Lao PDR - Nam Ou river - Portrait of a Hmong woman wearing traditional clothing in Phongsaly province

Portrait of a Hmong woman wearing her traditional clothes outside her home, Ban Chalern, Phongsaly province, Lao PDR. The remote and roadless village of Ban Chalern is situated along the Nam Ou river (a tributary of the Mekong) and will be relocated due to the construction of the Nam Ou Cascade Hydropower Project Dam 7. The Nam Ou river connects small riverside villages and provides the rural population with food for fishing. But this river and others like it, that are the lifeline of rural communities and local economies are being blocked, diverted and decimated by dams. The Lao government hopes to transform the country into ‘the battery of Southeast Asia’ by exporting the power to Thailand and Vietnam.

Add to Cart Add to Lightbox Download

Filename: A0025834cc_1.jpg
Copyright: Tessa Bunney
Image Size: 4000x2999 / 1.6MB; Asia Bunney Lao Lao PDR Laos Hmong Nam Nam Ou Ou PDR Phongsali Phongsaly Southeast Tessa countryside ethnic minorities minority remote roadless river lifeline rural traditional Chalern Chinese corporation Sinohydro electric electricity hydropower reservoir Mekong tributary dam construction portrait relocation elderly old woman female clothing clothes costume
Contained in galleries: Lao PDR - Nam Ou River, Tessa Bunney - All pics

Portrait of a Hmong woman wearing her traditional clothes outside her home, Ban Chalern, Phongsaly province, Lao PDR. The remote and roadless village of Ban Chalern is situated along the Nam Ou river (a tributary of the Mekong) and will be relocated due to the construction of the Nam Ou Cascade Hydropower Project Dam 7. The Nam Ou river connects small riverside villages and provides the rural population with food for fishing. But this river and others like it, that are the lifeline of rural communities and local economies are being blocked, diverted and decimated by dams. The Lao government hopes to transform the country into ‘the battery of Southeast Asia’ by exporting the power to Thailand and Vietnam.