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LARGE-SCALE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (from DKK 1 to 5 million) Project title:

Strengthening Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) among Ethnic Minorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh provinces

Danish applicant organisation:

ADDA - Agricultural Development Denmark Asia

Other Danish partner(s), if any:

-

Local partner organisation(s):

Nghe An Farmers Union (NAFU) and Hoa Binh Farmers Union (HBFU)

Country(-ies):

Vietnam Country’s GDP per capita: $2840.4 (UNDP, 2011b)

Project commencement date: September 2012

Project completion date: January 2015

Number of months: 30

Contact person for the project: Name: Lærke Aaboe-Jacobsen, Email address: laerke@adda.dk Name: Søren T. Jørgensen, Email address: adda@adda.dk Amount requested from the Project Fund: 4.994.507

Annual cost level: 1.997.803

Is this a re-submission? (To the Project Fund or Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs)? [ x ] No [ ] Yes, previous date of application:

Is this a: [ x] A. New project? [ ] B. A project in extension of another project previously supported (by the Project Fund or others)? [ ] C. An intervention conceived from the outset as divided into several project phases, of which this phase is number [ ] out of [ ]? Note that section F must be filled in too in the case of phased projects

Synthesis Projektet skal forbedre levevilkårene for små bondekooperativer blandt etniske minoritetsgrupper i to provinser, Nghe An og Hoa Binh. Ved at kapacitetsopbygge partnerne, NAFU og HBFU kan disse bedre hjælpe deres medlemmer, bønderne. Ved at styrke bondekooperativernes viden om landbrugsproduktion samt ved træning i markedsføring mm. vil de få styrket deres indkomstmuligheder. Ved at træne bondegrupperne i organisationsudvikling vil de dels blive bedre organiserede og dels få mulighed for at organisere sig omkring udvikling af deres lokalområder. Mindre udviklingsprojekter i lokalområderne skal bruges som praktiske eksempler på den træning bønderne får, samt forbedre levevilkårene for de fattige bønder. Derudover skal både lokale og nationale myndigheder gøres opmærksomme på fordelene ved at arbejde med bondekooperativer ved at lade befolkningen selv deltage i udviklingen af deres nærområde. De positive effekter fra projektet skal overbevise andre aktører om at sætte etniske minoriteter på dagsordenen.

Date

Person responsible (signature)

Lærke Aaboe-Jacobsen, Project coordinator

Place Person responsible and position (block letters)

Ref. no. (to be filled out by the Project Advice and Training Centre)

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ABBREVIATIONS ADDA Agricultural Development Denmark Asia ARD-SPS Agriculture and Rural Development Sector Program Support CFU Commune Farmers Union CBO Community Based Organization CDEM Community Development among Ethnic Minorities CEMA Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs CSO Civil Society Organization DANIDA Danish International Development Agency DARD Department of Agriculture and Rural Development DFU District Farmers Union EMU Executive Management Unit FIG Farmer Interest Group FFS Farmer Field School FU Farmer Union GDP Gross Domestic Product GNI Gross National Income HBFU Hoa Binh Farmer Union INGO International Non-Governmental Organization IPSARD Institute for Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and rural Development M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MO Mass Organization NAFU Nghe An Farmer Union NGO Non-Governmental Organization NRD New Rural Development NTP National Target Program PATC The Project Advice and Training Centre PFU Provincial Farmers Union PPMU Provincial Project Management Unit PPP Purchasing Power Parity ToT Training of Trainers VCA Vietnam Cooperative Alliance VLA Vietnamese Lawyers Association VNFU Vietnamese Farmers Union VNGO Vietnamese Non-Governmental Organization

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Content

A. THE PARTNERS ........................................................................................................................ 1

A.1 The Danish organisation ........................................................................................................ 1

A.2 The local organisation ........................................................................................................... 1

A.3 The cooperative relationship and its prospects ...................................................................... 2

B. PROJECT ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................ 2

B.1 In what context is the project placed? ................................................................................... 2

1 Background for the project .................................................................................................... 2

2 Population .............................................................................................................................. 3

3 Socio-economic situation ...................................................................................................... 4

4 The project area ..................................................................................................................... 4

5 Development policies for the area ......................................................................................... 4

B.2 How has the project been prepared? ...................................................................................... 6

B.3 Problem analysis.................................................................................................................... 6

