Laos
Resilient Livelihoods for the Poor Pilot Final Evaluation
This report presents findings from an evaluation of the DFAT-funded Resilient Livelihoods for the Poor (RLP) pilot program in Lao PDR. The evaluation was conducted by the Laos Australia Development Learning Facility (LADLF). It provides key lessons for future investments in the social protection sector in Lao PDR and elsewhere, and contributes to the literature on asset and social transfers in response to poverty reduction in Lao PDR.
The RLP pilot represents an investment of approximately AUD 8 million from January 2014 to July 2017. Its purpose is to improve sustainable livelihoods of poorest households through the provision of productive assets, short-term cash transfers, and technical support addressing care of assets, enterprise development, financial literacy, disability and gender. The RLP pilot targeted 1,200 households in four districts of Lao PDR, namely Xepon, Soukhouma, Mounlapamok and Lao Ngam. The actual implementation of the RLP pilot reached 1,190 households in the beginning of the pilot, which then decreased to 1,154 households at the end of the pilot in June 2017. [56 pages] Read More...
The RLP pilot represents an investment of approximately AUD 8 million from January 2014 to July 2017. Its purpose is to improve sustainable livelihoods of poorest households through the provision of productive assets, short-term cash transfers, and technical support addressing care of assets, enterprise development, financial literacy, disability and gender. The RLP pilot targeted 1,200 households in four districts of Lao PDR, namely Xepon, Soukhouma, Mounlapamok and Lao Ngam. The actual implementation of the RLP pilot reached 1,190 households in the beginning of the pilot, which then decreased to 1,154 households at the end of the pilot in June 2017. [56 pages] Read More...
Northern Upland Promoting Climate Resilience Midterm Review
Climate change is increasingly felt by farmers in Phongsaly, the northernmost province of Lao PDR, who depend on weather for maintaining their livelihoods and ecosystems. A more unpredictable length, start and end of the rainy and dry seasons, stronger winds and storms, longer droughts but at the same time increased intensity of rainfall resulting in floods and localized landslides, and erratic temperature patterns with more severe cold and hot spells all heavily impact on livelihoods, people and natural resources. At the same time, farmers are positively as well as negatively influenced by other socio-economic influences such as infrastructure development, international and local market pressures, modernization of agriculture, hydropower expansion and increased connectivity.
Within this dynamic resilience context, CARE, CCL and SAEDA in partnership with local authorities are implementing the „Northern Uplands Promoting Climate Resilience’ (NU PCR) project, in 3 districts of Phongsaly province. Through targeted support on climate risk analysis and planning, gender-responsive livelihood and disaster risk reduction interventions, and research and documentation for advocacy and scaling, the project aims to improve the resilience of communities in 30 villages, directly reaching 1,500 farming households and indirectly more than 78,000 women and men. The project started in 2014 and will be implemented until March 2018.
The NU PCR project has commissioned a mid-term review to assess relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the project strategies towards achieving the overall objective to date, assess how the project is integrating gender and how this can be enhanced to transform unequal gender relations. The review applied a participatory and strengths- based approach and used a variety of tools such as desk review, key informant interviews, reflection exercises and knowledge, attitude and practice mapping. It was conducted in February-March 2016. Read More...
Within this dynamic resilience context, CARE, CCL and SAEDA in partnership with local authorities are implementing the „Northern Uplands Promoting Climate Resilience’ (NU PCR) project, in 3 districts of Phongsaly province. Through targeted support on climate risk analysis and planning, gender-responsive livelihood and disaster risk reduction interventions, and research and documentation for advocacy and scaling, the project aims to improve the resilience of communities in 30 villages, directly reaching 1,500 farming households and indirectly more than 78,000 women and men. The project started in 2014 and will be implemented until March 2018.
The NU PCR project has commissioned a mid-term review to assess relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the project strategies towards achieving the overall objective to date, assess how the project is integrating gender and how this can be enhanced to transform unequal gender relations. The review applied a participatory and strengths- based approach and used a variety of tools such as desk review, key informant interviews, reflection exercises and knowledge, attitude and practice mapping. It was conducted in February-March 2016. Read More...
