Lao Voices

There is no stopping now. The plan to develop a modern town at That Luang marsh is on the go.

Govt outlines plans for That Luang marsh development

Vientiane will match other Asean capitals when the That Luang marsh is transformed into a modern town.

Vientiane Mayor Dr Sinlavong Khoutphaythoune told Japanese and local journalists yesterday at the Vientiane Administrative Office there are three main reasons why the government had decided to allow development of the marsh.

He explained the reasoning behind the development of the That Luang marsh as a new modern town as one of meeting domestic needs and the necessity for well planned development.

The interview was made following a request from journalists from the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun through the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Dr Sinlavong first explained the three main reasons why the Lao government decided to develop the marsh.

“Firstly, the Party’s policy is to use domestic resources to develop the country, which means turning assets into capital,” Dr Sinlavong said.

He explained that the country also needed to construct a sports complex and stadium in order to host the 25 th SEA Games, which is scheduled to take place in Laos next year, and the government did not have sufficient funds for this.

Three Chinese companies are building this complex and the government had given them permission to develop the marsh in return. The companies had been given a 50-year concession, which could be extended by another 25 years, and would be developing the area in collaboration with a Lao company.

Dr Sinlavong further explained that if Laos missed the opportunity to host this regional event it would have to wait 20 more years until it had another chance. The South East Asian Games are held every two years on a rotation system among Asean member countries.

“The event will stimulate the socio-economic development process. I have observed that because the games will take place in Vientiane , the investment, development and tourism sectors are growing rapidly,” said Dr Sinlavong.

He said the final reason was that because the marsh area had been occupied from time to time it was getting smaller and shallower day by day. In 1917 the marsh covered 100 sq km, but today it measured less than 10 sq km.

“If we allow it to be settled as it was in the past, in 20 or 30 years there will be no more marsh as people fill it in. It presents a challenge because this may lead to flooding in Vientiane ,” Dr Sinlavong explained.

During the past three years, even though the rainfall had been relatively light, many parts of the city had experienced floods as the marshlands shrank in size.

Dr Sinlavong said that, one way or another, the marsh would be developed, but if there were funds to align this development with good town planning, it would be better to do it properly rather than let the area develop randomly as had been done in the past.

“Many people have raised questions about whether the development of the marsh could damage the environment, but in fact it has already been polluted by local residents,” said Dr Sinlavong. “To protect the environment from being more polluted than it is today, we need to formulate a proper development plan.”

As part of the proposed development plan an enormous pond of 450 hectares will be excavated to capture rainfall in the rainy season. This pond will have the capacity to hold 70 days worth of heavy rainfall per year, which is enough to prevent flooding.

The proposed new town will cover a total area of 1,640 hectares, but the buildings themselves will cover less than 1,000 hectares.

Dr Sinlavong said that compensation for people affected by this development would be reasonable and in accordance with the Prime Ministerial agreement Article 3.

By Souksakhone Vaenkeo
March 21, 2008
Vientiane Times - Vientianetimes.org.la