Building capacity for weed management in the Lao PDR

摘要

Weed control in crops, mainly hand-weeding and hoeing, has traditionally been managed by women on small-holder farms. This is unsustainable due to labour scarcity, and this limits the adoption of productive systems in the Lao Peoples Democratic Republic (PDR). Herbicides are available but knowledge on careful and effective chemical use is virtually non-existent. In addition, policies on the effective use of herbicides are needed to minimise environmental and health risks. For these reasons there is aneed to build capacity in weed management and integrate non-chemical practices with new herbicidal options as they become available. The Crawford Fund has made a significant contribution to capacity-building in crop pest and disease management, and theaim is to extend this to weed management. Australian Government volunteers have worked in this program at specific locations with farmers and local government advisers and with support from key mentors. This paper recommends the key priorities for increasing capacity in weed management practices and policies. Furthermore, feed-back from volunteers provides guidance on ways to improve the professional and personal outcomes of the volunteering experience.