In 400 villages in the Northern provinces of Lao PDR (Oudomxay, Phongsaly, Xieng Khouang and Houaphan), the Agriculture for Nutrition project aims to contribute to reducing extreme poverty and malnutrition in the poorest communities. The development objective is to improve and diversify agricultural production and household nutrition to enhance life prospects.
Farmer Nutrition Schools, community nutrition learning centers, make use of basic information material and visual aids to promote the community to apply good nutrition behavior. Practical learning sessions aimed mainly at women share information about household nutrition, menu planning, food preservation and processing, dietary diversity and nutrition-sensitive gardening.
As an incentive to apply the newly acquired knowledge, the World Food Programme (WFP) is targeting 10,000 beneficiaries and distributing cash grants equal to LAK 1 million (70 USD) to each beneficiary that successfully complete the Farmer Nutrition School learning modules. These cash grants are used for small investments in family home-gardens, to cultivate nutrient-dense crops and rear small livestock, such as poultry and fish.
Source: World Food Programme