More than one hundred families who were resettled during the construction of the Laos-China Railway project have expressed their happiness at the new homes provided to them. They showed off their new homes to journalists who are taking part in a week-long media tour, organised by the Chinese Mission to ASEAN and China Daily.

The 103 families, made up of 482 individuals, were relocated in 2021 to pave the way for the construction of part of the 1,035km railway line from Vientiane, the capital of Laos, to Kunming, the capital of China’s Yunan province.

Speaking to reporters, Somphong Somphonpha chief of Buan Aor village in Luang Prabang province’s Xiang Ngeun district, said that the affected families each received a 600 square-metre parcel of land, as well as different housing options, which were based on their previous property.

In addition to their new homes, they also received compensation in cash for the loss of any fruit trees or crops.

“I am satisfied with the relocation because our lives were difficult at tour previous place. There were no roads and most people were poor. Now, I am satisfied and very thankful to this project,” said the village chief.

Infrastructure, like roads, schools, health centres, a water supply and electricity was constructed for the families of Buan Aor village before they moved in. The new village is located just one hour’s drive from the Luang Prabang city centre.

According to Somphonpha, before the relocation, negotiations were held with the company until each of the families decided that they were ready to move out. He said that once they moved to the new village, they were no longer worried about unhealthy accommodation, and could focus on earning money and saving. 

Bounsy Thatsanavong, 65, is one of the oldest men in the village. He lives with five other family members in one of the largest homes offered as compensation. It was awarded to him as he previously owned one of the largest blocks of land in the old location.

“I am much happier living here than I was in the old place as it was very remote, which made it difficult to access services. Here, modern facilities have been built for us,” he said, adding that he plans to continue growing crops on his farms.

Although they are pleased with the new homes which have been built for them, access to their farms – which are located close to their old houses – remains a difficulty. 

Somphonpha said that most of the villagers must travel for about an hour-and-a-half to reach their plantations.

He explained that most of the relocated families are farmers, who still grow cassava, animal feed and peanuts near their old village. Once their agricultural produce is harvested, traders come to buy from them right in the new village.

He said the villagers are seeking support from the railway development company or the Lao government to build a new road to their farm. If they do not receive funding, the villagers will have to raise the money to build it on their own.

No official information was available as to how many families were relocated and received compensation in the course of the railway’s construction, although various international media outlets estimated that more than 4,000 were affected.

Although other newly relocated communities may have had different experiences, the Buan Aor resettlement village painted a positive image of the project, providing a poor community with new homes and infrastructure, albeit without a modern access road to their farms.