Lessons learnt from the Theun-Hinboun Expansion resettlement in Laos

The resettlement of 4367 persons from 12 settlements in the reservoir area of the Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project (THXP) was a major challenge for planners and the implementing teams. Building on new policies, regulations and guidelines for resettlement and environmental management in Lao PDR, and benefiting from the experiences from the Nam Theun 2 project upstream in the same catchment, a number of innovations were introduced to ensure a successful physical relocation into four new resettlement sites, and to establish a framework for long-term sustainable development. This paper explores lessons learnt based on results in the field. A presentation on this subject will be given by the author at ASIA 2012 in Chiang Mai.