Luang Namtha provincial authorities believe the province's rubber exports will increase in the future despite declining official production figures.
Provincial commerce officials said many growers and traders often fail to inform authorities of the true quantity of the rubber they sell in an effort to evade paying taxes.
According to the provincial Department of Commerce and Industry, in the first six months of the 2008-09 fiscal year the province exported 336 tonnes of raw rubber and 670kg of processed rubber sheets.
Exports of raw rubber declined to 215 tonnes in the first half of the current financial year, but exports of processed rubber sheets rose to 12 tonnes.
The department believes the true export figures for this year are about double those recorded.
A senior agriculture official, Mr Sonexay Oudom, said the number of rubber plantations in the province increases every year and exports should also be increasing accordingly.
“In 2007, rubber tapping areas covered just 500 hectares, but that has since increased to more than 1,000 hectares,” he said.
“Yields have been good this year and the quantity of rubber harvested should not be so low.” Processed rubber sheets are usually exported to Thailand, while raw rubber is exported to China.
The Lao government encouraged the establishment of rubber tree plantations several years ago with the aim of alleviating poverty in rural areas.
However, last year the government announced it would stop granting land concessions for such projects after some were reported to be encroaching on protected forestry areas and land owned by villagers.
Luang Namtha provincial authorities are no longer approving investment proposals for rubber plantations despite soaring global prices for the commodity this year.
Global rubber prices fell to as low as 3,300 kip per kg during the worst of the worldwide economic downturn.
Prices have since recovered to about 11,000 kip a kg as economies are recovering from the recession.
Luang Namtha is currently the only province that exports rubber. Khammuan province may start to tap rubber for export this year.
Mr Sonexay said the total area of rubber plantations in Luang Namtha reached 25,000 hectares this year and he believes the plantations will help to alleviate poverty as demand for the commodity rises, especially in China.
He said an increasing number of villagers are interested in growing rubber trees following the upward movement of rubber prices this year.
A major challenge for Laos is the lack of detailed research regarding market trends and figures on appropriate areas of plantations to suit the country's environment.
