Officials are considering setting up a land research information exchange network, believing it would help government efforts to improve land and natural resources development plans.
The National Land Management Authority and Village Fund International held a meeting on Wednesday at the Lao-Japanese Training Centre to discuss the proposed network.
Participants discussed the feasibility of the scheme and how land research data and natural resources information could best be exchanged, according to Acting Director of the Centre for Research and Information under the authority, Mr Chanthaviphone Inthavong.
“Our aim is to make use of the plentiful existing research information,” Mr Chanthaviphone told Vientiane Times, adding that the idea is to centralise all available information relating to land and natural resources.
He conceded that researchers from individual organisations, including state and non-government organisations, conduct research on particular fields individually, which does not present an overall picture of the issue.
Consequently, there is a need to formulate a mechanism to collect diverse data that policy makers can access when formulating development plans for land and natural resources.
Mr Chanthaviphone gave the example of current challenges facing research into rubber tree plantations.
While some research finds positive economic results, it may not take into consideration aspects such as environmental impacts or adverse affects on local farmers.
On the other hand, some studies identify how and where rubber trees can be grown in an environmentally friendly and sustainable way while still yielding economic profit.
“Often researchers report results that only take into consideration one aspect of the overall picture,” he said.
This means that decision makers receive only one part of the total overview, which could lead to failure to grant a permit for a land concession to a promising plantation project and vice versa.
“Officials need to look at all aspects of a proposed project, and unfortunately there is currently no process that allows researchers to present their findings on various issues,” Mr Chanthaviphone said.
Establishing a national database by collecting existing research information conducted by various organisations would improve the process.
“If we can do that, officials can consider all aspects of an issue and make a more informed decision.”
The centre also hopes to establish a library to store the information and issue a regular magazine publishing research results.
Participants at the meeting also discussed the possibility of holding a meeting every three months to share lessons learnt for inclusion in the magazine, which would then be distributed to relevant agencies.
The Technical Meeting on National Research Forum on Land Issues was attended by representatives from educational institutions, government sectors and international organisations.
The meeting was funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
By Souksakhone Vaenkeo
(Latest Update February 12, 2010)
Author
Topic: Land, natural resource database proposed (Read 376 times)
