The Nam Theun 2 Development Fund approved more than LAK 343 million (USD 15,300) on 24 September for a forest restoration project in Nakai District, Khammouane Province.
According to provincial media, the project will establish a forest restoration center in Nakai that will produce more than 30,000 seedlings a year. The center will supply seedlings for tree planting and forest rehabilitation across 16 village clusters, with local communities taking part in the work.
The project is part of a wider package of initiatives funded by the ddevelopment fund, including school lunch programs at 16 schools in Nakai, long-term student scholarships, social welfare support, and livestock disease prevention.
Fund Expands Beyond Resettled Villages
Khammouane Province and Nam Theun 2 Power Company established the fund in 2018 to support social and economic development around the Nam Theun 2 hydropower project.
The fund initially focused on 16 villages directly displaced or resettled by the dam’s construction. It has allocated more than LAK 30 billion (USD 1.34 million) to education, social welfare, livelihoods, and small-scale reforestation in those communities.
Under a Phase II agreement signed in October 2024, the fund expanded its coverage to the whole of Nakai District. Its plans through 2035 also include development and environmental projects in neighbouring Gnommalath and Mahaxay districts.
The new forest restoration center follows earlier Nam Theun 2 Development Fund-supported reforestation work. During the resettlement period, NTPC supervised nurseries where local farmers produced more than 40,000 seedlings for household plots and community reforestation.
In 2024, Nam Theun 2 Power Company and provincial agriculture and environment authorities also launched the Nam Theun 2 Forestation Project, focusing on tree planting and watershed management.
The Nam Theun 2 project has environmental and social commitments running through 2035, including forest protection, biodiversity monitoring, and community development funding through the Nam Theun 2 Development Fund.
