QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT · 2020. 6. 26. · DAFO District Agriculture and Forestry Office DOPLA Department of Policy and Legal Affairs ... (GESI) plan submitted (final approval

QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT LAOS MICROENTERPRISE SUPPORTED BY USAID

FY20 QUARTERLY REPORT: OCTOBER–DECEMBER 2019

FY20 Quarterly Report January 30

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QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT

LAOS MICROENTERPRISE

SUPPORTED BY USAID

Reporting Period: October–December 2019 Agreement Number: 72048618CA00007 Agreement Period: August 15, 2018–September 14, 2023 AOR USAID: Chief of Party:

Submitted by:

, Chief of Party Submission Date: January 30, 2020 ACDI/VOCA 50 F ST NW, Washington DC 20001 Email:

DISCLAIMER:

This report is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United

States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of

ACDI/VOCA and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.


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CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 5

2. BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................ 5

2.1 OBJECTIVES AND INTERMEDIATE RESULTS ............................................................ 5

3. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REPORTING PERIOD .................................................................... 6

3.1 PROJECT ADMINISTRATION ....................................................................................... 7

3.1.1 MOU PROCESS COMPLETED ............................................................................................ 7

3.1.2 GOL MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES ........................................................................................ 7

3.1.3 COORDINATION WITH GOL AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS ........................................................ 8

3.1.4 GENERAL OPERATIONS .................................................................................................... 9

3.2 ACTIVITY PROGRESS BY INTERMEDIATE RESULT (IR) .......................................... 9

3.3 LIST OF REPORTS/DELIVERABLES COMPLETED IN THE REPORTING PERIOD 13

3.3.1 MEL PLAN .................................................................................................................. 13

3.3.2 GESI ......................................................................................................................... 13

3.3.3 GIDAP ...................................................................................................................... 13

3.3.4 ADDITIONAL REPORTS ................................................................................................... 13

3.4 CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE ACTIVITY TO THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES .................. 15

4. CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED AND PLAN TO ADDRESS THEM ................................ 15

5. UPCOMING EVENTS / FUTURE DIRECTIONS ............................................................... 16

6. MONITORING, EVALUATION, AND LEARNING ........................................................... 17

6.1 CHALLENGES, SUCCESSES, AND LESSONS LEARNED .......................................... 18

7. GRANTS .............................................................................................................................. 18

8. VOLUNTEERS ..................................................................................................................... 18

9. COMMUNICATIONS AND OUTREACH .......................................................................... 18

9.1 COMMUNICATION CALENDAR ................................................................................ 19


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ABBREVIATIONS The Activity Laos Microenterprise supported by USAID

BDS Business Development Services

COP Chief of Party

DAFO District Agriculture and Forestry Office

DOPLA Department of Policy and Legal Affairs

DTEAP Department of Technical Extension and Agricultural Processing

EMMP Environmental Management and Mitigation Plan

FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

FO Field Officer

GESI Gender Equality and Social Inclusion

GIDAP Gender and Inclusive Development Action Plan

GOL Government of Laos

HQ Headquarters

IMC Implementation Management Committee

IR Intermediate Result

LDC Least Developed Country

LNCCI Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industries

LURAS Lao Upland Rural Advisory Service Project

MAF Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

ME Microenterprise

MEL Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning

MOFA Ministry of Foreign Affairs

MOU Memorandum of Understanding

MSE Micro and Small Enterprise

MSME Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise

PAFO Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Office

SSWGFA Secretariat of the Subsector Working Group on Farmers and Agribusiness

UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

USAID United States Agency for International Development

WOCCU World Council of Credit Unions


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1. INTRODUCTION

This quarterly progress report covers the first quarter (Q1) of fiscal year 2020 (FY20), from October

to December 2019, for Laos Microenterprise supported by USAID (The Activity). This progress report

is submitted to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Laos under

Cooperative Agreement No. AID-72048618CA00007. The report highlights the achievements during

the reporting period and presents progress against indicator targets.

2. BACKGROUND

Laos Microenterprise supported by USAID will strengthen the competitiveness of microenterprises

(MEs) in Laos by expanding access to and adoption of business skills, modern technologies and

practices, finance, market linkages, and public-private dialogue. The Activity’s support will benefit at

least 8,000 MEs, leading to 25 percent higher revenues and $1.3 million new investments.