1 Ethnic minorities and poverty ............................................................................................... 7

2 Agricultural production ......................................................................................................... 7

3 The civil society in Vietnam ................................................................................................. 8

4 Working with cooperatives ................................................................................................... 8

5 Legal framework ................................................................................................................... 9

6 Gender ................................................................................................................................... 9

B.4 Stakeholder analysis ............................................................................................................ 10

C. PROJECT DESCRIPTION ........................................................................................................ 13

C.1 Target group and participants .............................................................................................. 13

C.2 The project’s objectives and success criteria (indicators) ................................................... 13

C.3 Outputs and activities .......................................................................................................... 15

C.4 Strategy ................................................................................................................................ 17

1 Methods ............................................................................................................................... 17

2 Gender ................................................................................................................................. 18

3 Connection to the Change Triangle ..................................................................................... 18

4 Strengthening civil society .................................................................................................. 20

5 Stakeholders ........................................................................................................................ 20

6 Special inputs ...................................................................................................................... 21

C.5 Phase-out and sustainability ................................................................................................ 21

C.6 Assumptions and risks ......................................................................................................... 23

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D. PROJECT ORGANISATION AND FOLLOW-UP .................................................................. 24

D.1 Division of roles in project implementation ........................................................................ 24

1 Project management ............................................................................................................ 24

2 Facilitators ........................................................................................................................... 25

D.2 Monitoring and evaluation in project implementation ........................................................ 25

1 Monitoring ........................................................................................................................... 25

2 Revision of the project document ........................................................................................ 26

3 Evaluation ............................................................................................................................ 26

E. INFORMATION WORK .......................................................................................................... 27

E.1 Has project-related information work in Denmark been planned? ..................................... 27

REFERENCES..................................................................................................................................... a

BUDGET SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ c

ANNEXES ........................................................................................................................................... d

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A. THE PARTNERS

A.1 The Danish organisation The main topics for this project are organisational management of farmer groups, ethnic minorities and agricultural production methods, which are all areas that lie within ADDAs expertise. ADDA has worked extensively with agricultural development in Vietnam since 1998. Apart from Vietnam, ADDA has projects in Cambodia and Tanzania also. So far, 13 projects have been supported by Danida with a total of more than 100 mill. Danish kroner. Additionally, ADDA has received two projects from EU and one from the World Bank, Please see Annex A for an elaboration. The development strategy of ADDA’s work is different in each country and in each specific project, but generally it is centered around a) communication and dissemination of information, b) capacity building of partners and local communities, c) participant oriented methods such as farmer field schools and self-help groups like farmer cooperatives, d) strengthening the civil society and the formation of networks, women empowerment and efficient use of natural resources. Common for all ADDA’s projects is a bottom-up approach where the local community is being strengthened within agriculture, because food supply is a very basic and important factor in development work. In all projects ADDA is training locals to become trainers of the target groups, since this is a good way to keep knowledge within the communities, as well as getting trainers with knowledge of the local agricultural factors. The ADDA board, which is the core of the Danish organisation, has a strong professional approach regarding development and agriculture. Several of the board members are employed at Danish agricultural research institutes, and among the board members there is a strong resource base which is used during implementation of the projects. ADDA has a long experience in working with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. Ethnic minority groups have been the target group for the Danida financed project “Community Development among Ethnic Minorities” (CDEM) that was initiated in 2006 and henceforth ADDA has 6 years of experience in working with these groups. Organisational management has been one of the top priorities in the CDEM and during this project ADDA has succeeded in helping to establish 358 farmer interest groups (FIGs) and aims at initialising 232 more by 2014. From this project ADDA has gained experience on pros and cons of working with these groups. ADDA in Denmark will use knowledge and experience from the long tradition Denmark has had with the cooperative movement (andelsbevægelsen),that has been the core of Danish agriculture as we know it today. ADDA has an office in Hanoi from where all ADDA’s projects in Vietnam are coordinated. This makes it easier for ADDA to maintain a very close and good working relationship with its partner organisations. The ADDA staffs to be involved in the project all hold master degrees within the field of agriculture and agricultural development, and are all very experienced in various aspects of the use of natural resources and working with the local population in developing countries.

