Pha Oudom District

Geography

The district is located about 50 kilometres southeast of the town of Houay Xay and covers a total area of 1,579 square kilometres. The district is bordered with Houay Xay District to the northwest, Nalae District and Viengphoukha District of Louangnamtha Province to the northeast, Houn District of Oudomxay Province to the east, Pakbeng District to the south and Paktha District of Bokeo to the west. It has a population of about 36,400 people. The district is remote and mountainous can be divided into two regions of highlands at 800 metres above sea level which comprises about 65% of the land area and lowlands at 400 metres above sea level.The Nam Tha River is the main river passing through the district.

Towns and villages

Pha Oudom contains 94 villages, 54 of them are among the poorest communities in Laos. The inhabitants mainly consist of the Khmu peoples which constitute about 80 percent of the district population, followed by 12 percent Lowlander and 8 percent Hmong.The oldest village in the district is Namkha, established in 1906.

Economy and facilities

The economy is based on rice farming and animal husbandry including buffalo.The people are also experienced in handicrafts and collecting non-timber forest products and paper mulberry is also one of the main income generating activities. There are also numerous teak and rubber planatations in the district. Since irrigation forpaddy rice cultivation was introduced in 2006 many people have turned to cultivating rice.

Many of the villages have no electricity, no road access and no running water and often no sanitation. Australian activists working for Plan have noted that because the district is so remote it is one of the poorest in Laos. Plan are working to improve sanitation, hygiene and water supply in the region.

The provincial government has aimed to encourage more villagers in the isolated mountainous regions to move into the lowland to get better access to some of the restricted facilities such as roads, the market, education, and health care centers. Land use planning and land allocation policies by the government is also aiming to reduce deforestation which is a problem in Pha Oudom district and to promote sustainable land use.