Laos: Mushroom Cultivation Is the First Step towards Financial Independence

It is said that approximately 160,000 people in Laos (2.8% of the population) are PWDs, and 75% of them are between 15 and 64, which means that they should be part of the workforce in the country. However, they only have a few employment opportunities because commuting to work is rather challenging and a persistent stereotype prevails that “we cannot expect PWDs to be productive.” Our correspondent, Haruhiko Mori, reports on AAR　Japan’s support in promoting entrepreneurship on a small scale for the purpose of improving the status quo. In addition, Yuki Sakurai from our Tokyo Office introduces the facility that provides job opportunities to those in disaster-stricken areas in Japan.

Laos: Saving the Lives of Mothers and Children

The infant mortality rate in Phongsaly Province, a poverty-stricken province located in a mountainous region in the northern part of Laos, is at 120 deaths per 1,000 live births (of children under one year of age). The death of one in eight infants is caused by premature birth and infectious diseases. The infant mortality rate in Phongsaly is the highest in Laos. Although the data is less accurate, we found that an extremely high number of maternal deaths occur from postpartum bleeding and other related complications.

One in Four Expecting Mothers Receive Prenatal Examinations… Some Give Birth on Their Own 

There are many reasons as to why mothers do not receive appropriate examinations or do not deliver at health centers. These include: lack of, or frequent, malfunction of medical equipment; lack of, or misplacement, of medical tools such as scissors and forceps; shortage of disinfectants; and poor sanitation conditions. Furthermore, pregnant mothers do not make the time to visit hospitals for examinations because they are pre-occupied with farming, or they do not have appropriate education on pregnancy and are thus unaware of the importance of prenatal examinations. In fact, only one in four expecting mothers receive prenatal examinations and only one in five pregnant mothers choose to give birth in medical facilities. A survey of a village, whose health center is only 1 kilometer away from the residential area, found that all pregnant mothers chose to give birth at home; and of those pregnant mothers, 10% of them gave birth on their own and without the assistance of others. Since last fall AAR Japan has been actively involved in providing education on pregnancy, labor and child health in the Phongsaly Province so that women may be able to have a safer childbirth.

Local hospital employee learns how to listen to the heartbeat of an unborn child utilizing a Doppler ultrasound equipment provided by AAR Japan. Ando Noriko, AAR Japan representative (third from the left) (All pictures below are taken in the Phongsaly Province, March 15th, 2016)

Laos: Supporting the Self-Sufficiency of Persons with Disabilities through Catfish Culture

Starting a small scale business in back yards

It is generally and universally challenging for persons with disabilities (PWDs) to have a job, earn his/her own income, and be able to live independently. Laos is no exception. In order to change such a condition, AAR Japan, in cooperation with Laos Disabled People’s Association (LDPA), is supporting PWDs in starting their own small businesses. Since July of 2014, we started a project to support PWDs with limited opportunities in getting a job, especially those in rural areas. The project provides assistance in starting small-scale business such as mushroom growing, sewing, and catfish culture that PWDs can engage at home or nearby. This report is on the catfish culture.

Why catfish?

In Laos, catfish is a very common food. Its market is less competitive in comparison to rice and meat, and the fish can be sold directly to the neighbors. It involves less labor, and is relatively easy for PWDs to start on. However, it is crucial that each participant has a strong motivation and commitment in order to succeed. Therefore, we asked each participant to bear a part of the start-up cost (equivalent of 2,000 Japanese yen) in the project, so that they have a strong motivation to continue their businesses.

Catfish fry, which was 8 cm, has grown more than double the length to 18 cm after a month (Above photo taken on September 4th, 2014. The below was taken on October 2nd, 2014)

Laos: Having Completed AAR Japan’s Mission in Xieng Khuang

In Laos, many cluster bombs dropped during the Indochina War still remain in the soil as unexploded ordnance (UXOs). From 2010 to June 2014, AAR Japan set up a local office in Xieng Khuang Province, a province located in the north of Laos that has been badly affected, and provided various activities to reduce damage inflicted by UXO-related accidents.
From June 2013 to June 2014, AAR Japan provided training in first-aid techniques necessary to survive UXO-related accidents to 305 village health volunteers (VHVs) in 171 villages and 56 nurses for 22 health centers (HCNs). In 26 villages which had recently suffered many UXO-related accidents, AAR Japan provided workshops on first-aid techniques to a total of 1,300 villagers. In addition, with cooperation of a local organization, we prepared posters to have villagers know how to be alert in their daily lives to prevent UXO-related accidents and composed a song on the dangers of UXOs, offering them to the organization and radio stations.
Below is a summary by Noriko ANDO, an AAR Japan volunteer involved in the initatives, including the details of the hands-on training and workshops at the site and remarks from villagers.
AAR has installed ramps and constructed accessible lavatories to make it easier for children with disabilities to attend school in Khwowaja Sayaran Public School and Sediqi Public School in Parwan Prefecture.

