.

Land-titling programs, land and forest allocation programs, and projects on state-allocated land for development and investment in Laos have been key drivers of change in land tenure. These have triggered major shifts in land use rights, from customary, to temporary, and then to permanent land use rights. This article explores how government programs to grant land use rights to individual households have affected the way people have been able to acquire and secure land tenure. For our case study, we selected the village of Napo, the target of many land tenure changes in the past four decades. We collected data from district offices, group discussions with village organizations, and interviews with selected households. The study shows how land use rights shifted over time and reveals that households obtained most of their agricultural land and forestland through a claim process. Original households were mainly land claimers, while migrants were land buyers. The process of formalization and allocation of tenure triggered inequality among households. Attention is needed in future land governance and tenure reforms in order to safeguard the land use rights of local people in an equitable manner.

Laos has experienced enormous deforestation and forest degradation since 1975. Despite years of diligent effort by the government of Laos to decrease deforestation, the trend has not reversed. Rather, there have been further increases in certain parts of the country at various degrees. This is evident by the growing concern about forestland encroachment within National Protected Areas (NPA), which have been designated as reserves for biodiversity conservation. To reduce forestland encroachment within NPAs and halt the decline of forest area in Laos, it is important to analyze the factors that contribute to forestland encroachment. This paper analyzes influencing factors of forestland encroachment by the local people within NPA, in the central part of Laos. Our study utilized both primary data from field surveys and secondary data from government official reports, as well as used previous research papers to explore the factors of forestland encroachment. Logistic regression model was then applied to analyze the factors of forestland encroachment in Phou Hin Poun NPA. The results of the study indicate that the forestland encroachment inside this NPA is strongly associated with villagers’ high demand for cassava growing, power balance between villages, and the number of household members. On the other hand, other factors such as educational level, legal familiarity, economic status, and the proximity of the owner’s land to forest did not significantly influence forestland encroachment on the study site. This study provides basic information to the relevant authorities who are responsible for taking effective measures against forestland encroachment inside the NPA, in Laos. The findings and knowledge gained from this study can be used by policy makers to solve the current issue of forestland encroachment as well as forest management in other countries with similar conditions.