LNTA-ADB
Mekong Tourism Development Project: With
financing from the Asian Development Bank, the Lao government
is developing 20 new community-based ecotourism products in Luang Namtha, Luang Prabang, Khammouane and Champassak provinces. This project is fostering collaborative links with
tourism partners in Vietnam and Cambodia, promoting cultural
and environmental protection, constructing tourism-related
infrastructure, strengthening local stakeholders' management
capacity and the role of women and ethnic minorities in the
tourism industry, and intensifying public and private sector
efforts at marketing and promoting Lao ecotourism
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UNESCO-LNTA Nam Ha Ecotourism
Project: First launched in 1999 with
primary financial support from the Government of New Zealand,
the UNESCO-LNTA Nam Ha Ecotourism Project is the
first and longest running community-based ecotourism program
in Laos . The Nam Ha Project is currently working to
strengthen conservation-ecotourism linkages in the Nam Ha NPA, stimulate and support private
sector investment in the ecotourism sector, strengthen the
capacity of tourism and protected area managers in Luang
Namtha and working with local partners to create district and
provincial tourism management plans to ensure sustainability
and equitable distribution of tourism's benefits. For the
project's contribution to poverty alleviation and heritage
protection in Lao PDR, the Nam Ha Project Team was awarded the 2001 United Nations Development Award and a
British Airways Tourism for Tomorrow Award in 2002. |
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CUSO Community Based
Ecotourism Development in Attapeu Province: CUSO is
working with the Provincial Tourism Authority to develop
various ecotourism initiatives in the region. This includes
homestay programs, eco-trekking with local guides to Dong
Ampham and Xepian National Protected Areas and village visits to ethnic Lavae,
Taliang, Oy and Alak groups. The focus of this program is job
creation, capacity building and eco-cultural conservation
through the use of sustainable ecotourism strategies. |
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SNV-Lao National Ecotourism Advisory
Program: SNV's (Netherlands Development Organization)
work in the Lao tourism sector benefits from some fifteen
year's experience in almost 20 developing countries. In Laos,
SNV delivers advice on policy, strategy, management and
product development issues to a range of clients. At the
national level these include the Lao National Tourism
Administration and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's
Division of Forestry Resources. At the provincial level, SNV
works with the Mekong Tourism Development Project in Luang
Prabang and Khammouane, and has recently initiated a
sustainable tourism program in Houaphan Province. Savannakhet is also one of the provinces
that receive direct advisory services from SNV. |
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Savannakhet Ecotourism Program: The Savannakhet Ecotourism Program has a number
of operational community-based ecotourism tours that venture
into the Phou Xang Hae and Dong Phou Vieng Protected Areas, as well as
a shorter excursion to the sacred Dong Na Tad forest just outside Savannakhet
town. To book a tour online, contact the Savannakhet Ecoguides. SNV is working with the Provincial
Tourism Office and local guide service to build capacity and
develop new ecotourism products and services. |
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DED
Ecotourism Program in Phou Khao Kouay: Besides trekking, river trips, village
home-stays and handicraft exhibitions, the DED (German
Development Service) Ecotourism Program in Phou Khao Khouay
has recently finished construction of Laos' first wild
elephant observatory, where you see wild elephants
frolic in a watering hole/mineral lick beneath you. The focus
of this program is to raise awareness about the importance of
protecting a local herd of wilds elephants and provide
villagers with alternative sources of income by generating
ecotourism revenue. The site is only about 1 hour from
Vientiane. |
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GTZ Ecotourism
Program in Muang Sing: GTZ and the tour operator Exotissimo are working
together in this innovative Public Private
Partnership project with Akha
communities in Luang Namtha to create a community owned and
operated ecotourism program, which includes village lodges,
eco-cultural trekking tours and village home stays. The
program aims to provide an intimate look into the life of the
AKha in the forest, in the fields and in the village. The
project has refurbished a historic building in Muang Sing that
now serves as a tourist information center as well. |
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EU Ecotourism
Program in Vieng Phoukha: Part of the EU's wider rural development project in Luang Namtha's Vieng
Phoukha District, this ecotourism program focuses on
poverty alleviation and job creation by training local guides
and villagers to develop and operate ecotourism products that
sustainably utilize and protect the area's unique cultural and
natural heritage. Multiple day treks operate regularly in the Nam Ha National Protected Area, where you
can see the rare Black-Cheeked Crested Gibbon and Guar. If
you are interested in caves Vieng Phoukha has a variety of
easily accessible but little known caves, all under the
careful management of local villagers. |
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Wildlife Conservation
Society Laos Ecotourism Support Program: WCS is
supporting the Nam Ha Protected Area Management Unit to
work with local trekking and rafting guides to monitor and
evaluate impacts on biodiversity conservation along
established tourism routes in Luang Namtha. WCS is also
working on formulating a strategy to use ecotourism to help
strengthen biodiversity conservation and protected area
management in Bolikhamxay's Nam Kading National Protected Area. |
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WWF Ecotourism
Program in Champassak: World Wildlife
Fund is starting a community-based ecotourism project to support the protection
of cultural heritage and biodiversity in and around the Xe Pian National Protected Area, which runs
through Laos ' southern provinces of Champassak and Attapeu. |
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Trekking in Pongsali's Nam Lan Conservation
Area: With initial support from the EU, local guides and communities
in Bountai district have set up 1- 3 day treks in and around
the Nam Lan Conservation area in Pongsali Province. These treks visit Akha and other ethnic minority communities
and offer excellent opportunities to see a number of resident
and migratory birds.
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