ALiSEA Laos national general assembly 2025

On 18 November 2025, the ALiSEA National General Assembly in Laos was held in Vientiane Capital, bringing together 52 participants, 18 women from ALiSEA member organizations across the country, including NGOs, farmer organizations, research/academic institutions, and the private sector. The event served as an important platform for members to reconnect, reflect on achievements, and collectively shape the direction of the network for the coming year.

The assembly opened with a review of ALiSEA Laos’s governance and coordination mechanisms, with discussions focusing on the review of the internal structure and the selection of a new board committee (elected in April 2025). Members shared feedback on how to strengthen participation, ownership, and communication within the network.

A comprehensive review of 2025 achievements was presented, highlighting:

ALiSEA Governance: Put in place the two national committee members of ALiSEA, 5 national board members and 3 national executive members
Small Grant Facility: Supported 5 member organizations over the last 3 years with financial and technical assistance for agroecology implementation.
Communication & Media: Growth of the Facebook page to 5,100 followers and organization of a high-profile media field visit with 4 top outlets (e.g., Lao National Radio and Laotian Times) to showcase youth farmers.
Capacity Building: Conducted training on “Using KOBO Toolbox for Data Collection” for 20 participants and organized a regional study tour to Thailand for 38 members to learn about sustainable forest management and organic cooperatives.
Policy Dialogue: Produced a policy brief focused on pesticide reduction

The event also presented the ALiSEA Knowledge Hub, a regional digital platform designed to centralize agroecology resources and evidence-based studies. The participants were introduced to the platform’s multiple languages, covering Lao, Khmer, Vietnamese, Burmese, and English, as well as data on AE experts. To ensure this platform is a dynamic knowledge exchange hub, members were engaged to submit their own knowledge products for dissemination.

Findings from the Training Needs Assessment were shared to better understand members’ technical priorities. The main capacity-building needs identified include:

Technical Priorities: The top priority identified was Agroecological Design and Planning (51% of respondents), followed by high interest in climate-resilient agriculture, integrated crop-livestock systems, and the nexus between agroecology and nutrition.
Soft Skills: Members requested support in writing skills (proposal, knowledge products), field data collection, and social media content creation

The assembly concluded with a consultation on the 2026 Action Plan. Members agreed to prioritize hands-on practical training over theory, expand engagement with young farmers, and translate materials into local languages to reduce barriers. The Laos National General Assembly reaffirmed a strong collective commitment to strengthening collaboration and accelerating the agroecology transition in the country.