PAKBENG HYDROPOWER PROJECT RAP-Resettlement Action Plan September.2015 RAP - Resettlement Action Plan CONTENTS Page 1 PREAMBLE .................................................................................................................. 1-1 1.1 Background ............................................................................................................. 1-1 1.1.1 Mekong Mainstream Hydropower and the Pak Beng HPP ................................... 1-1 1.1.2 Project Purpose ...................................................................................................... 1-4 1.1.3 Project Need and Benefit ....................................................................................... 1-4 1.2 Objective of RAP .................................................................................................... 1-4 1.3 Cause of Relocation and Resettlement .................................................................... 1-5 1.4 Stakeholders & Social Groups ................................................................................ 1-5 1.5 Measures Taken to Avoid or Minimize Resettlement ............................................. 1-6 1.5.1 Impact Avoidance .................................................................................................. 1-6 1.5.2 No Build Alternative ............................................................................................. 1-7 1.6 Operation Definition Used in This Report .............................................................. 1-7 2 PROJECT FEATURES OF PAK BENG HPP .............................................................. 2-1 2.1 Project Location ...................................................................................................... 2-1 2.2 Project Features ....................................................................................................... 2-2 2.3 Project Component .................................................................................................. 2-3 2.4 Projected Affected Areas ........................................................................................ 2-6 2.5 Dam Safety .............................................................................................................. 2-6 2.6 Project Cost ............................................................................................................. 2-7 2.7 Project Implementation Schedule............................................................................ 2-7 3 POLICY FRAMEWORK RELEVANT TO RESETTLEMENT.................................. 3-1 3.1 Livelihood Policy Issues ......................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.1 National Focus ....................................................................................................... 3-1 3.1.2 Agriculture/Forestry for National Growth and Poverty Eradication ..................... 3-1 3.1.3 Rural development and the NGPES ...................................................................... 3-2 3.1.4 Capacity Building .................................................................................................. 3-2 i RAP - Resettlement Action Plan 3.1.5 Role & Importance of Agriculture/Forestry in Poverty Reduction ....................... 3-4 3.1.6 Decentralization & Agricultural Development Goals ........................................... 3-4 3.2 Social & Resettlement Laws/Regulations ............................................................... 3-5 3.2.1 GOL Resettlement Policy & Guidelines ............................................................... 3-6 3.3 Provincial Socio-economic Development Plan ....................................................... 3-7 3.3.1 Bokeo Province ..................................................................................................... 3-7 3.3.2 Xayaboury Province .............................................................................................. 3-8 3.3.3 Oudomxay Province .............................................................................................. 3-9 3.4 Ethnic Groups .......................................................................................................... 3-9 3.5 Cultural & Archaeology ........................................................................................ 3-13 3.6 Tourism ................................................................................................................. 3-13 3.7 Lao Party Congress Social Policy ......................................................................... 3-14 3.8 Other Regulatory Framework ............................................................................... 3-15 3.8.1 The Lao Environmental Protection Law (1999) ................................................. 3-17 3.8.2 The Decree on Environmental Assessment No. 112/PM (2010) ........................ 3-17 3.8.3 The Lao Wildlife and Aquatics Law (No. 07/NA-Dec.2007) ............................. 3-20 3.8.4 The Lao Water Law (1996) ................................................................................. 3-22 3.8.5 The Lao Amended Land Law (No. 04/NA-Oct.2003) ........................................ 3-22 3.8.6 Environmental & Social Impact Assessment ...................................................... 3-22 3.8.7 Hydropower Environmental & Social Sustainability .......................................... 3-24 3.9 Safeguard Policy of International Lending Agency .............................................. 3-25 3.10 International Principle and Best Practice .............................................................. 3-28 3.10.1 Equator Principle ........................................................................................... 3-28 3.10.2 World Commission on Dams – Criteria and Guidelines ............................... 3-28 3.11 International Conventions & Treaties ................................................................... 3-29 3.12 Regional Agreement .............................................................................................. 3-29 4 CENSUS AND SOCIOECONOMIC SURVEY RESULTS ......................................... 4-1 4.1 Socio-economics of Upstream Directly Affected Communities ............................. 4-1 4.1.1 Identification of Directly Affected Villages .......................................................... 4-1 ii RAP - Resettlement Action Plan 4.1.2 Demography, Ethnicity & Religious Beliefs ......................................................... 4-1 4.1.3 Housing ................................................................................................................. 4-2 4.1.4 Land Holding & Ownership .................................................................................. 4-4 4.1.5 Occupation & Workforce ...................................................................................... 4-4 4.1.6 Livelihood Resource .............................................................................................. 4-4 4.1.7 Livestock Rearing .................................................................................................. 4-5 4.1.8 Fishing ................................................................................................................... 4-5 4.1.9 Family Income & Expenditure .............................................................................. 4-5 4.1.10 Education ......................................................................................................... 4-7 4.1.11 Village Administration..................................................................................... 4-7 5 HOUSING ..................................................................................................................... 5-1 5.1 Village Administration ............................................................................................ 5-4 5.1.1 Women and Health Care ....................................................................................... 5-5 5.1.2 Women’s Participation .......................................................................................... 5-5 5.1.3 Attitudes towards the Pak Beng HPP .................................................................. 5-14 6 CATEGORIES OF AFFECTED PEOPLE BY TYPE & DEGREE OF IMPACTS..... 6-1 6.1 Identification of Affected People ............................................................................ 6-1 6.2 Severely Affected Families ..................................................................................... 6-4 6.3 Loss of Productive Assets ....................................................................................... 6-4 6.4 Loss of Residence and Business Premises ............................................................ 6-10 6.5 Partially Affected Families.................................................................................... 6-10 6.6 Partially Affected Public Assets ............................................................................ 6-11 7 COMPENSATION ENTITLEMENT CRITERIA ........................................................ 7-1 7.1 COMPENSATION POLICY .................................................................................. 7-1 7.2 Eligibility Criteria for Affected People ................................................................... 7-2 7.2.1 Definition of Project Affected Persons ................................................................. 7-2 7.2.2 Criteria for Eligibility ...........................................................................................