ACDI/VOCA will help USAID achieve these objectives by using a private sector-driven, market

systems approach. First, The Activity identifies existing and potential market opportunities and

incentives, and engages medium and large businesses to invest in their operations and supply

chains, while pulling MEs into productive market systems. Next, The Activity works with lenders and

borrowers to expand supply and demand for financial services to fuel investment. The Activity

partners with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), Department of Technical Extension and

Agricultural Processing (DTEAP), Provincial and District Agriculture and Forestry Offices (PAFO,

DAFO), extension officers, and local business development services to equip rural MEs with the

business skills, market linkages, and advocacy ability to exploit these opportunities.

Beneficiaries will include MEs at the production level, input and service providers, intermediaries

such as traders and exporters, value-adding enterprises, and financial institutions. ACDI/VOCA will

target Xiengkhouang province because of its agricultural potential, proximity to major regional trade

corridors connecting Laos to Thailand, China, and Vietnam, and potential to develop non-

agricultural, rural enterprises and sectors, such as tourism and handicrafts.

2.1 OBJECTIVES AND INTERMEDIATE RESULTS

The goal of The Activity is to strengthen the competitiveness of Lao MEs by enhancing their abilities

to access and expand to markets, which will enable them to increase profits and grow.

The Activity’s project design is based on the following theory of change:

If MEs have improved entrepreneurial skills, improved access to technology and capital, are

able to reduce operation costs, and create market linkages, and

if the government of Laos gives more policy voice to these businesses,

then Laos MEs will become more efficient, more effective, and thus more competitive.

The Activity team will use a holistic push-pull approach to spur enterprise competitiveness along

targeted value chains. By working backwards from the markets for relevant commodities produced

in Xiengkhouang province, the team will identify lead businesses ready to invest in their supply

chains. The team will provide a package of technical assistance, credit facilitation, and matching

grants to mitigate risk, catalyze private sector investment, and accelerate growth. As a result, these


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businesses will pull more MEs into their expanding supply chains, improving access to cash markets,

technology, infrastructure, value chain finance, training, and services. At the same time, the team

will push rural MEs toward commercial viability through the transfer of financial literacy and

entrepreneurship skills, access to technologies, credit, services, and economies of scale. The result

will be a self-sustaining, virtuous cycle of ME market readiness, creditworthiness, and private sector

investment. Though The Activity will focus on rural MEs and other private sector partners, the team

will also leverage existing systems and resources, such as partnering with GOL at the provincial and

district levels to build its capacity to deliver enterprise training.

The Activity’s intermediate results (IRs) and sub intermediate results are below:

Table 1. Intermediate results and sub intermediate results

Intermediate Results

IR1, improved ability to respond to market

Sub IR 1.1: Entrepreneurial knowledge and skills improved

Sub-IR 1.2: Access to improved technology and innovation increased

Sub-IR 1.3 Value chain infrastructure improved

IR2, increased access to financial resources

Sub-IR 2.1: Inclusion of ME needs in financial tools and regulations increased

IR3, reduced business operation costs

Sub IR 3.1 MEs’ negotiation power through effective organization among MEs enhanced

IR4, improved access to markets

Sub IR 4.1 Coordination with public sector on policy advocacy and reform and with private

sector on partnership improved

3. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REPORTING PERIOD

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Process:

• MOU signed on October 4, 2019

Administrative Processes:

• DTEAP, PAFO and two district coordinators appointed (Koune and Nonghed)

• Implementation Management Committee (IMC) meeting was held in November

• Chief of Party (COP) visited headquarters (HQ) for onboarding

• Project moved into permanent office space in Phousavanh on 21st October 2019

Deliverables:

• High-level work plan submitted and approved

• Annual progress report submitted and approved

• Monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) plan and indicators submitted (final approval

pending)

• Gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) plan submitted (final approval pending)

• Gender and inclusive development action plan (GIDAP) summited (final approval pending)


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3.1 PROJECT ADMINISTRATION

3.1.1 MOU PROCESS COMPLETED

The MOU signing ceremony took place on October

4, 2019. His Excellency Dr.

Vice Minister of MAF, and His

Excellency , U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to

Laos, witnessed the ceremony. Mr.

Director General, signed the MOU on

behalf of DTEAP and , COP, signed on

behalf of ACDI/VOCA. The MOU signing ceremony

marked the completion of the MOU-related

activities listed below.