Noriko ANDO instructs HCNs on resuscitation. (December 23rd, 2013)

Laos: What Would You Do If UXO Accident Happens in Your Village?

In Laos, U.S. Forces dropped as many as two million tons of bombs during both the Vietnam War and the civil war in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Reportedly, approximately 30% of them have remained in Laos as unexploded ordnance (UXOs) that continue to cause accidents and deaths even today. Xieng Khuang Province located in the north of the country in particular is an accident-prone area. According to statistics from National regulatory Authority for UXO/Mine Action Sector in Lao PDR, in 2012, 31 persons are injured in this province alone, accounting for 55% of all the victims in Laos.

Below is a report from Noriko ANDO, who has been engaged in operations in Xieng Khuang Province.

A Nearby “VHV” is Better than a Far-off Hospital

The medical standard in Laos is not very high. In Xieng Khuang Province, one of the worst affected areas by UXOs, each district has only one hospital that is able to provide decent medical treatment for victims of UXOs. There are only four ambulances available in the whole province. To make matters worse, most of the roads are unpaved which prevents ambulances from reaching hospitals during the rainy season. Delayed medical treatment has resulted in higher numbers of UXO-related deaths as well as victims who sustain life-altering bodily injury. Some victims do not even have a   choice but to give up going to hospitals because of their inability to cover their medical fees.

“I would like to share what I have learned with villagers,” said Ms. Syvai, a VHV in Phounven Village with Noriko ANDO on the right.

Laos: AAR Japan Participates in Third Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions

The Third Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions was held in Oslo, Norway, from September 11th-14th, 2012. The treaty came into effect in August 2010, and as of October 1st, 2012, it has been signed by 111 countries and ratified by 76, including Japan, Afghanistan and Laos, where AAR Japan is active.
 
Government representatives from more than 120 countries, including 31 non-signatory states, participated in the meeting. AAR Japan sent two observers, Yoshino HORIKOSHI from the Tokyo office and Yumiko YAMASHITA from the Xien Khouang office, who attended the meeting and provided information on AAR’s multinational landmine/UXO (unexploded ordnance) efforts in the exhibition booth. In a side-event on the second day of the meeting, AAR made a presentation focusing on our victim assistance efforts in Southeast Asia.

60% of Bombs Destroyed in States Parties, But More Bombs Used in Other Nations

September 11^th, 2012 - The conference hall in Oslo.

Laos: Start of a New Project! We will Support Income Expansion of Persons with Disabilities through Mushroom Cultivation

Aiming to Improve the Living Environment of Persons with Disabilities  
AAR Japan started a new project in the capital city of Vientiane in March 2012. In this new project, we have been cooperating with Lao Disabled People’s Association (LDPA) with the mission of improving the living environment of persons with disabilities (PWDs) by increasing their accessibility, and supporting their small-scale businesses for income expansion.

June 28^th, 2012 – Staff members of the AAR Japan Vientiane office that spearheads the new project in Laos (On the left is Noriyasu OKAYAMA and third from the left is Yumeka OTA)

Laos: Bringing First Aid Training for UXO Injuries to All Villagers

AAR JAPAN has been holding first aid training for accidents caused by unexploded ordnance (UXO) in northern Xieng Khouang province. This year in September, two training sessions on first aid for UXO accidents were held in two villages in Phaxay district. Over 100 villagers, young and old, took part in this session.

The topics covered included what to do when an UXO is found, first aid when an accident happens and ways of transporting a victim to a medical institution. The training sessions were carefully planned so that participants are able to learn effectively through fun activities such as quizzes and skits.

September 21^st, 2011- Thai, one of our local staff explains about UXO as he shows a photograph. 

The local staff of AAR JAPAN was not the instructor at these sessions, but the facilitator.  The actual instruction was given by district hospital staff and village health volunteers who had participated in our past training sessions. The Lao people who were students before, now played the role of instructors and passed on what they had learned to the villagers.

September 21^st, 2011- Learning first aid through skits. A village health volunteer (left) gives instructions. A villager (center) also takes part. A district hospital staff (foreground) plays the part of the victim.

