Asian Development Bank to supports agriculture programmes in Laos

VIENTIANE (Xinhua): Farmers in southern Laos' Khammuan province will get funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to plow into crop cultivation, with the support scheme targeting 13 farming groups in three districts of the province.

Farmers' groups will use the money to buy machinery and vehicles to streamline the rice cultivation and production process, with their groups expected to make good use of and benefit from the additional working capital at their disposal, according to a report from the local Pasaxon newspaper on Thursday.

The funding will be directed at improved rice production and the provision of paddy seeds for trading farmers' groups, to help them improve the third generation of paddy seeds they use for trading.

The main aim of the project is to improve agricultural infrastructure so that more crops are grown in ways that are commercially viable, as well as resistant to climate change.

The whole production system and agricultural business will be geared to mitigating the effects of climate change, and create a favorable environment for the development of environmentally-friendly agriculture.

The money will be provided under the smallholder finance scheme through the Climate-Friendly Agribusiness Value Chains Sector Project to help agricultural production groups boost crop yields and meet the increasing consumer demand. - Xinhua