10-year review finds farmers reaping benefits of agricultural progress

            Over the past 10 years, farmers in Luang Prabang have expanded their crop production to support sustainable income through the creation of products made from forest sources and local fruits.

            The Agro-Biodiversity Initiative (TABI) under the National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in cooperation with Luang Prabang Agriculture and Forestry Department, recently reviewed its implementation of the programme since 2010 to support farmers in enhancing crop yields for sustainable revenue. Deputy Head of the Research Institute for Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, Mr Chansamone Phongoudom; Director of Luang Prabang Agriculture and Forestry Department, Mr Sivone Vongkhamchan and provincial officials attended the review.

             Mr Sivone said the initiative was a way to help the province’s farmers attain sustainable production as well as improve their living conditions. He pointed out that presently, the programme has expanded into the province’s 11 districts focusing on eight activities related to encouraging local crop yields and the commercialisation of products. For example, the project has encouraged 16 villages in three districts to collect broom grass and bamboo to create handmade brooms.
            The broom grass products are now being exported to international markets, especially China, Vietnam, and Thailand, where they are in high demand. Another initiative has helped local farmers with cultivation techniques to plant oranges covering 350 hectares in Nambak district’s 26 villages. Other activities include the preservation of 110 reservoirs for traditional fish species as well as encouraging 25 villages in seven districts to collect river weed from 11 waterways to sell as a high-quality commercial product.
           The programme has also helped communities in natural mushroom management and bee feed-ing covering 18 villages in the two districts of Chomphet and Nambak. Mr Sivone added that all these activities had created a sustainable income for local people, with provincial authorities looking forward to cooperating with their partners to expand operations for further implementation.

source: Vientiane Times