ASSET Project

🇱🇦 Capacity Building Training of Trainers Held at Xiengkhouang PAFO to Advance Agroecological Practices 🌱 Xiengkhouang, Laos — A significant step toward promoting sustainable agricultural practices was taken with the successful completion of Capacity Building Training of Trainers (TOT) sessions held from August 13 to 16 at the Xiengkhouang Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Office (PAFO), a flagship site of the ASSET Project. Organized by the National University of Laos (NUoL) with support from the Department of Agriculture (DOA) and PAFO, the training sessions focused on two critical topics: reducing the use of chemicals and pesticides through the investigation of toxic residues in vegetables and fruits 🥦🍅, and value chain analysis 📊. The trainings engaged 22 participants, including local farmers 👩🌾, provincial and district agriculture and forestry office officials. The primary objective was to equip these participants with the knowledge and technical skills needed to implement and advocate for safer, more sustainable agricultural practices in their respective communities 🌍. 🔗 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/g3mz2t7X

More than 20 participants from Agroecology Learning Alliance (ALiSEA) in Laos member organizations took part in a field visit and exchange program last week. They explored #agroecology demonstration plots in #Xiengkhouang province 🇱🇦, the flagship site of ASSET Project. The visit included examining diverse agroecological systems with coffee ☕, bananas 🍌, beans 🫘, and fruit trees in Ngodkeua-phoumeaung and Xaynadu Villages in Kham District, as well as a duck-rice integrated farming system 🦆🌾 in Paek District.

📍 Xiengkhouang, Laos 🇱🇦 Handing Over Ceremony of Equipment, Seeds, and Fodder Plant Blocks in Paek District On July 20-21, the National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute (NAFRI) organized a significant ceremony to hand over equipment, seeds, and fodder plant blocks to farmers in Mouane Village and Ton-Nua Village, Paek District, Xiengkhouang Province. The event aimed to enhance fodder production during the dry season in line with #agroecology principles and to establish a model village for cattle production. This initiative is supported by the Agroecology and Safe Food System Transitions in Southeast Asia (ASSET) project. The ceremony was honored by the presence of Prof. Ms. Chanthakone Buaraphan, head of NAFRI. The equipment was accepted by Mr. Khamlar Chanthavone, Deputy Director of PAFO XKH, on behalf of the attendees. Other notable attendees included Prof. Ms. Phonvilay Sinavong, ASSET project coordinator at NAFRI; Ms. Hongnapa Phommabout, national coordinator of the ASSET project; Mr. Khamphai Phommavong, head of the Agricultural Technical Service Center (Laos-Vietnam); a representative from the Animal Husbandry Research Center; representatives from the agricultural division and PAEK DAFO; along with village authorities and farmers. This initiative is a step towards ensuring sufficient fodder production during the dry season and fostering sustainable cattle farming practices in accordance with agroecological principles.

[Don't panic, the future will be organic / agroecology] #ChangeIsComing... Switzerland, Senegal, Cambodia, Mexico and others have already started their transition towards #agroecology! ✨Find out how and get inspired through these interviews with representatives of the Agroecology Coalition Steering Committee: - Madeleine Kaufmann, Switzerland - Amadou Oury Diallo, Senegal - Saruth Chan, Cambodia - Santiago Jose Arguello Campos Arguello, Mexico 🌱 The clip shows that a lot of steps have already been taken by countries and we can learn from each other! As Santiago Arguello says: “we need to unify the vision, we need to unify the actions to generate and transfer knowledge to all farmers in different regions of the world to have better and stronger food systems” . https://lnkd.in/dMpBKeUw #Agroecology #AgroecologyWorks #AgroecologyNow #FoodSystems

🌱✨ A Flagship Consultative Workshop – Policy Discussion on #Agroecology ✨🌱 “Adopting Agroecology and Safe Food System: from Practices to Policy” was held in Dien Bien Phu, #Vietnam 🇻🇳, on June 20-21! The event brought together around 60 participants, including ASSET project partners and donors, local authorities of Son La and Dien Bien province, and representatives from cooperatives, and businesses in those districts. The workshop aimed to present national policies on agroecology and safe food systems, and to share knowledge and discuss research-based policy insights for supporting agroecological transitions at the local level. The first day of the workshop featured three key sessions. 🌍 Session 1 focused on the #territorialbranding approach for promoting agroecology transition and safe food systems. 🐄 Session 2 delved into supporting provincial #livestock strategies, emphasizing crop-livestock integration at farm and landscape levels, food safety, and value chain changes. ☕ Session 3 highlighted strategies for supporting #coffee quality at provincial and national levels, with discussions on agroforestry and coffee landscapes. On the second day, participants visited Cara Farm, an agroecology farm engaged in quality and branding for organic fruits in Dien Bien. They also stopped by Na Sang 1 village, to explore local agroecology models, including forage silage and compost production 🌱✨

