In the past few decades, much research has been devoted to the macroeconomic, industrial and institutional aspects of the transition to a market-oriented economy in former socialist countries. The role of agriculture in transition has occupied relatively little space on the research work despite the great size of the agricultural sector in many of these countries. Lao PDR is also a country overwhelmingly dependent on agriculture. The agricultural sector contributes some 50 per cent of GDP and employs over 80 per cent of the total labor force. Subsistence farming is still widely characterized by low inputs and low yields, with the result that farming incomes are very low. The reform policy in the agricultural sector will be decisive not only for the success of the transition process but also the long term development of the country. For Lao PDR, the large role agriculture plays and the analysis of this crucial sector can hardly be overlooked. However, the analysis of agricultural productivity in Lao PDR is, to date, very limited. To our knowledge, Bourdet(1995)is the only formal empirical study existing1 . Thus, the main purpose of this paper is to update the research work on the determinants of agricultural performance using pure rice production(non-monetary). The applied methodology is intensively used until the 1980s. While recent studies focus on the effects of education on household income according to farm and non-farm income, this analysis is deemed to fit much more with the unique characteristics of the Lao farming systems.