In Lao PDR, Khammuane province is among the most heavily contaminated areas with unexploded ordnance (UXO). More than 20,000 hectares have been identified as Confirmed Hazardous Areas, with over 20,700 UXO marked for clearance. Most contaminated areas in Lao PDR overlap with the country’s 42 poorest districts, further exacerbating poverty and food insecurity in Khammuane.
The heaviest bombings during the Indochina conflicts occurred along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. In Lao PDR particularly in Khammuane province, areas surrounding this trail are scattered with bomb craters. Today, they are ponds, filled with fish and folklore. Children skip stones across them. Life adapts, as it always does. But beneath the surface, danger still lurks.
Here, history isn’t just remembered – it’s lived. The walls have something to say. This house, sturdy and striking, uses bomb casings as covering for a family.
UXO aren’t just objects of fear – they are now part of the décor. The people of Khammuane, with their resourceful flair, have transformed remnants of destruction into tools of daily life.
Since 2022, with generous funding from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with Lao National Unexploded Ordnance Programme (UXO Lao), has been conducting land surveys and clearing UXO, including cluster munitions in Khammuane province. As of NRA Dashboard 24th July 2025, 98 hectares of land have been cleared, demolishing over 2,400 UXO (including over 1,800 cluster munitions), benefiting around 4,000 individuals.
Meet Ma Nang Panha (53), a single mother of six children from Napangkeo village. Her brother was lost to an explosion while clearing fields. Yet, she tills the same soil – because the harvest must come, and life, somehow, must continue.
“When UXO Lao arrived, they found so many bombs”, Ma Nang Panha recalls. In 2024, UXO Lao cleared her fields. This year, her rice harvest doubled – from 30 bags to 60. A quiet victory measured not in hectares, but in full bowls and the steady hum of a safer tomorrow.
Meet Sonekeo Xayasane (62), a farmer from Phodaeng village in Khammuane whose land was cleared by UXO Lao in 2024. “We used to dig gently, fearing what lay beneath. Now, we dig freely. The soil, finally ours again”.
Before the land was cleared, he harvested 150 sacks of rice – carefully, warily, scanning the soil as he worked, knowing rice paddies required minimal digging. Now, with the land made safe, he moves freely. This time around, he expects over 200. Beyond rice, he is expanding his farm, growing vegetables, and preparing to plant corn and cucumbers – crops that once seemed impossible, as they require deeper digging into the soil.
By 2027, the project aims to clear 431 hectares of land – an area equivalent to 615 soccer fields -benefiting more than 25,000 individuals across six districts in Khammuane province. In one of the poorest provinces in Lao PDR, this achievement will represent more than just statistics; it signifies a transformative shift for communities where once-dangerous land can now be cultivated to sustain livelihoods and economic stability.
A recent Baseline Survey of the project (to be published) indicates that families like Ma Nang Panh’s and Sonekeo Xayasane’s stand to gain greater opportunities for economic growth and food security as more land is made safe. Findings from the Household Survey show that 68 percent of farmers exercise extreme caution when digging or ploughing, avoiding deep tilling that could trigger buried explosives, while 27 percent take preventive measures such as weeding or cutting grass 10–20 centimetres above the ground to reduce the risk of accidental detonation.
However, these precautions limit productivity and keep farmers from maximizing their land’s potential. In Focus Group Discussions, farmers expressed that if their land were completely free of UXO, they would plough deeper to access more fertile soil, leading to significantly higher crop yields. Many also aspire to transition to cash crops like cassava and arrowroot, which offer a more stable income. For women, UXO-free land presents the opportunity to use agricultural machinery, reducing physical labour and improving efficiency. With safer working conditions, increased access to machinery, and improved crop yields, rural families see a real chance to break free from the cycle of risk and poverty.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to the Government of Luxembourg for the generous assistance through UNDP to support UXO clearance in Khammuane province. The support is crucial for contributing to the socio-economic development in Khammuane province as one of highly contaminated provinces in Lao PDR.