ASSET's partner from National University of Laos 🇱🇦's Food Lab, Mr. Sayvisene Boulom will discuss: 1. Technical Innovation and Policy Dialogue: The project introduces technical innovations and integrates them into local policy through territorial strategies. 2. Role of Scientific "Broker": ASSET Project acts as a neutral mediator, ensuring scientific legitimacy and aiding informed decision-making, thereby strengthening farmers' legitimacy with decision-makers. 3. Multi-scale Collaboration: The work spans from local policies to international bodies like the UN, fostering a legal framework for scaling up. ASSET also contributes to developing ASEAN guidelines on agroecology. 🔗 Register: https://lnkd.in/eGMbS5mK

The ASSET Project’s Third Annual Partner Workshop, held on June 10-11, marked another year of significant steps in advancing #agroecology and safe food systems in Southeast Asia. This hybrid event brought together more than 80 participants from partner organization both in-person – in Phnom Penh 🇰🇭, Vientiane 🇱🇦, and Hanoi 🇻🇳-  and online, focusing on the essential aspects of knowledge production and sharing to foster sustainable agricultural practices.

National Consultation Workshop on Promoting Agroecology in the Context of ASEAN in Vietnam 🇻🇳 was held on June 7, 2024 in Hanoi by the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD) in collaboration with FAO, Việt DHRRA, and partners of the ASSET Project such as GRET & CIRAD, Rural Development Center (RUDEC), Agroecology Learning Alliance in Vietnam. The workshop received the attention and participation of 60 delegates representing government agencies, local authorities, embassies, research organizations, domestic and international NGOs, the private sectors, farmers came to participate for stakeholders to discuss agroecology development policies within the framework of their unification of ASEAN countries and the suitability of each country. Dr. The Anh DAO, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Institute of Agricultural Sciences emphasized in the event that “Vietnam is a member country of ASEAN, after synthesizing all the opinions and suggestions of the participants, Vietnam needs to come up with a draft Guidelines for the transformation of Agroecology for the country, seek consultation from relevant ministries and sectors and submit to the ASEAN Secretariat for consultation with countries." 🔗 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gkgrHH7r

ASSET Project in Cambodia 🇰🇭 under the coordination of CIRAD and Swisscontact Cambodia in collaboration with Can Tho University organized an #agroecology flagship exchange field visit 🌱🌾🥭 to Southern Vietnam 🇻🇳 from 3-7 June 2024. 17 participants from government, non-government organizations, agricultural cooperatives, and union of agricultural cooperatives who are partners of ASSET and Agroecology Learning Alliance in Southeast Asia (ALiSEA)’s members working to promote agroecology and safe food systems transitions in Preah Vihear (flagship sites) as well as other provinces in Cambodia. The visit aimed to: ✅ Collectively share and learn among participants and with the farmers / technicians in Vietnam on a range of production systems and practices based on agroecology such rice, vegetables, and orchard ✅ Exchange findings and challenges for action research with Can Tho university and research centers ✅ Reflex and propose possible adaptation of those research findings and practices to the context of Preah Vihear and other provinces in Cambodia The participants visited and exchanged with the farmers and the technicians on a range of production systems and practices for rice, vegetables, melon, dragon fruit, durain, jujube…etc. in Can Tho, An Giang, Tien Giang, and Long An province. In addition, the participants had a chance to visit Can Tho university, Southern Horticultural Research Institute (SOFRI), Southern Region Plant Protection Center, and a factory to process fresh and frozen fruits to international markets. We would like to deeply thank Dr. Trinh Thi Xuan, researcher and lecturer at agricultural college of Can Tho university, directions and staffs of SOFRI and Plant Protection Center and in particular authorities in the four provinces to facilitate and make this visit productively and successfully.

#Testimonial Here's what Ms. Soulinda Souvannasan from the Participatory Development Knowledge Agency (PAKA) had to say about #APAARI's recent capacity-building #writeshop on "Translating Research Findings to Development Practitioners and Farmers" in Vang Vieng, Laos! She and 25 other ASSET Project partners participated in the hands-on training to improve their writing skills, enabling them to document and simplify expert knowledge and field experiences. The participants collaborated with peers, shared promising practices, and crafted content that will impact their communities meaningfully. 🚀✨ A big thank you to all who participated and contributed to making this event a success! Together, we're empowering change and fostering growth in agroecology and sustainable development. 🌱💪 Vishy Teki Pooja Mathur Martina Spisiakova #APAARI #CapacityBuilding #Agroecology #KnowledgeTransfer #DevelopmentPractitioners #Farmers #ALiSEA #SustainableDevelopment #CommunityImpact