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A Lao fisherman harvests catfish from his Li Kok Ma, a special fishing trap placed in the middle of the Sahong River - a tributary of the Mekong in Southern Laos. The trap can provide several tons of fish during the monsoons before the strong tide of the Mekong destroys it.

The Mekong River basin supports one of the most diverse fish faunas in the world. As of 1999, 192 fish species had been identified from Khong District. Many species seasonally migrate long distances up the Mekong River from as far away as the Great Lake in Cambodia and the South China Sea in Vietnam. Locals benefit from fishing and as well as irrigation for farm use. Here, communities tend to be self-sufficient, growing most of their own rice, sugar cane, coconut, and vegetables, harvesting fish from the river and weaving textiles as needed. There is a local saying which goes like, "If the people of Si Phan Don want to eat fish, they just have to make fire and people the pot, the fish will jump into pot".

Up until the 1950s and early 1960s, fisheries practices in Khong were largely traditional. Fishing was conducted almost entirely for subsistence purposes, with the exception of a small amount for barter trade. However, with economic development, fishing is no more done for domestic consumption only; most of the Mekong fish is now exported to Thailand where the sellers get a better price. This has led to over-fishing and illegal fishing in Laos and Cambodia, which together with the building of dams, navigation projects, and habitat destruction has increased the threat to the survival of numerous fish species. The Mekong's captured fishery is one of the largest in the world-with 1.5 million tons caught annually, 16 percent of the world total-according to recent studies by the Mekong River Commission.