Table 2. MOU activities

MOU Activities Status

Confirm approval of Xiengkhouang province with GOL (MAF) and USAID Complete

Identify department within MAF as GOL partner Complete, DTEAP

identified

Meet with target province and district officers to introduce The Activity Complete

Provincial MOU consultative meeting held with support from DTEAP and

PAFO

Complete, meeting

held January 15

Submit draft MOU to USAID (Provincial MOU and MAF MOU) Complete

Get approval of preliminary activities from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

(MOFA) and PAFO during MOU preparation phase

Complete, approved

March 18

Hold national-level MOU consultative meeting Complete, meeting

held March 6

Work with MAF Department of Planning and Finance to revise MOU based on

national meeting feedback and receive Minister of Agriculture’s approval of

the draft MOU prior to submission to MOFA

Complete, May 6

MOU approval by MOFA Complete, approved

June 28

MOU signing ceremony Complete, October 4

3.1.2 GOL MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES

GOL COLLABORATION After the MOU signing ceremony, the team started working with GOL teams to obtain approval to

start implementing activities, including appointing project coordinators and holding the IMC

meeting.

Mr. , Director General of DTEAP, appointed Mr. , Technical

Staff Officer as the DTEAP Project Coordinator for the project. DTEAP and PAFO agreed to appoint a


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PAFO coordinator because DTEAP does not have a presence at the provincial level. Mr.

Head of PAFO, appointed Mr. , head of International Cooperation

and the NGO Supervision Department, as the Project PAFO coordinator.

The Activity held the first Implementation Management Committee (IMC) meeting on November 8,

2019, co-chaired by Mr. , Director General of DTEAP, and Mr.

Head of PAFO. Meeting participants included representatives from all seven districts, including vice

governors, DAFO heads, and members of District Officer of Industry and Commerce, district Lao

Women’s Union, and Department of Planning and Finance. Provincial-level meeting participants

included representatives from a number of MAF departments, as well as POFA, POIC, LWU, and QLA.

National-level participants included representatives from DTEAP, MAF Planning and Finance, and

MOFA. A total of 72 individuals participated in meetings. The Activity team presented the first

annual work plan and budget. After a discussion, meeting participants agreed that training activities

could start in two districts, Koune and Nonghed, with subsequent roll-outs to other districts after

The Activity tests and adjusts training materials.

After the IMC, The Activity staff arranged district implementation management meetings in Koune

and Nonghed. Meeting participants included the DAFO head and representatives from Planning and

Finance, District officer of Industry and Commerce, and the Lao Women’s Union. During these

meetings, The Activity staff led and documented discussions about how to collaborate with DAFO.

Participants also agreed on the process to register DAFO members who would accompany the team

to the field, as well as the use of project motorbikes. During the meeting, participants also confirmed

the project district coordinators: Mrs. , DAFO Coordinator in Koune, and Mr.

, DAFO Coordinator in Nonghed. Subsequently PAFO also appointed Mr.

, Deputy Head of PAFO, as the provincial chair of the IMC.

The Activity team requested budget and activity reporting requirements from DTEAP and PAFO;

some of these requirements have been shared.

On December 19, His Excellency Mr.

,

Vice Minister of Agriculture and

Forestry, visited Xiengkhouang and

met with Activity team members,

Ms. of

USAID, and PAFO representatives,

including Mr.

and Mr. . His

Excellency discussed previous

lessons learned from other projects

and emphasized how the MAF will watch The Activity’s focus on entrepreneurial support from MEs

to private sector partners with interest, with the ultimate goal of replicating successful approaches

in other provinces.

3.1.3 COORDINATION WITH GOL AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS

In addition to its direct implementing partners, The Activity continued to collaborate and coordinate

with staff from other key USAID programs, including World Education, Asia Foundation, and Save the

Children. The Activity team discussed and shared resources with World Education related to our

Environmental Management and Mitigation Plan (EMMP). The Activity team also contacted

the USAID Laos Business Environment Project, to discuss the new project’s start up and


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future collaboration. The Activity invited representatives from USAID OKARD and the USAID Laos

Business Environment Project to join its work planning session in January 2020.

On December 23, 2019, The Activity team provided a short introduction to its ME business training

program to the Xiengkhouang Integrated Vocational Education and Training facility. This facility

provides practical training to over 750 students, including 245 women, from all districts in

Xiengkhouang in agriculture, carpentry, mechanics, food-related service industries, and other topics.

The students range in age from 14–41, and the educational requirements for entry are that they can

read and write Lao Loum, but they do not have to have finished primary school. The facility aims to

provide students with useful practical skills during training periods that range in length from four

months to four years. Using these skills, students can find jobs or set up small microenterprises.

However, the training programs do not currently include simple business skills. The Activity team is

discussing the possibility of offering training of trainers or providing training sessions directly to

students. The Activity will further explore this potential collaboration during the next quarter.

