VIENTIANE: The Lao Women’s Union (LWU) and The Asia Foundation have reaffirmed their long-standing partnership with the official launch of a new project aimed at strengthening women’s leadership in peace and security at both community and regional levels.
The partnership was formalised through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on the project “Strengthening the Lao Women’s Union in Amplifying the Asean Regional Plan of Action on Women, Peace and Security”, funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The signing ceremony was held in Vientiane on January 13, chaired by the Vice President of the Lao Women’s Union, Phanchinda Lengsavad; President and Chief Executive Officer of The Asia Foundation, Laurel Miller; and Ambassador of the Philippines to Laos, Elizabeth T. Te.
The event brought together representatives from central and local government agencies, Women’s Union officials from eight target districts, authorities from Bokeo and Savannakhet provinces, and staff of The Asia Foundation.
The ceremony marked the official launch of the project, which seeks to strengthen the Lao Women’s Union’s role in implementing the Asean Regional Plan of Action on Women, Peace and Security (WPS).
The project places strong emphasis on enhancing coordination between the LWU and relevant sectors at all levels to promote social cohesion, community security and peaceful conflict resolution.
Under the project, activities will be implemented in 80 villages across eight districts in Bokeo and Savannakhet provinces, which have been selected as model areas.
The initiative aims to enhance the capacity of local Women’s Union representatives and promote the leadership of women in preventing and resolving conflicts at the community level.
Building on previous cooperation between the Lao Women’s Union and The Asia Foundation, the project will contribute directly to the Lao Women’s Development Plan for 2026-2030, particularly by strengthening multi-sectoral engagement in community security and conflict resolution.
In addition, the project will support regional and Asean-level consultations to review implementation progress of the WPS agenda and promote policy coherence.
It will also strengthen collaboration with village-level conflict resolution committees, village security units, disaster management committees and relevant authorities, while supporting research and knowledge generation on peace, security challenges, and women’s safety.
The initiative is part of AMPLIFY, a five-year regional Women, Peace and Security programme implemented by The Asia Foundation in partnership with national women’s organisations and civil society groups across South-East Asia.
Funded by the New Zealand Government, AMPLIFY aims to address the gendered impacts of conflict and human security threats by advancing women’s meaningful participation in peacebuilding and conflict prevention. - Vientiane Times/ANN
