Our Partnership with LWF
LWF Rights Based Empowerment Project (RBEP) facilitates integrated rural development platforms in ethnic rural communities of Viengphoukha and Nalae districts, Luangnamtha province. LWF applies Rights Based Approach (RBA) or empowerment process integrates in implementation process focuses in 4 different development aspects including empower community manage their sustainable development, empower community access to social services and sustainable income generation as well as sustainable use of natural resources in the communities.
Namsuea village, rural poor Khmu ethnic community is one among 26 LWF target villages in Viengphoukha district is integrated benefited from RBEP intervention since 2012, improve living condition of more than 550 people, 280 female of 119 households. The problems of Namsuea village is similarity to others LWF target villages ranging from leadership of relevance authorities and livelihood development skills as well as insufficient access to necessary knowledge and information. Numbers of government and international development agencies had provided different assistances in the past years, given in-kind support and expected sustainable impacts without considering relative factors includes knowledge delivering, organizational system and involve community in the process.
LWF in collaborates with relevance government agencies provide capacity building to local leaders, youth and women enhances their roles and responsibilities in aspects of sustainable community development. LWF facilitates communities in organizing specific taskforces to undertake activities provided by LWF ensuring implementing and monitoring process by the communities is in place.
LWF supports small amount of fund with technical assistance from Provincial Department of Public Health (PDoPH) and District Public Health Office (DPHO) and the community contributes their labour to construct water system and rehabilitate irrigation system. LWF facilitates organizational of Village Committee for Water and Sanitation (VCWS), establishes community maintaining system and provides training in order to ensure their capacities in functioning the process. Before supporting this intervention, the community lived in inadequate water supply either for daily basis use or for their rice planting, women needed to walk long distances to collect water, rice shortage consuming causes malnourish for mother and children as well as learning competency for children.
Sommai Maniseng/LWF Team Leader said that ‘‘supported water system not only enhance adequate water resources supply for people in the communities, it is also supportive to school feeding activity of World Food Program, teachers can use water to cook food for students everyday’’
As part of benefiting from using irrigation system of farmers, LWF provides seeds of modified rice for the poor households for their rice planting; the seed multiplies rice production which is sufficient for consuming, they also use those harvested seeds to further extend their plantation throughout communities.
Mr Somchit, Khmu ethnic man, 36 years old, one of poorest households in the communities, received couple of female cattle from Village Cattle Group (VSG) supported by LWF to multiply his income generation, his cattle now delivered 1 cow, couple of female ones will be rotated to other poor households once they deliver babies in accordance to revolving policy of VSG. Somchit is trained on caring techniques and medication skills before receiving cattle. Somchit is always present to help other neighbors sharing knowledge and supervising on cow caring and vaccination when necessary. Furthermore, Somchit’s family also received modified seeds to multiply his rice plantation; he shared some of harvested seed to his relative and neighbors to extend their plantation in the communities. Somchit and his family also plant traditional garlic for their food supplement and sell to their neighbors.
Together We Can Do More
