Bolaven Plateau - Economy

Economy

Literature on the Boloven Plateau often focuses on two primary economic contributors to the region: agricultural production and tourism. Both contribute greatly to the Plateau’s revenue.

The French first began farming and other agricultural techniques in the Bolaven Plateau including the production of coffee, rubber, and bananas in the early 20th century. Since the French’s initial influence, “the plateau remained an important agricultural area growing a wide variety of fruit and vegetables, as well as cash crops such as cardamom”. However, it was the French introduction of the production of coffee that has proved most useful to the region.

During colonization, the French introduced the production of “high quality stock of both Arabica and Robusta strains. Production declined during the war years, but is now experiencing a renaissance”. The climate of the Plateau with its cooler temperatures and abundant rainfall makes it the perfect place for coffee production. Most farming families that make up a variety of the aforementioned minority groups are highly dependent on the coffee industry as their source of income. Almost all coffee in Laos is “cultivated almost exclusively on the Bolaven Plateau in Champasak Province in the southern part of the country… Currently, the Lao coffee harvest generates about 15-20,000 tons a year, 80% of which is Robusta.