Prospects and Problems of Developing a Cashew Nut Export Industry for Lao PDR

Announcing: Walsh, John and Nittana Southiseng, “Prospects and Problems of Developing a Cashew Nut Export Industry for Lao PDR,” paper presented at the 7^th International Conference on Lao Studies (online) (Deakin University, 15^th-18^th, November, 2022).

Abstract:

One important means of developing the Lao economy is by creating export sectors in which local producers can hope for comparative advantage for geographic and climatic reasons. One possible such sector is cashew nuts (Anacardium occidentale), which are nutritious and in increasing demand for incorporation into a wide range of snack foods. Snack foods have historically been the preserve of developed countries but, as urban middle classes emerge across Asia, including Southeast Asia, more markets are opening to which Lao producers might think of aiming their goods. Although the shelling and processing stages are complex and time-consuming, there are prospects for using different parts of the plant and the cashew apple for additional revenue streams. However, there is the problem that mainland Southeast Asia’s cashew nut processing and exporting are dominated by Vietnam, which is one of the world’s leading producers of shelled nuts. Since Vietnam’s processing capacity greatly exceeds its growing capacity, its firms import large numbers of nuts from a range of overseas countries. This includes Cambodia, which exports nearly all of its increasingly large crop of nuts to Vietnam and, since Vietnam has not yet developed popular and established brands which might provide premium levels of pricing, its exporters buy nuts on a low-cost commodity basis. Since cashew growing as an export industry is still in its infancy in Lao PDR, it is worth considering what would need to be done to prevent growers simply acting as a source of cheap inputs for Vietnamese buyers and what support the government might provide to enable local growers to add value to their production and, thereby, maximise the benefit of production.

If anyone is interested in the presentation, then please let me know. I also chaired a session on Lao history and another on art and culture in the country, both of which were very interesting. If you have chance to take a look at any of the recorded sessions or the various exhibitions, then I would recommend that you do so.

Food Insecurity in Lao PDR during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Announcing: Walsh, John and Nittana Southiseng, “Food Insecurity in Lao PDR during the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Mekong Connect, Vol.3, No.2 (December, 2021), pp.60-2, available at: https://www.asianvision.org/archives/publications/mekong-connect-volume-3-issue-2-december-2021.

It’s quite a short piece so it does not need an abstract.

Lao PDR and Vietnam Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects

Announcing: Walsh, John, Nittana Southiseng and Nguyen Quang Trung, “Lao PDR and Vietnam Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects,” VNU Journal of Science: Economics and Business, Vol.35, No.5e (December, 2019), DOI: https://doi.org/10.25073/2588-1108/vnueab.4261, available at: https://js.vnu.edu.vn/EAB/article/view/4261.

Abstract:

Lao PDR and Vietnam share an extensive land border and there are a number of points at which border crossings can be made and border trade conducted. The connectivity of these crossings is to be intensified by cross-border transportation infrastructure such as the Vientiane-Bolikhamsay-Vung Anh deep seaport railroad, which would facilitate exports from landlocked Lao PDR. Such infrastructure will improve existing Vietnamese investment in its western neighbour, where more than 400 projects worth more than US$5 billion have already been licensed in activities such as hydropower, industrial tree plantation and mining. This paper investigates the extent of Lao-Vietnamese border trade and cross-border investment and the prospects for the future in an international environment challenged by trade wars, volatility and global climate change. The strength of these links is noted and the bright prospects for future development acknowledged.

Keywords: Border trade, cross-border investment, Lao PDR, telecommunications, Vietnam.

Lao PDR and Vietnam Border Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects

Announcing: Walsh, John, Nittana Southiseng and Nguyen Quang Trung, “Lao PDR and Vietnam Border Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects,” VNU Journal of Science: Economics and Business, Vol.35, No.5 (December, 2019), DOI: https://doi.org/10.25073/2588-1108/vnueab.4261, available at: https://js.vnu.edu.vn/EAB/article/view/4261.

Abstract: Lao PDR and Vietnam share an extensive land border and there are a number of points at which border crossings can be made and border trade conducted. The connectivity of these crossings is to be intensified by cross-border transportation infrastructure such as the Vientiane-Bolikhamsay-Vung Anh deep seaport railroad, which would facilitate exports from landlocked Lao PDR. Such infrastructure will improve existing Vietnamese investment in its western neighbour, where more than 400 projects worth more than US$5 billion have already been licensed in activities such as hydropower, industrial tree plantation and mining. Meanwhile, Star Telecom, which is a joint venture between Viettel Global and Lao Asia Telecom, has achieved 50% market share of the mobile telecommunications market in Lao PDR and there are numerous further opportunities for investment in consumer markets as well as business-to-business markets. The Lao PDR government would certainly like to diversify its exports away from reliance on natural resource commodities but lacks resources and capacity for leadership in this area and the vital small and medium-sized enterprises sector suffers from the ‘missing middle’ phenomenon that means firms are generally unable to participate in regional value chains, including those mobilised potentially by Vietnamese partners. This paper investigates the extent of Lao-Vietnamese border trade and cross-border investment and the prospects for the future in an international environment challenged by trade wars, volatility and global climate change.