Northern Upland Promoting Climate Resilience Baseline Report
Weather variability and long term climate change are not recent phenomena or unknown to farmers in Phongsaly, the northernmost province of Lao PDR, who live and thrive from weather-dependent agriculture and ecosystems. A more unpredictable length, start and end of the rainy and dry seasons, stronger winds and storms, longer droughts but at the same time increased intensity of rainfall resulting in floods and localized landslides, and erratic temperature patterns with more severe cold and hot spells all heavily impact on livelihoods, people and natural resources. At the same time, farmers are positively as well as negatively influenced by other socio-economic influences such as infrastructure development, international and local market pressures, modernization of agriculture, hydropower expansion and increased connectivity.
While adversity brings challenges, it also leads to change with farmers already demonstrating successful actions to confront disasters and climate change. Building on their variable capacities, shaped by factors such as gender, poverty, access and control over resources, governance and power imbalances, women and men from a diversity of ethnic groups generate responses and ideas to adapt to the effects of a changing social, economic and natural environment.
Within this dynamic resilience context, CARE, CCL and SAEDA in partnership with local authorities are implementing the „Northern Uplands Promoting Climate Resilience’ (NU PCR) project, in 3 districts of Phongsaly province. Through targeted support on climate risk analysis and planning, gender-responsive livelihood and disaster risk reduction interventions, and research and documentation for advocacy and scaling, the project aims to improve the resilience of communities in 30 villages, directly reaching 1,500 farming households and indirectly more than 78,000 women and men. The project started in 2014 and will be implemented until March 2018. [64] Read More...
While adversity brings challenges, it also leads to change with farmers already demonstrating successful actions to confront disasters and climate change. Building on their variable capacities, shaped by factors such as gender, poverty, access and control over resources, governance and power imbalances, women and men from a diversity of ethnic groups generate responses and ideas to adapt to the effects of a changing social, economic and natural environment.
Within this dynamic resilience context, CARE, CCL and SAEDA in partnership with local authorities are implementing the „Northern Uplands Promoting Climate Resilience’ (NU PCR) project, in 3 districts of Phongsaly province. Through targeted support on climate risk analysis and planning, gender-responsive livelihood and disaster risk reduction interventions, and research and documentation for advocacy and scaling, the project aims to improve the resilience of communities in 30 villages, directly reaching 1,500 farming households and indirectly more than 78,000 women and men. The project started in 2014 and will be implemented until March 2018. [64] Read More...
Phongsaly Rural Development Project (PRDP) Final Evaluation
Care International Lao in Lao PDR (CARE INTERNATIONAL LAO) since 1992 has assisted implementing several successful projects in Lao PDR. Phongsaly Province is one of target provinces that rural poors are largely witnessed. Phongsaly Province, located in the northern most of Laos, is among the poorest provinces with 94.4% of total villages are poor and 53.3% of total households are poor (Source: NGPES), and 4 of seven districts in Phongsaly Provinces, mainly Mai, Khua, Yot Ou and Samphan Districts have been classified as poor districts among 72 poor districts in the country. The poor villages in three neighboring districts of Khua, Mai and Samphan take 85.8%, 94.7% and 100% respectively against total villages.
The project expands actions initiated under the current EC-funded Food Security project, and expands into two districts, Samphan and Mai. CARE will work with partners to add technically proven interventions and ensure the sustainability and diffusion of food and nutrition interventions locally and on a wider scale. This project was designed through joint CARE and District authority review of the current action and the AusAID and CARE Australia guidelines. Key associates such as the District Offices of Agriculture and Forestry (DAFO), Public Health (DPHO), the Lao Women’s Union (LWU) and other district departments and mass organisations, will be the focus of capacity development actions ranging from policy frameworks to technical approaches. [30 pages] Read More...
