Validation Workshop for the Draft Final Evaluation Report

Vang Vieng, July 5, 2023. The Department of Planning and Cooperation, Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MOIC), in collaboration with the three provincial Departments of Industry and Commerce and Chambers of Commerce and Industry, convened a validation workshop for the final evaluation report prepared by an external consultant.

The meeting was chaired by Dr. Khamphet Vongdala, Director General of the Department of Planning and Cooperation, with 35 participants in total from relevant stakeholders and the activity’s partners, namely: representatives from three provincial Departments of Industry and Commerce and Chambers of Commerce and Industry, LNCCI, and the lead firm- OCK POP TOK the weaving craft center.

In his remarks, Dr. Khamphet Vongdala, Director General of the Department of Planning and Cooperation, reiterated that the project has been extended twice: once in 2021 with no cost added to the project; the purpose was to mitigate risks that caused the delay in delivering the project’s activities during the persistent COVID-19 pandemic in2020–2021, and another one in 2022 with a small amount of funds added to the project, aiming to extend its impact to a broader beneficiary. The purpose of the workshop is to review the outcomes of the project’s final assessment and provide input for validation. The chair encourages stakeholders to carefully consider the assessment results for each criteria. The inputs provided will be reflected in the FER and submitted to the donor for final approval.

The workshop began with the introduction of key points discovered from assessment under standard criteria required from the donor, followed by the main achievements, lessons learned, and recommendations from the evaluator. The relevant stakeholders and the activity’s partners have provided their views on the draft report, in particular on its impact and sustainability.

The provincial DoICs initially committed to keep facilitating the private sector through collaboration with relevant agencies, in particular the Department of Agriculture and Forestry and CCI, to enhance the capability of rice production and improve governing policies.

The provincial CCIs also stressed that the LPPD has solved many issues raised by the private sector during the two rounds of dialogues with the support of the ECL project. As representatives of the private sector, the provincial CCIs are willing to continue the dialogue, but the financial weakness of the organization and staff capacity are major challenges to overcome. The contribution of the private sector will play the ultimate role in continuing dialogue.

In the closing remark, the chair expressed his great gratitude to all representatives and requested further support from the local public and private sectors in extending and replicating these established structures and technical knowledge to a wider range of people. The chairs also shared notable achievements of this small project that generated extreme impact for the public sector and the poor in far-reaching areas. Thanks to the hard work and commitment of provincial agencies and NIU under the Department of Planning and Cooperation, the project earned the earmark as a pro-poor effort from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce to the three northern provinces.

ECL Project is funded by the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF). EIF is an Aid for Trade partnership in action for the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). Operational since 2009, the EIF is a multi-donor program that supports the LDCs to become more active players in the global trading system by helping them tackle supply-side constraints to trade.