Vientiane Capital is a prefecture of Laos, located in the north-west of the country. The national capital, Vientiane, is located in the prefecture. The prefecture was created in 1989, when it was split off from Vientiane Province. 

Located on a curve of the Mekong River, and bordering Thailand, the prefecture covers an area of 3,920 km² (1,510 sq mi).

Much of the land to the west and northwest of the main urban centre is forested and hilly in parts with the peaks of Phu Sang (1,666 metres) and Phu Khao Khuay (1,039 metres), and a small area in the northeastern part at the rim of the forest protected by the Phou Khao Khuay National Biodiversity Conservation Area. The protected reserves in the prefecture are the Houay Ngang Forest Reserve and the Phou Phanang National Biodiversity Conservation Area (which covers much of the forest in the west), although Phou Khao Khuay NBCA borders the northeast. The Houay Ngang Forest Reserve, within Vientiane, has many species of birds and butterflies. A nature trail in the reserve is used for a day tour where the Ban Pako ecolodge is available overlooking the Nam Ngum River. Its approach is from Ban Pako by boat across the river. Dong Dok University in association with GTZ has developed the forest walk. The Nam Leuk and Nam Gnong rivers also flow through the prefecture.

The whole Vientiane Capital area shall be categorized into six zones based on the roles under the multi-core structure with careful considerations of the location and the current situations.

Looking at land use of Vientiane Capital in 2005, a dominant land use type is forest area, which occupied about 68% of total area, followed by 17% of paddy area. Rapid economic development and population growth may have largely affected the land use pattern. The built-up area doubled from approximately 3% of total area in 1995 to 6% in 2005.

References:

1. Wikipedia ‘Vientiane Prefecture’: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vientiane_Prefecture
2. JICA ‘Vientiane Capital: Urban Development Master Plan Proposal’: https://www.jica.go.jp/project/english/laos/009/materials/pdf/pamphlet_01.pdf