The project expands actions initiated under the current EC-funded Food Security project, and expands into two districts, Samphan and Mai. CARE will work with partners to add technically proven interventions and ensure the sustainability and diffusion of food and nutrition interventions locally and on a wider scale. This project was designed through joint CARE and District authority review of the current action and the AusAID and CARE Australia guidelines. Key associates such as the District Offices of Agriculture and Forestry (DAFO), Public Health (DPHO), the Lao Women’s Union (LWU) and other district departments and mass organisations, will be the focus of capacity development actions ranging from policy frameworks to technical approaches. [30 pages] Read More...
Women Organized for Rural Development Endline Evaluation
The 3-year (2014 – 2017) Women Organised for Rural development (WORD) project aimed to ensure benefits to remote ethnic women (REW) and their communities through strengthening community-led farmers and women’s groups (community based organisations - CBOs) in order to strengthen REW livelihoods and foster demand driven service delivery that would sustain beyond the project duration. The project also intended to promote the role of Non- Profit Associations (NPAs) in Lao PDR’s rural development and influence Government of Lao PDR (GoL) policy by documenting and sharing learning about this way of working with NPAs and ethnic minority communities. The project’s overall goal was that: Women’s livelihoods are improved and their interests voiced through strengthened community-based civil society organisations. The project’s specific objectives were:
1. To promote remote ethnic women’s collective actions through Income Generating Activities
2. To strengthen CBOs and NPAs to enable them to support and represent remote ethnic women
3. To enhance linkages between learning, programming and policy influencing. [99 pages] Read More...
1. To promote remote ethnic women’s collective actions through Income Generating Activities
2. To strengthen CBOs and NPAs to enable them to support and represent remote ethnic women
3. To enhance linkages between learning, programming and policy influencing. [99 pages] Read More...
Women Organised for Rural development (WORD) project Baseline
The 3-year (2014 – 2017) Women Organised for Rural development (WORD) project ensures benefits to remote ethnic women (REW) and their communities through strengthening community-led farmers and women’s groups (community based organisations - CBOs) in order to strengthen REW livelihoods and foster demand driven service delivery that will sustain beyond the project duration. The project also aims to promote the role of Non-Profit Associations (NPAs) in Lao PDR’s rural development and influence Government of Lao PDR (GoL) policy by documenting and sharing learning about this way of working with NPAs and ethnic minority communities. The project’s overall goal is that: Women’s livelihoods are improved and their interests voiced through strengthened community-based civil society organisations. Key approaches to implementation of the project will be (i) using income-generation activities and small development grants as an ‘entry point’ to women’s empowerment, (ii) gender transformative CBO and NPA strengthening, (iii) working in partnership, and (iv) research and advocacy. [72 pages] Read More...
Final Project Evaluation Northern Uplands – Promoting Climate Resilience
The Northern Uplands - Promoting Climate Resilience (NU-PCR) is implemented by CARE International in Lao PDR in partnership with the Comité de Coopération avec le Laos (CCL) and the Sustainable Agriculture and Environment Development Association (SAEDA). The project, funded by the European Union (EU), CARE Denmark, and OXFAM (OHK), is designed to improve the resilience of local ethic communities in Phongsaly to the impacts of climate change and to strengthen the capacity of government authorities and local ethnic communities. The objective of the project is to enable improved resilience of remote ethnic upland communities, in particular women, to the impact of climate variability and change, and contribute to the achievement of MDGs 1, 3, and 7. The purpose of the evaluation was to determine the project’s success in implementing activities and in attaining the project’s goals and expected results.
NU-PCR has implemented a wide variety of activities to increase the resilience of ethnic communities to climate change and climate variability. The project has been successful in achieving its objectives and expected results. Improvements in households’ resilience to climate change have been validated from results of the end-line study in comparison to baseline values. Project support for cardamom and tea production; intercropping galangal, pineapple, and fruit trees; piloting rattan, bee keeping, and soybeans; vegetable gardening; improved rice production; mushroom production; fishponds; and support to women’s savings and loans groups has resulted in reducing the impact of climatic hazards and improving villagers’ incomes.
(69 pages) Read More...
