Dam-induced displacement and resettlement in Vietnam: risks and adaptation

Abstract

Ongoing industrialization and urbanization in Vietnam have stimulated the need for power, leading to the construction of dams all over the country. While dams seem sustainable due to the production of hydropower, its 'true' sustainability is often doubtful due to its negative impact on the environment and people. More than 200.000 ethnic minorities have been displaced in Vietnam due to the construction of dams. The question is to what extent involuntary displacement has affected the livelihoods of the displaced. This thesis can be seen as a contribution to the ongoing research in Vietnam (and all over the world) that tries to answer this question. In collaboration with C. Druppers two resettlement sites have been investigated in Thua Thien Hue province: Bo Hon village in Binh Dien district and Kon Tôm village in A Luoi district. While this thesis provides an extensive review of the issues in Kon Tôm village, the thesis of C. Druppers will mainly focus on the case of Bo Hon village. Eventually, this research will show that both dams in Binh Dien and A Luoi district have not been truly sustainable due to their negative impact on the livelihoods of the displaced. In order to overcome impoverishment of re-settled in the future, it is essential to enforce existing resettlement policies and improve participatory mechanisms since households lack any influence concerning their own resettlement.