June2026 SOLUTIONS FOR MITIGATING AIR POLLUTIONFROM AGRICULTURAL BURNING INLAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC June2026 © 2026 The World Bank1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433Telephone: 202-473-1000; Internet:www.worldbank.org Some rights reserved. This work is a product of The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed inthis work do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or thegovernments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the data included in thiswork and does not assume responsibility for any errors, omissions, or discrepancies in the information,or liability with respect to the use of or failure to use the information, methods, processes, orconclusions set forth. The boundaries, colors, denominations, links/footnotes and other informationshown in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal statusof any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. The citation of works authoredby others does not mean the World Bank endorses the views expressed by those authors or the contentof their works. Nothing herein shall constitute or be construed or considered to be a limitation upon or waiver of theprivileges and immunities of The World Bank, all of which are specifically reserved. Rights and Permissions The material in this work is subject to copyright. Because The World Bank encourages dissemination ofits knowledge, this work may be reproduced, in whole or in part, for noncommercial purposes as long asfull attribution to this work is given. Attribution Please cite the work as follows: “World Bank. 2026. Solutions for Mitigating Air Pollution fromAgricultural Burning in Lao People’s Democratic Republic.© World Bank.” Any queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to World BankPublications, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2625;e-mail:pubrights@worldbank.org. Cover photo: ©Noon@stock.adobe.com. Used with the permission. Further permission required forreuse. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report was prepared by a core team comprising Yewande Awe (Task Team Lead), ChitlatdaKeomuongchanh, Gary Kleiman, Charbel Afif, and Kaysone Vongthavilay. Technical reports informing and providing content for the chapters were prepared by Nguyen Thi KimOanh, Lai Nguyen Huy, Ha Quang Dang, and Khing Thwe Oo of the Air Quality Nexus Center of the AsianInstitute of Technology, along with Olayvanh Singvilay, Nguyen Hoai Nam, Dang Duc Chien, and SingkoneXayalath. Souksavanh Sombounkhanh provided administrative support, and Mary Jane Banks editedandformattedthe report. Inputs and support provided by the following colleagues are also appreciated: Iretomiwa Olatunji,Katelijn van den Berg, Luck Bounmixay, Daniel Mira-Salama, and Jostein Nygard. The team also gratefullyacknowledges valuable advice provided by peer reviewers: Shafick Hoossein, Lulwa N GH H Ali, andHarinath A. S. Theteam is grateful for the collaboration of the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environmentof the Government of Lao People’s Democratic Republic,including the Department of Environment,Department of Agriculture Extension and Cooperative, Biotechnology and Ecology Institute, andNational Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute,along withrepresentatives of the NationalUniversity of Laos, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Food and AgricultureOrganizationof the United Nations, Global Green Growth Institute, and World Health Organizationwhoparticipated in thestudy’svalidation workshop in Vientiane Capital in May 2026. This report was completed under the overallsupervisionof Christophe Crepin (Practice Manager)alongwithKhwima Nthara (World Bank Group Country Manager) and Mariam Sherman (Division Director)both of the Country Management Unit for VietNam, Cambodia,and the Lao People’s DemocraticRepublic. This work was made possiblewith thefinancial support of the Korea Green Growth Trust Fund(KGGTF)—a partnership between the World Bank and Republic of Korea. As a technology-driven,implementation-focused trust fund, KGGTF supports partner countries in developing innovative andsustainable solutions, strategies, and investments geared toward Green, Resilient, and InclusiveDevelopment. This partnership is crucial to the World Bank’s mission of creating“a World Free ofPoverty on a Livable Planet.”Further information is available atwww.wbgkggtf.org. TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Acronyms and Abreviations...............................................................................................................ixExecutive Summary......................................................................................................................................xi1.Introduction............................................................................................