ラオス南部のメコン河集水域における水産資源管理について1990 年代から2005 年の調査時点までの急激な変化を追跡した。国際組織による上からの水産資源管理の方策が導入されたが、村落の実情に合わないので、欠点が多くプロジェクトとしてはおおむねうまくいった点と成功しなかった面が浮き彫りになった。これにかわって、2000 年くらいから村落を基盤とした村民のための管理方式を採用する動きがでてきた。もっとも、これはチャンパサック州のメコン河本流域の話であり、メコン河支流のセコン川流域では漁業保全区を設定した当初から密漁が頻発する傾向にある。今後、メコン河本流と支流に見られる管理方法の微妙な違いを追跡することが重要な課題である。Aquatic resource management program which commenced in early 1990 in Mekong watershed to establish “fish conservation zone or vang sanguwane” (FCZ) has revealed partly failed due to several reasons such as a lack of finance, inappropriate educational program, ignorance of external ideas by community members. To this, some leading community leaders have realized to make use of community-based management scheme, not for fish but for villagers themselves; namely conservation for the community (vang xumxone). There is, however, regional difference of achievement and effects of the management program on local fish conservation and community stability between Mekong River and its tributaries, the latter having accepted the new conservation program as late as the year of 2000. Immediately after it started, people along the tributaries have suffered from illegal fishing and conflicts between neighboring communities. How these differences bear socio-political and legal impacts may be clarified by on-going research in southern Laos
