Poverty trends in villages affected by land-based investments in rural Laos

Abstract This paper contributes to debates on the implications of land-based investments on local livelihoods in the Global South. Drawing on a comprehensive national dataset on land concessions in Laos, and 2005 and 2015 village-level poverty rates, we examine the association between land-based investments and poverty at the village level in Lao rural areas. Results outline contexts in which land-based investments have either positive or adverse association with village-level poverty change rates; they also reveal factors that determine village-level poverty reduction in Laos. Our results suggest that poverty rates in villages affected by land-based investments decreased significantly between 2005 and 2015, following the national trend in Laos. However, in cases where land-based investments caused more farmland loss, poverty reduction was low or poverty rates increased over this period. Results further reveal that land-based investments implemented in more remote areas or poorer villages had a stronger association with poverty reduction. However, poverty was not a central consideration for the establishment of land-based investments. Our findings fill an important gap, providing a middle-level analysis from which grounded observations are analyzed alongside national trends.