3.1.4 GENERAL OPERATIONS

STAFF CAPACITY BUILDING COP travelled to ACDI/VOCA’s HQ in Washington, D.C. for two weeks to attend

trainings and onboarding, including sessions on finance, accounting, award management, travel, risk

management, monitoring and evaluation (M&E), human resources, and communications.

Additionally, the team plans to send relevant local staff to Burma during the next quarter to attend

joint training sessions on finance, accounting, procurement, and human resources with staff of the

Burma Agriculture and Food Systems Development Activity. The training in Burma will provide an

opportunity for both Laos and Burma staff to build regional relationships and increase collaboration

and efficiency across the two USAID and ACDI/VOCA projects.

3.2 ACTIVITY PROGRESS BY INTERMEDIATE RESULT (IR)

IR1, IMPROVED ABILITY TO RESPOND TO MARKET

HIGHLIGHTS

• PHASE 1 FARMING AS A BUSINESS TRAINING STARTED IN 2 DISTRICTS (KOUNE AND NONGHED)

SUB IR 1.1: ENTREPRENEURIAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS IMPROVED

HIGHLIGHTS

• STARTED PHASE 1 FARMING AS A BUSINESS TRAINING IN 24 VILLAGES IN KOUNE AND NONGHED

• 351 BENEFICIARIES TRAINED IN PHASE 1 MODULES OF FARMING AS A BUSINESS The Activity team engaged four field officers in November and provided an extensive training on the Phase 1 Farming as a Business training material. According to the agreement The Activity team made with PAFO at the IMC meeting, activity implementation will begin in Koune and Nonghed districts. These districts differ from each other in the range of products produced on the farms, farming conditions, ethnicities, and general poverty levels. The Activity team did not have the opportunity to go to the field to develop the training material with beneficiaries. Therefore, the team designed a pilot to test materials and identify operation considerations. With the help of each district’s DAFO coordinators, the team identified 12 villages in each district, selected to demonstrate ethnic language issues, road condition problems, and group dynamic issues. During the first week in the districts, the FOs introduce the Farming as a Business training to village leaders with support from the DAFO representative. The FOs explained the training purpose and briefly summarized the


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content that will be covered. In advance of this initial training, the FOs asked village leaders to inform village members and invite those interested in attending the training. Then, FOs and DAFO representatives visited participating villages and registered interested beneficiaries. The training sessions began on November 27, 2019. During the first quarter of 2020, The Activity registered 553 beneficiaries, of which 47 percent were women. However, the team observed a significant difference between the numbers of women registering in Koune district, which is predominantly Lao Loum, and Nonghed district, which has a higher ratio of Hmong. In Koune, 75 percent of registered beneficiaries are women, compared to 25 percent women participants in Nonghed. The average size of a group is 18 participants. However, groups ranged in size from 4 to 37. The Activity team will complete all four sessions by the first weeks of January. The delay is due to the Hmong new year celebration, when many villagers did not want to meet. Once all four sessions have been completed, the team will carry out an evaluation to assess whether training content was suitably adapted to the Laos context, participants’ comprehension of the information provided, and whether the training provided new and beneficial content that beneficiaries will consider using in the future. The evaluation will also determine whether there were significant gender differences in any of these areas. The DAFO officers accompanying the FOs to the field have fed back to the Training Coordinator that the training material is new and they believe meeting a gap in farmers education. A number of women have discussed how much they like session three which among other subjects discusses the productive and economic roles of men and women on the farm and have said how useful it would be for their husbands to attend this session. Participants report being surprised at how high their household expenses are and how they have never thought about how to manage this.

Table 3. Number of beneficiaries registered, disaggregated by gender, ethnicity and age, and number of beneficiaries who have participated in more than one training session between November 27–December 31, 2019

District Khoune Nonghed

Villages visited 12 12

Gender Women Men Total Women Men Total

Beneficiaries registered 239 72 311 60 182 242

Lao Loum 117 15 132 16 37 53

Hmong 47 38 85 29 93 122

Khmu 0 0 0 5 24 29

Other ethnic 75 19 94 10 28 38

Age 15-29 55 7 62 16 37 53

Age 30+ 184 65 249 44 145 189

More than one session completed

163 39 202 37 112 149

IR 2, MES’ ACCESS TO FINANCIAL RESOURCES INCREASED

SUB IR 2.1 INCLUSION OF ME NEEDS IN FINANCIAL TOOLS AND REGULATIONS INCREASED In the first quarter of FY20, the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) contracted a local consultant, Mr. , who has strong savings and credit union experience and knowledge of financial institutions. The consultant will attend The Activity’s upcoming 2020 work plan event to assist with the access to finance project component and participate in conducting the financial institution baseline assessment, to be led by the Access to Finance Specialist and WOCCU.


