Based on current trends the urban population of Laos will double in the next 25 years. This rapid population growth is already straining infrastructure and the pressure to develop housing, roads, commercial facilities, and other infrastructure facilities. If unplanned and unmanaged, this rapid urban growth will greatly increase the vulnerability of Lao PDR’s major population and economic centers. While floods have the greatest impact on the country’s population as a whole, in urban areas fires and traffic accidents have the greatest impact in terms of lives lost, injuries, and economic loss. It is an accepted fact that the increasing urbanization in the context of Lao PDR, presents major challenges and opportunities for experimenting scientific approaches for reduction of impact of disasters in the future.