The highlight of the sessions was a skit on what to do in case of an UXO accident. The skit was performed so that it would be both informative and entertaining. The audience watched on attentively, occasionally bursting out in laughter, as the district hospital staff acted out the victim moaning in pain and our staff comically acted out the part of a villager scurrying about.

A brochure with instructions on first aid for UXO victims.

At the end of the session, all participants received a brochure summarizing pertinent points of the training. The brochure, made in Laos by AAR JAPAN, gives easy-to-understand instructions on methods of administering first aid. They were made so that the villagers would have the instructions at hand to refer to everyday. Larger poster-size versions have been distributed for display on the walls of village temples and meeting places. It is our hope that these brochures at home and in public places will help reduce the number of UXO victims.

September 21^st, 2011- Yumiko YAMASHITA (left) of the Xieng Khouang office in Laos acts out making a phone call after administering first aid.

Children drawn into the skit. The dangers and safety precautions related to UXO are learnt through fun activities

Bombs that were dropped during the Vietnam War still remain. Between January and September this year, already 29 UXO accidents have occurred in Xieng Khouang. To reduce the number of UXO victims of and to minimize the effects of injuries, AAR JAPAN will continue its effort to spread correct knowledge and technology related to UXO.

*These activities are supported by your donation and the subsidy from Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO Projects by Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Yumiko YAMASHITA, AAR JAPAN Xieng Khuang office
After graduation from university, she worked as a hospital nurse. She then learned health system management at graduate school in England before joining AAR JAPAN. She has been working in the Xieng Khuang office in Laos since October 2010. (Born in Chiba Prefecture.)

Laos: Emergency Assistance for Flood Victims, Inflicted by Typhoon ‘’Haima’’

Floods triggered by typhoon ‘’Haima’’ caused tremendous damages to Xieng Khouang province in the northern part of Laos where AAR JAPAN has been engaged in unexploded ordnance (UXO) action. More than 500 houses were inundated or destroyed. Rice paddies, field, schools, bridges, and roads were also damaged. In Xieng Khouang province, the total number of flood victims counted up to 60,000 with 7 dead. In the affected areas, large stocks of rice were soaked in the floods prompting the Lao government to start distributing food.

Flood-damaged fields raise serious concerns about the upcoming harvest.

In response to this situation which struck Laos, one of the poorest countries in Asia, AAR JAPAN set out to identify the needs of those whose livelihoods had been seriously affected.

Floods Cut Off Villagers from Clean Water Supplies

Yoko HAYASHI, AAR JAPAN staff at Xieng Khouang office, and local government staff visited villages in the affected areas to assess what was most needed. As a result, AAR JAPAN decided to help rebuild dams, water storage tanks and water pipelines to restore the functions of the water supply system in Ban Nador, Ban NaOung, Ban Hainieng, and Ban Kornyui where the damage was especially severe.

Yoko HAYASHI, AAR JAPAN staff, interviews local people to determine their assistance needs.

A local staff shows a disconnected water pipe: villages were deprived of clean water from the water tank. (Ban Hainieng)

Where a water tank once stood. Now washed away without a trace. (Ban Kornyui)

“Things have been difficult after the water supply facilities were destroyed,” a woman living in Ban Kornyui said, “Women and children were affected the most because we use a lot of water for preparing food and washing clothes every day. We have been using well water lately, but it’s not very clean. So we were very happy to hear that AAR JAPAN is going to rebuild the water supply system. I can’t wait till it’s finished.”

Mr. Fue, local staff of AAR JAPAN Xieng Khouang Office, interviews a woman from the village.

Villagers’ Cooperation Essential in Rebuilding Water Supply System

In Ban Nador and Ban NaOung where water tanks had been swept away by the landslides caused by the typhoon, AAR JAPAN engaged in the reconstruction of the water tanks and dam. The dam had to be built a few meters upstream from the initially planned location, because of the large volume of the river. This resulted in a shortage of pipes. Despite this setback, the completion of the reconstruction project was made possible by the goodwill of the villagers of Ban Hainieng who gave some of their water pipes for the reconstruction work of their neighboring village.

Ban Hainieng had not been spared the damage of the floods either. The water pipes between the water tanks and the village were damaged. This meant the villagers had to buy expensive bottled water to sustain their lives. AAR JAPAN helped restore a clean water supply to the village by overhauling the water pipeline and repairing the dam for supplying water to the storage tanks.

“Clean water will be supplied to our village!” Water pipes are about to be connected.

In Ban Kornyui, the only water tank had been washed away by the typhoon. As an emergency measure, the villagers installed a pipeline from the closest river. This river was smaller in capacity and was contaminated by sewage from other villages located upstream, but the villagers of Ban Kornyui had no choice but to use the polluted water. In response, AAR JAPAN set up a new water tank and installed water pipes which now supply safe and clean water to Ban Kornyui.