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Based on a request from The Activity, the Xiengkhouang branch of the Bank of Lao provided a list of 16 financial institutions that operate in the province, including three SCUs, three MFIs, nine banks, and one leasing company. WOCCU and other members of The Activity team assisted the Access to Finance Specialist to create a financial institution baseline questionnaire for financial institutions in Xiengkhouang. The team sent the questionnaires to financial institutions in mid-December 2019, and the Access to Finance Specialist plans to follow up with in-person interviews between December 2019 and February 2020 to discuss the questionnaires. The Activity team will use the questionnaire data to establish baseline data, as well as to review targets for IR 2 indicators during the first quarter of FY20.

IR3, REDUCED BUSINESS OPERATION COSTS SUB IR 3.1 MES’ NEGOTIATION POWER THROUGH EFFECTIVE ORGANIZATION AMONG MES

ENHANCED Baseline data revealed that, of the farmers who joined groups (14 percent), the majority (62.1 percent) joined the group to get training primarily on productivity activities. Very few saw their group membership as useful for purchasing inputs or marketing. The DAFO teams in Koune and Nonghed districts provided similar information, reporting that the strategy of using groups as marketing points was not working. The DAFO teams also reported a lack of viable groups in their districts, apart from the five village coffee groups affiliated with Helvetas in Koune district and the

vegetable group, established over 15 years ago. In order to determine the type of tool needed to assess farmers’ groups, The Activity team requested that PAFO identify two groups of varying viability. PAFO identified the Cooperative in Koune district as strong and the farmer group in Pek district as weak. The BDS, Gender, and Inclusion Specialist visited these two groups and held a general discussion about their structure, plans, and challenges.

Cooperative in Koune district is a well-organized and strong group. The cooperative sells fresh salad vegetables to markets in Xiengkhouang, Luang Prabang, Vientiane, and Borikhamxai. The cooperative maintains long-term supply relationships with traders and monitors cropping patterns to meet market demand. The group grew by only one additional member since establishment over 15 years ago. All the cooperative members live in one village. They hope to invest in a larger tractor to prepare their fields more quickly in anticipation of the rainy season. The group members think the 18 percent interest rate offered by financial institutions is unfair, since the government bank offers loans of 8 percent. Unfortunately, the lower rates are only available for loans used to buy cattle, not tractors. Cooperative members also hope to invest in a greenhouse expansion, and to seek a market for their new product, Japanese potatoes.

The farmer group is a new, reorganized group that produces organic Khao Khai Noi rice and vegetables. They are looking for a market for their organic rice and sell vegetables in Sibounheuang market. They hope to invest in purchasing a leaf-crushing machine for their organic fertilizers.

The Activity used this information to assess the following organizational tools available both within and outside of Laos:

• Organizational Capacity Assessment

• Organizational Performance Index

• ACDI/VOCA’s signature M4 tool

• Helvetas’ 5 Cs Organizational Capacity Assessment

• Questionnaires for company used by Helvetas bio-trade project

• Trade association tool for assessing local Chamber of Industry and Commerce


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• Business feasibility assessment tools for small grants

• Farmer production group assessment tools used by DTEAP The team selected the M4 tool as the most applicable way to assess groups that may receive future Activity support. Furthermore, the tool will be a suitable way to measure change in later assessments. The BDS & Gender Advisor and team translated the tool and will present it to DTEAP and PAFO in early 2020 for their review and approval prior to deploying it in the field.

