The World Bank’s Bad Business in Lao PDR

Over 72% of land leases involve foreign investors, primarily Chinese, Vietnamese, and Thai companies. Most products from these operations are exported as raw material to the investor countries, leaving little to no room for added value domestically to benefit the Laotian economy. Rubber is the largest single industry within land investment, making up 34% of all land concessions. The two largest rubber investors are Vietnamese corporations, Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) and Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG). The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank, has funded both companies. In February 2014, ethnic minority families filed a complaint accusing the IFC of breaking its own safeguard policies by investing in HAGL. The families called for the company to return land taken from them.

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