A newly installed water tank supplies clean water to the village.

Mr.Bounsom of Ban Kornyui bathes in clean water.

‘’We are so delighted to have clean water now!’’ From left, Mr.THAI, local staff of AAR JAPAN Xieng Khouang office, Mr.NOYMANY and Mrs.SIDA of Ban Kornyui, and Yoko HAYASHI of AAR JAPAN.

“We had no clean water for four months after the June typhoon,” explained Mr NOYMANY, a 47-year-old living in Ban Hainieng. “We were using well water and river water, but it was so dirty. We couldn’t even wash ourselves after coming back from the field, but not having water to drink was the biggest problem. We are all very delighted to have access to clean water now. Using clean water prevents the spread of diseases, and we are very grateful to AAR JAPAN.” Throughout the project, villagers from all four villages actively participated by helping with the construction work and the transportation of materials. At the completion ceremony, the village mayors said, “We will take on the task of protecting these newly constructed water tanks and pipes from here on.”

People of Xieng Khouang Give Appreciation Even to the Heavy Rainy Season

The rainy season in Laos lasts six months from April through October. During this wet season, it rains at least once a day, and it sometimes comes down in buckets for days on end. The poorly-paved roads of the mountainous province of Xieng Khouang are prone to flood disasters.

To get to the villages, we had to cross fast flowing rivers getting completely drenched and struggle through the swamp-like fields. This made me re-realize the difficulty the villagers are faced with because of the heavy rain. With beautiful smiles on their faces, the Lao people in Xieng Khouang said, ‘’once the rainy season passes and the dry season comes, we have to go fetch water from the river far from the village. With a lot of rain, crops grow well and we can eat a lot of fish and frogs from the river which makes us happy.” The frog dishes that the Lao people love so much and offer me every time I visit these villages are perhaps blessings from the rain as well.

Despite the harsh climate, the people in Xieng Khouang follow an easygoing lifestyle and remain thankful to nature. I hope to be able to continue AAR JAPAN’s activities to help these wonderful people live in a secure environment.

Yoko Hayashi, AAR Xieng Khouang office

Has been working in the Xieng Khouang office in Laos since December, 2010. Studied French and French colonial geopolitical history at university. After working for an airline company and a Japanese diplomatic office overseas, joined AAR JAPAN. (Born in Aichi Prefecture)

Laos - First Aid Training for Injuries Caused by Unexploded Ordnance (UXO)

Developing an Emergency Medical Service System

AAR JAPAN is working for enhancing the level of emergency medical care for unexploded ordnance (UXO) survivors in Xieng Khouang Province in northern Laos. AAR JAPAN is operating training for strengthening the level of first aid in village and transportation to hospitals. The training, offered to village health volunteers in 93 villages throughout the province, aims to decrease the number of deaths caused by UXO and reduce the likelihood of permanent disabilities arising from UXO-related accidents.

In March 2011, AAR JAPAN implemented “TOT: Training of Trainers” for medical practitioners. This included doctors and nurses at district hospitals, who will go on to teach village health volunteers. AAR JAPAN developed the training materials and offered lectures and hands-on practice with first aid skills such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation and hemostasis, as well as detailing precautions for transportation to hospitals and preventing infectious diseases, with the participants learning training methodologies that will allow them to effectively pass on their knowledge. The participants were highly dedicated and enthusiastic, saying that they were pleased to learn new first aid techniques, and excited about teaching village health volunteers.

The medical practitioners who participated in the training session will now go on to offer training to villages in order to strengthen the emergency medical service system in village level.

Members of AAR JAPAN’s Xieng Khuang office who organized the training session. Third from left is Yumiko YAMASHITA, and at right is Yoko HAYASHI, both of AAR JAPAN.

Yumiko YAMASHITA, a qualified nurse, outlines techniques for securing a clear airway.

Participants work diligently in an accident simulation. At right is Yoko HAYASHI of AAR JAPAN’s Xieng Khuang office.

Yumiko YAMASHITA (right) explains how to wrap a bandage.

Articles about the TOT program appeared in Vientiane Times, the national newspaper of Laos.

                                                                 Yumiko YAMASHITA, AAR JAPAN Xieng Khuang office

After graduation from university, she worked as a hospital nurse. She then learned health system management at graduate school in England before joining AAR JAPAN. She has been working in the Xieng Khuang office in Laos since October 2010. (Born in Chiba Prefecture.)