Keywords: border trade, cross-border investment, Lao PDR, telecommunications, Vietnam

Lao PDR and Vietnam Border Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects:

Yesterday I attended the Conference on International Economic Cooperation and Integration (CIECI) 2019 with the theme of The Dynamics of International Trade and Global Supply Chains, which was held at the Vietnam National University’s University of Economics and Business. I was able to present a paper entitled Lao PDR and Vietnam Border Trade and Economic Linkages: Performance and Prospects on behalf of co-authors Dr. Nittana Southiseng and Dr. Nguyen Quang Trung. It went well and there was good audience interaction.

Here is the abstract:

Lao PDR and Vietnam share an extensive land border and there are a number of points at which border crossings can be made and border trade conducted. The connectivity of these crossings is to be intensified by cross-border transportation infrastructure such as the Vientiane-Bolikhamsay-Vung Anh deep seaport railroad, which would facilitate exports from landlocked Lao PDR. Such infrastructure will improve existing Vietnamese investment in its western neighbour, where more than 400 projects worth more than US$5 billion have already been licensed in activities such as hydropower, industrial tree plantation and mining. Meanwhile, Star Telecom, which is a joint venture between Viettel Global and Lao Asia Telecom, has achieved 50% market share of the mobile telecommunications market in Lao PDR and there are numerous further opportunities for investment in consumer markets as well as business-to-business markets. The Lao PDR government would certainly like to diversify its exports away from reliance on natural resource commodities but lacks resources and capacity for leadership in this area and the vital small and medium-sized enterprises sector suffers from the ‘missing middle’ phenomenon that means firms are generally unable to participate in regional value chains, including those mobilised potentially by Vietnamese partners. This paper investigates the extent of Lao-Vietnamese border trade and cross-border investment and the prospects for the future in an international environment challenged by trade wars, volatility and global climate change.

Keywords: border trade, cross-border investment, Lao PDR, telecommunications, Vietnam

John Walsh, School of Business and Management, RMIT Vietnam

Nittana Southiseng, GIZ-MRC Vientiane

Nguyen Quang Trung, School of Business and Management, RMIT Vietnam

I’m not sure whether there is any plan to publish the submitted papers but, if not, we can find a suitable home for the updated paper in due course.

Entrepreneurial Women in Lao People’s Democratic Republic

It has arrived: Southiseng, Nittana and John Walsh, “Entrepreneurial Women in Lao People’s Democratic Republic,” in Mehrangiz Najafizadeh and Linda L. Lindsey, eds., Women of Asia: Globalization, Development, and Gender Equality (Routledge, 2018), pp.248-56.

Abstract

Women have long occupied entrepreneurial niches in the Lao economy and have helped to bridge the divide between subsistence agriculture and market-based activities and institutions. Recent research indicates that more women are entering into the formal or semi-formal business sector as owners or operators of micro or small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). In addition to the usual problems relating to work-life balance and social pressures facing women in the labour market, Lao women also face problems of lack of support in terms of business services, lack of capital and business technique awareness. This paper investigates the situation facing Lao women in the workplace through a variety of case studies ranging from street vending, agriculture and manufacturing to services so as to develop a picture of a complex series of issues facing them. It is shown that women entering the labour market can have their familial and social relations significantly reconfigured and that survival and success require various interlinked strategies.

Keywords: entrepreneurs, labour markets, Lao PDR, social relations, women

SIU Journal of Management, Vol.8, No.1 (June, 2018)

Welcome to the Vol.8, No.1 (June, 2018) issue of the SIU Journal of Management.

CONTENTS

Volume 8, Number 1, June, 2018
	Editor’s Introduction

SPECIAL ISSUE: FOOD INSECURITY IN LAO PDR, MYANMAR, THAILAND AND VIETNAM

1.	Introduction to the Project – John Walsh (Introduction to the Food Insecurity Project in Four Mekong Region Countries)
2.	Food Insecurity in Lao PDR – Nittana Southiseng (8.1.Southiseng)
3.	Food Insecurity in Myanmar – Myat Thander Tin
4.	Food Insecurity in Thailand – Petcharat Lovichakorntikul (8.1.Lovichakorntikul)
5.	Food Insecurity in Vietnam – Nancy Huyen Nguyen (8.1.Nguyen)
6.	Methodological Issues for the FAO’s Food Insecurity Experience Survey – Aimee Hampel

