Conference of the Forum on Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, "Improving Partnership for Poverty Alleviation and Sustainable Development", was held at the National Cultural Hall in Vientiane, Laos from June 19 – 21, 2001.
Nearly 600 representatives of government, local and international non-governmental organizations, mass organizations, bilateral and multilateral development agencies, universities and business attended the conference. In addition to the three country plenaries and twelve panel discussions, participants joined one of twenty sectoral focus groups to discuss ways to address topics such as trafficking of women and children, integrated rural development, HIV/Aids, education, and microfinance.
The conference closed with a cultural program highlighting the diversity of talent in Laos including traditional Lao dances performed by the National Dance Company, acrobatics performed by the award winning Lao Acrobatic Troupe and spirited modern dances choreographed and performed by a group from the Lao Youth Center.
The success of the Forum, the first international conference of this breadth and focus held in the Lao PDR, owed much to the support of the Government of Laos and the hard work of the staff of the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Department of International Organizations.
Grants from Oxfam America, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, The Asia Development Bank, Swedish International Development Agency, Asia Foundation, American Friends Service Committee and contributions from numerous NGOs and bilateral agencies enabled the Fund for Reconciliation and Development to organize the Forum and to support more than 300 government officials and representatives of mass organizations, universities and local NGOs from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam to attend the three day meeting.
Based on the evaluation forms and the personal comments received since the conference we believe that it was successful in meeting many of its aims. The evaluations of the Forum also provided some valuable constructive criticism that will be weighed as the future of the Forum is determined.
Perhaps the main success of the Forum was that it enabled a large and very diverse group of non-governmental organizations, including local NGOs from Vietnam and Cambodia to meet in Vientiane with government counterparts and donor agencies for the first time. People and organizations that would not normally meet in one location had the opportunity to share their viewpoints and approaches to solving some of the issues impacting the region.
An analysis of the conference registration list shows that participants in the Forum conference traveled from the following countries: Australia 7, Bangladesh 1, Cambodia 117, Canada 1, China 1, Denmark 2, France 1, Hong Kong 3, Hungary 1, India 1, Japan 1, Lao PDR 320, Myanmar 1, Netherlands 1, New Zealand 1, Philippines 3, Thailand 16, USA 45, Vietnam 77.
Though nearly half of the participants were Lao nationals, citizens of least 22 other nations took part: Australian 14, Bangladeshi 1, British 9, Cambodian 82, Canadian 6, Danish 2, Finnish 1, French 6, Indonesian 1, Indian 1, Italian 4, Japanese 3, Lao 268, Nepali 2, Dutch 6, New Zealander 3, Filipino 3, Swedish 3, Swiss 1, Thai 6, American 82, Vietnamese 61, Unknown 34.
The participants also represented a wide cross section of government and non-governmental organizations: International NGOs 195, Local NGOs 60, Mass/Peoples Organizations 25, Foreign Government (other than Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam) 9, Host Government (Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam) 226, University 38, Foundations 3, Bilateral and Multilateral Donors 13, International Organizations 21, Business 6.
The diversity within the not-for-profit sector was also great. It included local human rights organizations from Cambodia, local environmental groups from Vietnam, large international NGOs with a presence in all three countries, small international NGOs focusing on particular issues such as trafficking of women and domestic violence, multilateral aid agencies and academics.
The most common comment from participants was that the Forum provided an excellent opportunity to network with a diverse group of people working on development issues in the region. The majority of participants thought that there should be similar Forums held in the region in the future, although there were differences in opinion on the format and content of future gatherings. Fund for Reconciliation and Development staff will be meeting with conference participants, government officials, NGOs and development agencies in Indochina to obtain in person feedback on the Vientiane conference and to make an assessment about the Forum’s future.
Susan Hammond is FRD Deputy Director and Forum Conference Organizer