IR4, IMPROVED ACCESS TO MARKETS

SUB IR 4.1 COORDINATION WITH PUBLIC SECTOR ON POLICY ADVOCACY AND REFORM AND WITH

PRIVATE SECTOR ON PARTNERSHIP IMPROVED

As a result of recent improved socioeconomic conditions in Laos, the country has reached the threshold on two of the three criteria considered for graduation out of Least Developed Country (LDC) status, namely the gross national income per capita and the human assets index. Furthermore, Laos has managed to sustainably reduce its economic vulnerability index close to the threshold level. If current progress is maintained, Laos is likely to graduate from LDC status in 2024. At a workshop hosted by United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Vientiane, UNCTAD emphasizes that Laos’ growth and socioeconomic progress is highly vulnerable to trends in pricing in the mining and electricity sectors, weather conditions, and the rate of natural resource depletion. The economic growth of the mining and hydroelectric power sectors make them the most dynamic sectors in the economy, but they have few linkages to other local economic sectors, have a low capacity to absorb employment, and only make modest contributions to government revenue. To ensure sustainable growth, Laos must focus on policies that foster productive capacities, enhance economic diversification, and develop a good business environment, while simultaneously considering the mitigation and adaptation to environmental shocks. The Activity’s focus on identifying private sector companies and supporting their growth while leveraging this support with strong economic linkages into the rural ME community will enhance economic diversity. The Activity will look at the engagement of MEs and other agricultural linked private sector actors to identify the obstacles limiting their growth, and to create opportunities for public-private dialogue about these issues at various levels. During the last six months, the Policy Advisor reviewed relevant policy debate issues; what they are, who supports them, and to what degree the private and public sectors prioritize them. Through this landscaping process, The Activity aims to identify where the project can add value and avoid duplication of current or previous efforts. To this end, and with the signing of the MOU, the Policy Advisor held a series of meetings with the following individuals:

• Dr. , Head of Policy Division at the Department of Policy and Legal Affairs (DOPLA), to discuss the government’s policy road map, which received support from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and approval from the MAF. The roadmap covers five functional areas, 17 issues, and 28 reform options for improving the policy and legal frameworks for contract farming development in Laos. While the FAO contributes resources to implementing the road map (including personnel), MAF welcomes contributions from others.

• Mr. , Director of Provincial Department of Industry and

Commerce, Xiengkhouang Province. The Ministry of Industry and Commerce is currently

developing tools to support ME development, and the provincial department mentioned

their need for support in marketing their One District One Product.


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• Mr. , Team Leader/Policy Advisor of Lao Upland Rural Advisory Service

Project (LURAS), which manages the Secretariat of the Subsector Working Group on Farmers

and Agribusiness (SSWGFA). One of the working group’s key roles is to validate key issues

raised by the government. Mr. mentioned that the MAF is currently pursuing the

key issues of value chain governance and free, prior, and informed consent related to

contact and concession. Mr. suggested that LURAS and The Activity could jointly

organize a provincial policy workshop in Xiengkhouang province and include representatives

from the private sector for the first time. LURAS will discuss the idea with Mr.

Director of DOPLA and Co-chair of SSWGFA, in January 2020.

The Policy Advisor met with the board of director of Lao National Chamber of Commerce and

Industries (LNCCI), Xiengkhouang Province and determined that the branch has no members or

strategic plans. The Policy Advisor also meet with Mr. , secretariat of LNCCI, to

review the Xiengkhouang Branch’s capacity to carry out its mandate and capacity building

development plan. The Policy Advisor and secretariat agreed that the Xiengkhouang Branch’s

capacity is limited—the branch is not fully functioning according to their mandate and cannot

currently represent the private sector in a public-private dialogue.

3.3 LIST OF REPORTS/DELIVERABLES COMPLETED IN THE REPORTING PERIOD

Table 4. List of reports/deliverables completed in Q1 FY20

Report/Deliverable Version Approved

Memorandum of Understanding Signed Copy October 4, 2019

Baseline Final October 31, 2019

Annual Work Plan Y2 High-Level Submitted on December 1, 2019

3.3.1 MEL PLAN

Approval of the MEL plan is pending further discussion with USAID and revision of several indicators.

3.3.2 GESI

On December 12, ACDI/VOCA submitted the revised GESI to USAID. USAID responded with comments on December 24, and the ACDI/VOCA team is currently working to address these comments and will respond in January 2020.

3.3.3 GIDAP

On December 5th, ACDI/VOCA submitted the revised GIDAP to USAID, and the ACDI/VOCA team is waiting for USAID’s comments.

