Bangkok > News > Looking back to over 20 years of successful cooperation i... >
Looking back to over 20 years of successful cooperation in Nghe An province, Vietnam
The organisation of a closing workshop of the Luxembourg funded Western Nghe An Rural Development Project, implemented by provincial authorities in cooperation with LuxDev, provided the opportunity to look back on over 20 years of development cooperation.
When Luxembourg development cooperation started its work in Vietnam, it was Nghe An province which welcomed the first project teams. Since then the provincial authorities and LuxDev have been closely cooperating to contribute to the socio-economic development of the most remote districts of the province. Project support succeed in assisting many ethnic minority villages which faced particular challenges in accessing social services and diversifying their sources of income. Farmers were able to develop, use and promote more efficient agricultural practices. But improvement of livelihoods was not left to the agricultural sector; weaving groups from Nghe An province are now supplying handicrafts to the tourist hotspots of Vietnam such as Sappa. At the same time project support also allowed to switch to more environmentally friendly practices such as the promotion of biogas and the use of environment sensitive construction guidelines. Finally the support by Luxembourg also had an impact on society as a whole promoting concepts such as gender equality or working closely with civil society organizations.
But the most relevant key to success, was project ownership which was evident at the provincial and district level as well as the community level. Provincial authorities and district authorities underlined their support of project activities not only through their active commitment and participation but also through allocating additional financial resources to the project budget. These funds allowed support to additional infrastructure and as such to increase project impact. At the commune level, participatory planning allowed for villagers to identify their own priorities and to contribute to the realization of the development they chose for their community. Project activities were further closely aligned and integrated into local development plans. This is probably to most important step for not only promoting ownership but also sustainability of project investments.
For more information on LuxDev activities in Nghe An province please click here .
For more information on Luxembourg Development Cooperation in Vietnam please click here .