Xaisomboun province explained

Xaisomboun Province
Native Name Lang:lo
Settlement Type:Province
Map Alt:Map showing Xaisomboun province in Laos
Coordinates:18.9057°N 103.092°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Laos
Established Title:Established
Established Date:13 December 2013
Seat Type:Capital
Seat:Xaisomboun town
Area Total Km2:8,551
Population Total:107,926
Population As Of:2020 census
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone1:ICT
Utc Offset:+7
Iso Code:LA-XS

Xaisomboun (Lao: ໄຊສົມບູນ, in Lao pronounced as /sáj.sǒm.bùːn/) is a mountainous province in central Laos, between Vientiane province and Xiangkhouang province. The province covers an area of and had a population of 85,168 in 2015. Xaisomboun town in Anouvong District is the economic centre. There are extensive copper and gold mining operations nearby at Sana Somboun.

History

Xaisomboun is the 18th and newest province of Laos. It was designated special administrative zone between June 1994 and 2006, with the military controlling the area to suppress Hmong resistance and to exploit timber resources.[1] Many Hmong locals fled Laos during this period, taking refuge in Phetchabun, Thailand.[2]

Xaisomboun was established as a province on 13 December 2013.[3] Since then, dam construction on the Nam Ngum River led to around 300 families being relocated to Feuang District in Vientiane province. They were not compensated for the loss of their land.[4]

The province has long been a hotbed for conflict between the government and the Hmong peoples. In November 2015, unrest broke out in the province, killing three soldiers and three civilians. The Lao government imposed a curfew in the north-central part of the province in early-December, but in January 2016 a bomb was set off at a road construction site near Pha Nok Nok village in Long Cheang District, killing two Chinese officials and injuring another. As a result, on 16 February 2016, Major General Thongloy Silivong, a military officer who is the former chief of the National Defense Academy, was appointed the governor of Xaisomboun to tighten control.[5] On 16 June 2017, another Chinese official was shot dead in the province.[6]

Since 2019, the government has been exploring options to develop the tourism industry in the province, resulting in further displacement of the Hmong population, especially near Phou Bia.[7]

Geography

The province is mountainous. To the northeast of the town of Xaisomboun in neighbouring Xiangkhouang province is Phou Bia Mountain—at 2,819 m (9,249 ft) the highest point in Laos. The principal river, the Nam Ngum, has been subject to a hydroelectric scheme with the creation of a dam and large reservoir and an underground power plant.[8] In March 2014 it was announced that the Chinese company, Norinco International Cooperation, Ltd., had invested US$218 million in the development, projected to take 42 months.[9]

Phou Khao Khouay National Biodiversity Conservation Area is a protected area northeast of Vientiane.[10] It was established on 29 October 1993 covering an area of 2,000 km2 extending into neighboring provinces.[11] It has a large stretch of mountain range with sandstone cliffs, river gorges and three large rivers with tributaries which flow into the Mekong River.[8]

Administrative divisions

There are 96 villages. Districts are:[12]

MapCodeNameLao script
18-01Anouvong DistrictLao: ເມືອງອະນຸວົງ
18-02Longchaeng DistrictLao: ເມືອງລ້ອງແຈ້ງ
18-03Longxan DistrictLao: ເມືອງລ້ອງຊານ
18-04Hom DistrictLao: ເມືອງຮົ່ມ
18-05Thathom DistrictLao: ເມືອງທ່າໂທມ

Economy

The economic centre of the province lies in Xaisomboun town, Anouvong District.[3] There are copper and gold mining operations nearby at Sana Somboun, with companies such as Phu Bia Mining Limited operating.[13] Phu Kam and Ban Houayxai Gold-Silver are notable mines in the area, with the Phu Kham mine producing 83,680 tonnes of copper concentrate and 70,787 ounces of gold and Ban Houayxai Gold-Silver producing 108,570 oz of gold and 666,628 oz of silver in 2018.[14] The Phu Bia Mining Company began operations in 2006 and as of June 2019 had given nearly 6,248 trillion kip (US$716 million) in cumulative contributions to the government, generating over 3200 jobs for mainly Hmong locals. Phu Bia has permission to mine until at least 2021.[15]

The locals are mainly involved in cultivation, fish-raising, poultry and livestock.[16] Despite local conflict in recent years, the tourism industry is taking off in the province.[17]

In 2021, Xaisomboun provincial officials announced the development of Phou Bia Mountain as a "sustainable development tourism site", valued at some US$500 million. The development will center on Phou Houa Xang Village, in Anouvong District, Xaisomboun, under a 99 year concession.[18]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Stuart-Fox, Martin. 6 February 2008 . Historical Dictionary of Laos. Scarecrow Press . 385. 9780810864115. 27 August 2019.
  2. Web site: Report on the Situation in the Xaysomboun Special Zone and 1100 Hmong-Lao Refugees who Escaped to Petchabun, Thailand 2004-2005. Earth Peoples. 2006. Sommer, Rebecca. 1–8.
  3. Web site: About Xaysomboun . Tourism Laos. 27 August 2019.
  4. Book: Hirsch, Philip. 13 September 2016 . Routledge Handbook of the Environment in Southeast Asia. 398 . Taylor & Francis. 9781315474885.
  5. Web site: New governor appointed to ensure security in Laos' Xaysomboun province. Radio Free Asia via RefWorld, UN Refugee Agency. 24 February 2016. 27 August 2019.
  6. Web site: Laos: Chinese Embassy issues warning for Xaysomboun province June 18. Garda World. 19 June 2017. 27 August 2019.
  7. Web site: UNPO: Hmong in Isolation: Atrocities against the Hmong in Laos. 2021-10-06. unpo.org.
  8. Book: Fodor's Thailand: with Myanmar (Burma), Cambodia, and Laos. Fodor's Travel Guides. 957. 2013. 9780770432072.
  9. Web site: Chinese company to develop hydropower in Xaysomboun. Vientiane Times. CGIAR. 4 March 2014. 27 August 2019.
  10. Book: Land and forestland allocation policy: impacts on land use practices in Hatkhai and Yang-Khoua villages. 2004. Regional Center for Social Science and Sustainable Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University . 17. 9789746565882.
  11. Web site: Tiger Paper. FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Far East. 2000. 2.
  12. Web site: Old and new geographical delimitations and administrative districts of the new Xaisomboun province after 2014 . 13 December 2013 . Official Laos Government Presentation . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222115436/http://www.na.gov.la/sess_leg7/doc_sess6_leg7/session6_docs/day5/Presentation13.ppt . December 22, 2015 .
  13. Book: Minerals Yearbook - Area Reports: International Review: 2011. International Department Geological Survey. 2013. 13–29. 9781411336681.
  14. Book: Manuel de géopolitique: Enjeux de pouvoir sur des territoires . 2nd. Frédéric Lasserre. Emmanuel Gonon. Éric Mottet. Armand Colin. 2016 . 265. 9782200615734. fr.
  15. News: Phu Bia Mining hoping to extend concession in Xaysomboun . Vientiana Times. Asia News Network. Boulom, Souksamai . 7 June 2019. 27 August 2019.
  16. Book: Rural development in Lao PDR: managing projects for integrated sustainable livelihoods. Regional Center for Social Science and Sustainable Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University. 2005. Bouapao, Lilao. 9789746567886.
  17. News: Xaysomboun province opens to tourism. TR Weekly . 16 March 2015 . 27 August 2019.
  18. News: Thanabouasy . Phayboune . Unrest in Xaysomboun Province Now Resolved . 25 January 2021 . The Laotian Times . 22 January 2021.