3.3.4 ADDITIONAL REPORTS

IDENTIFYING THE BEHAVIORAL DETERMINANTS OF SMALLHOLDER FARMERS THAT IMPACT THEIR ADOPTION OF

THE VACCINATION OF NATIVE CHICKENS IN KHAM DISTRICT, XIENGKHOUANG, LAO PDR:


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An estimated 70 to 100 percent of households in Kham District, Xiengkhouang, raise native chickens as a key source of both food and income. However, DAFO estimates that 60 percent of native chickens die from poultry diseases in the district every year. Despite the high risk of smallholder farmers’ chickens contracting disease, a belief that unvaccinated chickens will die, and despite the recent provision of training from DAFO on the vaccination of native chickens, adoption rates remain very low, between 2 and 4 percent. However, traders report that they believe they could easily supply at additional 40% to the markets, more in festival seasons. Consumption of chicken is increasing worldwide, and is directly linked to economic growth, therefore as the Lao population continue to benefit from increased income through economic growth the demand for chicken meat both native and commercial will grow. Understanding the barriers to adopting new technology will help inform the teams thinking on the agent of change model. The Activity supported a volunteer assignment, carried out by Mr. , to identify the behavioral determinants that facilitate some farmers to vaccinate their chickens and that impede other farmers from vaccinating their chickens. Key findings:

• The training shows how to vaccinate chickens, but participants do not have an opportunity to try the technique themselves. Non-doers are not confident that they are able to vaccinate.

• Both doers and non-doers reported they were more likely to vaccinate if there was a veterinary service provider in the village who sells vaccinating materials. Those with access to a veterinary service provider can form a relationship and ask questions about vaccinating their chickens.

• Non-doers think it is very likely their chickens will contract disease in the next 12 months and die, whereas doers do not think it is likely. Non-doers appear to simply accept this as a normal loss.

• Approximately 4 percent of doers supplement their information from books and manuals, whereas non-doers are more likely to ask advice from friends in the village.

• Non-doers earn less than 25 percent of their total household income from raising chickens and maintain 11 to 30 chickens. Those who vaccinate earn 51 to 75 percent of their income from raising chicken and maintain 51 to 75 chickens.

The chicken barrier assessment identifies that approximately 4 percent of the population in rural areas could be considered innovators—people who are ready to try out new technologies and take on risks to try something new. This is encouraging news for The Activity since it implies a potential source of Agents of Change1. While further discussions need to be held to understand other constraints such as supply of vaccine supporting individuals at the village level to set up as the village vaccinator, providing vaccination services alongside record keeping (so they can tell customers when they next need to vaccinate their chickens), and information on chicken feed may offer agent of change market opportunities transforming the lives of the less commercial chicken producers.

1 Agent of change refers to an individual who runs a ME, this individual needs to be in or close to the

community and be offering or be willing to innovate and offer services examples of which include but are not

limited to; bulk purchases of inputs, demonstrations and local sales of inputs, agricultural services (tractor,

pruning, combine harvesting, vaccination, animal feed etc.) aggregation to deliver to a larger buyer (including

but not limited to partnership grantees)


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3.4 CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE ACTIVITY TO THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES

Science and Technology: in the previous quarter we reported how we were collaborating with the

LURAS program to look at drying and hermetic storage options for maize but how the delay in the

MOU meant we were not able to bring in the dryer fabricator. We are waiting LURAS’ report on the

results of the experiment which will come after an extended storage period. The storage bags are

expected to be opened in February 2020.

Gender and Social Inclusion: the training was offered to all adults who were interested in farming as

a business. Not unexpectedly based on the GESI findings we saw different proportions of men and

women signing up depending on whether they were Lao Loum, Hmong or Khmu;

Ethnicity Women Men

Hmong 37% 63%

Khmu 19% 81%

Laoloum 73% 27%

We also asked the village chiefs who reach out the villagers to tell them about trainings to include

those who are considered disabled but capable. We had 17 disabled people join and 13 completed

training (lower drop out than general population), their disabilities ranging from non-functioning

limbs, deafness and very poor eyesight.

4. CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED AND PLAN TO ADDRESS

THEM

4.1 GOL COLLABORATION The team originally planned to finish work planning in November but had to put off the process until

January due to delays obtaining business visas. The joint implementation between PAFO and DTEAP

means business visa applications must receive approval from PAFO, DTEAP, and then other national

MAF departments. Business visas currently take approximately eight weeks to process.

4.2 TRAINING BENEFICIARIES The Activity team discovered that residents of 15 villages in Nonghed district are majority Phong,

and training in Lao or Hmong is not effective. Luckily, one of the FOs that starts in January is a native

Phong speaker, and the team will deploy him to train members of these villages, among others.

In some villages, less than 15 villagers registered for trainings, including one circumstance when only

two people joined a training. It is a poor use of USAID resources to train less than 15 beneficiaries

per village in Phase 1. The team will discuss this challenge during the evaluation in January and

discuss future modalities with PAFO and DAFO.


