Laos has received USD 210 million in poverty reduction funding from international organizations over the last eighteen years.
Mr. Phatnakhone Kanthamixay, Director of the Poverty Reduction Fund, said that some 1.3 million people across more than 2,000 remote villages in Laos have been lifted out of poverty over the last 18 years according to a new survey.
He presented the numbers to Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr. Phet Phomphiphak, during a recent meeting of the Fund.
The poverty rate in Laos stood at 18.3 percent in 2018-2019, according to the Lao Consumption and Expenditure Survey.
Vientiane Times reports that according to Mr. Phatnakhone, the Fund received USD 210 million in 2003 to 2021 from international organizations, with the World Bank providing 58.69 percent of the support.
A further 39.67 percent came in the form of loans or grants.
The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation provided 20.46 percent of the funding, while the Australian government contributed 8.03 percent, the Disaster Relief Fund 3.61 percent, and the Japanese government donated 1.25 percent.
The Lao government itself contributed 7.62 percent.
The funds were used to develop and expand access to basic services such as community and local empowerment, as well as environmental and social protection.
Additionally, the PRF has started a new project called Community Livelihood Enhancement and Resilience (CLEAR), which will focus on agricultural productivity, livelihood enhancement, and nutrition.
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