RAP PUBLICATION 2009/05 Fisheries and aquaculture in the Lao PDR – a legislative review iv RAP PUBLICATION 2009/05 FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE IN THE LAO PDR – A LEGISLATIVE REVIEW By Philippe Cacaud and Phouvieng Latdavong With contributions from Simon Funge-Smith, Blaise Kuemlangan, Eric Meusch, Roger Mollot and Bounthong Saphakdy FAO REGIONAL OFFICE FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC BANGKOK, THAILAND 2008 i The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. ISBN 978-92-5-106236-4 All rights reserved. Reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product for educational or other non-commercial purposes are authorized without any prior written permission from the copyright holders provided the source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of material in this information product for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without written permission of the copyright holders. Applications for such permission should be addressed to: Chief Electronic Publishing Policy and Support Branch Communication Division FAO Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy or by e-mail to: [email protected] © FAO 2009 For copies please write to: The Senior Fishery Officer FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific Maliwan Mansion, 39 Phra Athit Road Bangkok 10200 THAILAND Tel: (+66) 2 697 4000 Fax: (+66) 2 697 4445 E-mail: [email protected] For bibliographic purposes, please reference this publication as: Cacaud, P. & Latdavong, P., (2009). Fisheries and aquaculture in the Lao PDR – a legislative revies. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand. RAP Publication 2009/05, 71 pp. ii FOREWORD The importance of living aquatic resources to the people of Lao PDR is increasingly well understood. Their role is woven into the culture food and tradition of Loa people from every part of the country and each of its eco-regions. Lao PDR’s fisheries resources are an important source of nutritional quality in the diet as well as providing an important element of food security and source of income to the Lao People. The effective management of both fisheries and aquaculture is a critical need, as Lao PDR is rapidly changing its agriculture and water control systems. Declining fisheries resources as a result of increasing population pressures and environmental change are an increasing feature of the Lao landscape. The Government of Lao PDR has recognized the need for a national legal framework to be developed to enable the effective management of fisheries and aquaculture and requested the Department of Livestock and Fisheries to undertake this task. This review forms a background document to a legal review process for fisheries and aquaculture in Lao PDR. The output of this process has been the development of a draft framework for fisheries and aquaculture for further development into national legislation. This work has taken nearly two years to complete and has been the result of a unique collaboration between the Government of Lao PDR, in particular the Department of Livestock and Fisheries, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (Legal Service and the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific), WWF, the Mekong River Commission’s Fisheries Programme, in particular its ‘Fisheries Management and Governance Component, the Asian Institute of Technology and the WorldFish Center (SE Asia Regional Office). Each organization has provided not only technical and advisory input to this process, including the organization of, and participation in stakeholder consultations, but have also committed funding support. The significant support provided by the European Union in project GCP/ GLO/162/EC, which enabled the initiation of this two year programme and the FAO TCP-Facility managed by the Representative of FAO in Lao PDR are gratefully acknowledged. I believe this process is an excellent example of partnership that exemplifies modern development assistance and the kind of consultative and inclusive process that ensures a robust outcome that will benefit the people of Lao PDR for generations to come. He Changchui Assistant Director General FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific iii iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page FOREWORD .............................................................................................................................. iii ACRONYMS .............................................................................................................................. vii 1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1 2 ADMINISTRATION OF AQUACULTURE AND FISHERIES ........................................... 2 2.1 Fisheries administration ......................................................................................... 2 2.2 Delegation of authority ........................................................................................... 3 3 REVIEW OF EXISTING LEGAL FRAMEWORK PERTAINING TO OR HAVING A DIRECT OR INDIRECT IMPACT ON AQUACULTURE AND FISHERIES ..................... 4 3.1 Constitution ............................................................................................................ 4 3.2 Fisheries and aquaculture legal framework............................................................ 5 3.2.1 Forestry law 1996 ...................................................................................... 5 3.2.2 Fisheries regulations ................................................................................. 7 3.2.3 Wildlife and Aquatic Animals Act 2008 ...................................................... 12 3.2.4 Agriculture Law 1998 ................................................................................. 13 3.2.5 Penal Law 1990 ......................................................................................... 15 3.2.6 Comments ................................................................................................. 17 3.3 Other relevant legislation........................................................................................ 18 3.3.1 Land Law ................................................................................................... 18 3.3.2 Water and Water Resources Law .............................................................. 19 3.3.3 Environmental Protection Law ................................................................... 20 3.3.4 Law on the Promotion of Foreign Investment............................................ 21 3.4 International commitments ..................................................................................... 23 4 RELEVANT DRAFT LEGISLATION ................................................................................ 23 4.1 Draft Veterinary Bill................................................................................................. 23 5 LEGISLATIVE PROCESS ............................................................................................... 25 6 LEGAL ISSUES ............................................................................................................... 27 6.1 Framework legislation ............................................................................................ 27 6.2 Single versus separate legislation .......................................................................... 27 6.3 Jurisdiction ............................................................................................................. 27 6.4 Regimes of access ................................................................................................. 28 6.4.1 Co-management mechanisms .................................................................. 28 6.4.2 Regulation of fishing effort through restriction of access ........................... 30 6.4.3 Fishing in rice fields ................................................................................... 31 6.5 Delegation of authority ........................................................................................... 31 6.6 Threats from other activities ................................................................................... 31 6.7 Fishing in protected areas ...................................................................................... 32 6.8 Protection of resources .......................................................................................... 32 6.9 Aquaculture ............................................................................................................ 33 v TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Page 6.10 Power to make regulations ..................................................................................... 35 6.11 Post-harvest issues ................................................................................................ 35 6.12 Enforcement ........................................................................................................... 36 6.13 Offences and penalties scheme ............................................................................