NU-PCR has implemented a wide variety of activities to increase the resilience of ethnic communities to climate change and climate variability. The project has been successful in achieving its objectives and expected results. Improvements in households’ resilience to climate change have been validated from results of the end-line study in comparison to baseline values. Project support for cardamom and tea production; intercropping galangal, pineapple, and fruit trees; piloting rattan, bee keeping, and soybeans; vegetable gardening; improved rice production; mushroom production; fishponds; and support to women’s savings and loans groups has resulted in reducing the impact of climatic hazards and improving villagers’ incomes.
(69 pages) Read More...
Northern Uplands Promoting Climate Resilience (NU PCR)
The objective of the Northern Uplands – Promoting Climate Resilience (NU-PCR) project is to support vulnerable households in remote areas in three districts in Phongsaly to better understand the current trends and changes in climate and adapt their agricultural livelihoods to these changes. The project is funded by the European Union and was jointly and successfully implemented by CARE, CCL and SAEDA, in close collaboration with local communities (in Mai, Samphan and Gnot Ou districts of the Phongsaly province), the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Lao Women’s Union (among others).
The current report summarises the achievements accomplished during the four years of its implementation (2014-2018).
The greatest achievements (see resilience graphic on page 15) refer to improvement on women’s agency (not least through the establishment of VSLAs), farmers’ long term planning, division of labour through gender equitable shared workload, access to agro-climate information services and livelihood recovery rate. Interestingly, the project could not influence livelihood diversification. This is rooted in the fact, that livelihood of remote ethnic communities in the Northern Uplands of Lao PDR is already highly diversified. Further diversification may rather result economically risky (too much time and resources to be invested dispersive in large variety of farming options, at the cost of investment in value addition of existing livelihood priorities). Therefore, the support provided rather focused on the expansion and value addition to already existing practices (e.g. cultivation, processing and marketing of Cardamom, Tea, Honey, Galangal, Mushroom, Rice, Fish, etc.). (54 pages) Read More...
The current report summarises the achievements accomplished during the four years of its implementation (2014-2018).
The greatest achievements (see resilience graphic on page 15) refer to improvement on women’s agency (not least through the establishment of VSLAs), farmers’ long term planning, division of labour through gender equitable shared workload, access to agro-climate information services and livelihood recovery rate. Interestingly, the project could not influence livelihood diversification. This is rooted in the fact, that livelihood of remote ethnic communities in the Northern Uplands of Lao PDR is already highly diversified. Further diversification may rather result economically risky (too much time and resources to be invested dispersive in large variety of farming options, at the cost of investment in value addition of existing livelihood priorities). Therefore, the support provided rather focused on the expansion and value addition to already existing practices (e.g. cultivation, processing and marketing of Cardamom, Tea, Honey, Galangal, Mushroom, Rice, Fish, etc.). (54 pages) Read More...
The Laos-Australia Rural Livelihoods Program (LARLP) Main Report
An 86 page evaluation is of the AUD 32 million, multi-component, Laos-Australia Rural Livelihoods Program (LARLP). LARLP commenced in January 2014 with the goal of increasing the economic security and resilience of poor women and men in rural areas. Read More...
Resilient Livelihoods for the Poor (RLP) Baseline Report Cohort 2
RLP is a pilot initiative that seeks to roll out a poverty alleviation strategy at the household level in two equal recruitment phases bringing in a total of 1,200 extreme poor households. The first recruitment phase or “cohort” was originally programmed to occur in late 2014 but was held-up until mid-2015 due to the absence of signed MU at the SPSL and IP levels. Cohort 2 is to recruit a further 600 households and will follow relatively rapidly behind the first cohort, meaning that the delays experienced with the first cohort, will be considerably reduced with the second recruitment of extreme poor households to RLP.1 Most second cohort recipients will come from the current three districts, although CARE will complete its approximate 200 recipient households in the new district of Moulapamok. RLP has three major series of activities providing: 1. Funds for the purchase of income generating assets; 2. An asset supporting monthly allowance (stipend) that should enable newly acquired and valuable assets to be properly cared for; 3. Training and mentoring by village level facilitators, working for the three IPs, in the care of those assets and the development of micro-enterprises based on the assets and the skills acquired. Read More...