Salavan is a province of Laos, located in the south of the country. Its earlier name was Saravan which was changed by Thai to Salavan in 1828. It was part of the Champasak Kingdom in an area known as Muang Mang inhabited by minorities of Mon-Khmer groups. 

Salavan Province covers an area of 16,389 square kilometres (6,328 sq mi). The province borders Savannakhet Province to the north, Vietnam to the east, Xekong Province to the southeast, Champasak Province to the south and Thailand to the west. The central part of the province is located on the Bolaven Plateau, which is a key agricultural area with Arabica coffee as the dominant cash crop.  In addition to the Bolaven Plateau and the Mekong, the topography includes plains and a mountainous region near the border with Vietnam. The two protected areas in the province are the Xe Pian and Dong Ampham.

The Salavan city, capital of the province is located on a bend of Se Don River, which flows through the province and eventually joins Mekong River at Pakse. 

XeXap National Protected Area (113,000 ha) starts just to the east of Ta Oy and expands eastward beyond the Lao-Vietnamese border. It is an important bird sanctuary for the country and home to a variety of evergreens. On the northwest of the province, there is Xe Bang Nouan National Protected Forest. PhouXieng Thong Forest Reserve is the only national protected area on the Mekong River. It covers the entire western border of Salavan and a part of Champasak territory.

The “Mekong Channel from Phou Xiang Thong to Siphandon” IBA is 34,200 ha in size. There is a 10,000 ha overlap with the Phou Xiengthong National Biodiversity Conservation Area (NBCA is 120,000 ha in size). The IBA encompasses two provinces, Salavan and Champasak. Its topography is characterized by earth banks, rocky banks, rocky islands, seasonally flooded sandbars, low vegetated islands, rocky islets, sandy beaches, and sand bars.

The Phou Xiang Thong IBA (36,650 hectare) is situated within the Phou Xiengthong NBCA (120,000 hectare). The IBA encompasses two provinces, Salavan and Champasak. Its topography is characterized by low hills, lowlands, rivers, and seasonal streams. Its habitat contains dry deciduous tropical forest, moist deciduous tropical forest, semi-evergreen tropical rain forest, mixed deciduous forest, dry dipterocarp forest, and open rocky savanna.

Xe Bang Nouan (XBN) Protected Area was established on 29 October 1993 covering an area of 1260 km², and extending over Salavan and Savanakhet Provinces. The central part the river flows through gorges; and to the east of the hills is the wide valley of the river. The forests found are the evergreen, dry dipterocarp, mixed deciduous and other natural forest types, and about 87% of the area of the reserve is forested.

Salavan Province is one of the most important coffee producing areas of Laos along with Champasak Province and Sekong Province. Arabica coffee and coffee beans are the products of the Bolaven Plateau which is an export revenue product and can also be bought in villages along the roads.

The province is home to 10 distinctive ethnic groups, many of which are small in population, but have their own language. Their houses, lifestyles, beliefs, cultures and rituals are unique and very fascinating.

Currently, there are 327 investment projects operating in the province, 106 of which are privately owned.

References:

1. Wikipedia ‘Salavan province’: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salavan_Province
2. IPD ‘Salavan province’: http://www.investlaos.gov.la/index.php/where-to-invest/provinces/salavanh