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5. UPCOMING EVENTS / FUTURE DIRECTIONS

Table 5. Upcoming events and future directions

Event Date Stakeholders / Other Info Other Notes Work plan workshop

January 9–11, 2020

Activity team, DTEAP, and PAFO representatives, facilitated by

District IMC meetings

January–March

Activity team, PAFO, DAFO, and other GOL representatives

Phase 1 Farming as a Business role out in all districts

Feb onwards MEs


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6. MONITORING, EVALUATION, AND LEARNING

Table 6. Indicators Tracking Table

Data

SourceYear Value

Annual

Target

Annual

Result

Male 151 Male Male Male

Female 200 Female Female Female

Cross cutting

15-29 20% Male Male Male

30+ 80% Female Female Female

Male 208 Male Male Male

Female 262 Female Female Female

15-29 101 Male Male Male

30+ 369 Female Female Female

Not applicable Sex (M/F) Sex (M/F)

Age Age Age Age

Not applicable

17. Percentage of female participants in

USG-assisted programs designed to

increase access to productive economic

resources

30%

Sex (M/F) Sex (M/F)18. EG.5-3: Number of microenterprises

supported by USG assistance

This indicator counts the number

of MEs reached directly through a

deliberate service strategy by The

Activity. The indicator counts all

MEs

Training

Schedule and

Attendence

Tracker

Beneficiary

Registry

Quarterly 6000

Not applicableQuarterly

Training

Schedule and

Attendence

Tracker

Beneficiary

Registry

This indicator measures The

Activity’s performance related to

increasing women’s access to

productive economic resources

extracted from indicator 6.

Sub-IR 1.1: Entrepreneurial knowledge and skills improved

IR1, Improved Ability to Respond to Market

351

57%

Sex (M/F) Sex (M/F) Sex (M/F) Sex (M/F)

Age Age Age Age

6000

BaselineFrequency of

Reporting to

Laos USAID

Data SourceBrief DescriptionQ1

Targets

Justification

FY 2020Life of

Award

Target

Life of

Award

Result

%

Achieved

(LOP)Q2 Q3 Q4

Indicator Number & Name

Quarterly

Training

Schedule and

Attendence

Tracker

Beneficiary

Registry

This indicator counts the number

of Activity participants—MEs and

others—reached directly through

a deliberate service strategy.

6. CUST (EG.3.2-1) Number of individuals who

have received USG-supported short-term

agricultural sector productivity or food

security training

470

470 8000 470 5.9%

351 8000 351 4.4%

>100%57% 30% 57%


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6.1 CHALLENGES, SUCCESSES, AND LESSONS LEARNED

Included in future quarterly reports once applicable.

7. GRANTS

Included in future quarterly reports once applicable.

8. VOLUNTEERS

completed a volunteer assignment, looking into barriers preventing the uptake of chicken vaccination in an environment where chickens routinely die from preventable diseases. See report section 3.3.4 for more information.

As discussed in the staffing section, The Activity team has not yet successfully recruited a Communications Officer with the minimum set of communication skills suitable for a USAID project. The team did identify a suitable intern, but she needed a degree of training which could not be provided remotely and she subsequently took a job with another NGO. To address this gap, we identified a long-term communications volunteer, Mr. , who is willing to spend four to six months with the project (subject to obtaining a business visa, GOL approval, and his personal commitments). Mr. is a communications and media specialist with expertise in creating communication strategies focused on brand recognition and media coverage and implementing plans for external communications. In addition to his technical expertise in communications, he brings substantial experience in managing, mentoring, and coaching communications teams. He will start on January 6, and his first task will be to recruit a Communications Officer or two interns. If the interns perform successfully, the teams plans to offer one a position after the three-month internship.

Table 7. Upcoming volunteer assignments

Volunteer Name Assignment Dates

Assignment/Scope of Work Other notes

January to May, 2020

Assist with communications strategy and communications training

9. COMMUNICATIONS AND OUTREACH

• On October 8, the Vientiane Times published an article about the MOU signing ceremony.

• In January, The Activity will submit the first quarterly report to PAFO on activities completed

during the last quarter and activities planned for the first quarter of 2020.

• During the work planning event in January, The Activity will revise the annual

communication plan and submit it with the annual work plan to USAID in February.


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9.1 COMMUNICATION CALENDAR

The delayed MOU signing also hindered the team’s 2019 communication plan, which was significantly delayed. The team will include a revised communications calendar in the next quarterly report.

Documents

QUARTERLY PROGRESS REPORT · 2020. 6. 26. · DAFO District Agriculture and Forestry Office DOPLA Department of Policy and Legal Affairs ... (GESI) plan submitted (final approval