PEER-REVIEWED RESEARCH ARTICLES

1	Relocation and Integration of Internally Displaced Children into Public Schools in Nigeria: Some Policy Issues – Subair S. Tayo and Aliyu M. Olasunkanmi
2.	An Empirical Study on Organizational Justice and Turnover Intention in the Private Commercial Banks of Bangladesh – Popy Podder, Md. Sahidur Rahman and Shameema Ferdausy
3.	Justice and Righteousness in Amos 5:21-27 and Its Implications for Nigerian Society – Oluwaseyi Nathaniel Shogunle

 

BOOK REVIEWS

1.	We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy by Ta-Nehisi Coates – John Walsh
2.	No Is Not Enough: Defeating the New Shock Politics by Naomi Klein – John Walsh (8.1.Klein)
3.	Services Marketing: People, Technology, Strategy by Jochen Wirtz and Christopher Lovelock – John Walsh
4.	High-Speed Empire: Chinese Expansion and the Future of Southeast Asia by Will Doig – John Walsh (8.1.Doig)

CALL FOR PAPERS

AUTHOR’S GUIDELINES

ABOUT SHINAWATRA UNIVERSITY

EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD

Border Economic Zones Linking China with Myanmar, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Vietnam

Announcing: Walsh, John, “Border Economic Zones Linking China with Myanmar, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Vietnam,” in Herlin Chien, ed., Southeast Asia: Beyond Borders and Boundaries (Kaohsiung: Wenzao Ursuline University Press, 2018), pp.128-42.

More details about the book may be found here.

Entrepreneurial Women in Lao People’s Democratic Republic

My paper with Dr. Nittana:

Southiseng, Nittana and John Walsh, “Entrepreneurial Women in Lao People’s Democratic Republic,” in Mehrangiz Najafizadeh and Linda L. Lindsey, eds., Women of Asia: Globalization, Development and Gender Equality (Routledge, 2018).

Is now avalailable for pre-order via Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/toc/1138208787/ref=dp_toc?_encoding=UTF8&n=266239). Other book selling options are also available.

Abstract:

Women have long occupied entrepreneurial niches in the Lao economy and have helped to bridge the divide between subsistence agriculture and market-based activities and institutions. Recent research indicates that more women are entering into the formal or semi-formal business sector as owners or operators of micro or small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). In addition to the usual problems relating to work-life balance and social pressures facing women in the labour market, Lao women also face problems of lack of support in terms of business services, lack of capital and business technique awareness. This paper investigates the situation facing Lao women in the workplace through a variety of case studies ranging from street vending, agriculture and manufacturing to services so as to develop a picture of a complex series of issues facing them. It is shown that women entering the labour market can have their familial and social relations significantly reconfigured and that survival and success require various interlinked strategies.

Keywords: entrepreneurs, labour markets, Lao PDR, social relations, women

Cluster Formation for Lao SMEs in Three Sectors

This research paper, by Nittana Southiseng, Santisouk Vilaychur and myself is available at the ERIT website here (ERIT is the Economic Research Institute for Industry and Trade and is part of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of the Lao PDR government).

Abstract:

A cluster is, simply defined, a supply chain in close geographical proximity. A supply chain is a series of activities that cause an upstream resource (i.e. raw materials) to move towards downstream consumers (i.e. retailers). Different parts of the supply chain add different levels of value to the process, usually in an inequitable manner so that some members benefit more than others. States wishing to promote rapid economic development (like Lao PDR) benefit from clusters because all sections of the value chain occur within their borders and so they can influence the distribution of benefits with a view to enacting long-term developmental goals. In Lao PDR, the agricultural sector remains of central importance and is likely to be so for the foreseeable future. When it comes to identifying potential clusters, therefore, then the agricultural sector should be the first one to be considered. Within agriculture, high value products should be sought because most production in the country is of commodity items which are marketed on cost basis alone. Such commodity trade is subject to sometimes rapid and intense price fluctuations in response to changes in demand and supply conditions. Added value can be found in processed goods, in goods for which there is special demand and goods for which a premium can be expected. This study adopts three of these sectors for study as potential clusters. Two of these are organic vegetables and organic rice, which are products already being grown in Lao PDR but which could be marketed more widely and more astutely to try to attract more of a premium price through better quality and consistency, as well as raising awareness among consumers of their benefits. The third potential cluster is white charcoal, which is known as bintochan in Japan, where it is valued for its properties in barbecuing. The purpose of this research project is to investigate these three sectors with a view to identifying whether they can offer genuine developmental opportunities for the country as a whole, as well as the communities, individuals and organizations involved in their production.