A.2 The local organisation The partner organizations are the Provincial Farmer Union (PFU) in Nghe An and Hoa Binh provinces; Hoa Binh Farmer Union (HBFU) and Nghe An Farmer Union (NAFU). Both NAFU and HBFU are experienced in implementing development projects. The reason for involving the Farmer Union (FU) as partners in various international projects is that the FU organization is including every single village in the rural area, and that FU has either staff or volunteers situated everywhere. The FU possess extensive knowledge of the local agricultural situation and the different advantages and obstacles for a specific area. Further to the knowledge on local agricultural conditions, the FU also has a very good relationship with local authorities and has easy access to decision making bodies. HBFU has previously implemented the following projects:

• ADDA: Community Development project 2006 – ongoing • ADDA: Organic Agriculture, 2007 – 2012 • ADDA: More Trees, 2010 – ongoing • Helvetas: Extension and Training Support Project for Forestry and Agriculture 2003-2007 • Oxfam Belgium: Food Sovereignty, 2003 – 2008

NAFU has previously implemented the following projects:

• Danida: Small livestock component of ASPS, 2003-2008 • ADDA: Community Development project, 2006-ongoing

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The staff from HBFU that will be involved is 1 provincial officer, graduated from the Agricultural University, trained at ADDA’s Training of Trainers course (ToT) and experienced in project supervision, 1 accountant with a university background and experienced in project accounting, and 19 field facilitators – all trained at the ADDA ToT. The staff from NAFU to be involved is 1 provincial officer graduated from the Agricultural University, trained in ToT and experienced in project supervision, 1 accountant with a university background within finance management and experienced in project accounting, as well as 18 field facilitators all trained at the ADDA ToT. Additional information regarding NAFU and HBFU can be found in Annex B 1 +2. Due to very strict Vietnamese rules and policies the annex does not contain information regarding financial status of the organization, and therefore the NAFU and HBFU not have signed annex B. However, NAFU and HBFU have signed a letter of intent (Annex K) that shows their commitment to the project.

A.3 The cooperative relationship and its prospects ADDA, NAFU and HBFU have been working together since 2006 when implementation of the CDEM project began. The mother organisation, Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU), is the partner in that project, and is implemented in 6 provinces including Hoa Binh and Nghe An. In the CDEM, VNFU is in charge and the PFUs are implementing all project activities. Therefore a partnership with NAFU and HBFU as main partner organisations is new, but good contact and working relationship has been present since 2006. ADDA has supported the PFUs in organising and carrying out the project activities in the CDEM project. For this project it has been a strategic choice to form partnership with PFU instead of VNFU. The partnership between ADDA and NAFU and HBFU will be strengthened. By having PFUs as the main partners, the partnership as well as the status and capabilities of the PFUs will be strengthened. Since the PFUs are located in the provinces they are closer to their members, i.e. the farmers and the FIGs, and therefore, obviously they should be involved even more in development activities. In the project cooperation the partners will contribute with their organisation and network as well as their personal expertise and skills; ADDA will contribute with technical methods and provide highly skilled agricultural knowledge as well as experience within project management. Furthermore ADDA will contribute with skills and know-how of participant oriented and pedagogic training methods. NAFU and HBFU will contribute with their organisation being available for the project and the appointed project staff. Finally, PFU will be in charge of all day-to-day implementation of the project activities. This project will definitely help raise the profiles of the project partners as civil society actors. The PFUs have members in all districts, all communes, and almost all villages in the entire country. One of the main objectives of PFU is to speak the voice of the farmers as well as bringing them agriculturally related information. For NAFU and HBFU this project will provide concrete methods to benefit farmers directly in their local areas. NAFU and HBFU will gain visibility by being present in the communities and also gain firsthand knowledge of vital necessities of the target group, which will be useful in other relations. Additionally NAFU and HBFU will show other development actors that they are capable of organizing and managing large development projects. For ADDA this project will allow the organization to enter into a special area of expertise, namely farmer cooperatives, and from this project ADDA will gain very useful skills for this and for future projects in Vietnam as well as in Cambodia and Tanzania.

B. PROJECT ANALYSIS

B.1 In what context is the project placed? 1 Background for the project

This project will focus on ethnic minorities, agricultural production and farmer cooperatives. The project builds on existing results from the Danida supported project “Community Development among Ethnic Minorities” (CDEM) Phase I and II beginning in 2006 and finishing in 2014. During this project, ADDA and its partner organization Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) have trained around 35,000 farmers in new and enhanced agricultural production methods and furthermore helped by establishing a total of 590 Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) (Jensen, 2012); i.e. small scale cooperatives where the farmers work together on producing and selling a product.

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The methods used to establish the FIGs are implemented by training the farmers at a Farmer Field School (FFS). At the FFS the farmers are taught one day weekly during a whole cropping season. Here they will decide jointly on different methods of cultivating their fields, and by comparison to their normal techniques, they will discuss and agree on more suitable methods. The FFS is run by local facilitators trained in the specific agricultural methods as well as participatory learning styles prior to the FFS. The CDEM has been a huge success with many fruitful results, e.g. the participating farmers have, on average, increased their production and income from maize with 40 % (Jensen, 2012). The establishment of FIGs has also been successful and has helped increase the income of the members. Furthermore, some of the FIGs have shown to act as civil society organizations engaged in community development activities. Since these FIGs are already established and are actively functioning, it is natural and expedient to keep working with them in a new project. As the base for the target groups is already established, this project can focus on more poverty reduction and advocacy, and help build an even stronger civil society in the target area. It takes time to build up strong civil society organizations, and it makes very good sense for a future project to strengthen these fruitful examples. Furthermore, due to the communist approach to bureaucracy, building up successful partnerships in Vietnam takes a long time, as well as it takes considerable time to establish rapport and thrust between partners in order to create formal procedures for project implementation. These formalities are in place, and will be useful and beneficial to maintain and strengthen further. This project will, as mentioned, build on existing results from the CDEM project. In the CDEM, the farmers have received field school training for a whole cropping season either in maize or vegetables mainly for household consumption. The farmers then established the FIGs, because they appreciated working together. This is the origin of this present project, starting up where the CDEM has left the FIGs, and by this new project they are helped to make their communities prosper both economically and socially. This new project clearly distinct itself by having different objectives and activities than the CDEM project. The CDEM project focuses on participatory training methodologies with two purposes 1) enhancing production for the individual farmer and 2) preparing for participating in the group. The CDEM project has trained the individual farmers in enhanced agricultural techniques during a whole cropping season. During this training the farmers have learned and appreciated the group work, and they have been encouraged to establish FIGs. The CDEM project have achieved increased yields for the individual farmers as well as established around 500 FIGs that work together as small production and sale units. FIG group leaders have been trained in group formation, group dynamics and basic administration. However the FIGs have not yet been trained in the legal aspects of cooperatives, neither have there been such great focus on the FIGs themselves. By having established these FIGS, there is now a great potential for them to become real civil society organizations that can work to benefit their communities. This project focuses on supporting existing groups, cooperatives and other production units with a production selected by the members themselves, and these technical skills have not been provided before. Further to strengthen the FIGs own opportunities to take responsibility on behalf of their community, by organizing broader activities, e.g. community development activities for the benefit of the entire community, will be initiated. The Vietnamese context has indeed changed during the entire CDEM project period, which means that more opportunities are now possible. During the CDEM project, the focus has been on the methods for participatory inclusion, which was very new in the Vietnamese context of training at that time. The methods used by VNFU and ADDA have been so successful that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) have allocated state budgets for using the methods in their own programs. The political context is now also more open, and more focus and interest is put on the idea of establishing civil society organizations on very local level. Additionally can be mentioned the fact that the state is interested in and encouraging the establishment of more legal farmer cooperatives. Therefore this project can embrace some of these new opportunities that now have become possible within the Vietnamese context. 2 Population

As of July 2011 the total population in Vietnam is estimated to be 90,549,390 with a population growth rate at 1.077%. The Vietnamese people consist of almost 86 % ethnic Vietnamese (Kinh). The rest of the population consists of various groups of ethnic minorities distributed by 1.9 % Tay, 1.8 % Thai, 1.5 % Moung, 1.5 % Khmer, 1.2 % Mong, 1.1 % Nung and 5.3 % belonging to other ethnic groups (CIA, 2012).

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3 Socio-economic situation

Vietnam has had a high economic growth in the previous years with an increase in GNI per capita to $1,020 in 2009, the country has now achieved middle-income status (UNDP, 2011b). In 2011 GDP per capita PPP was $2840.4 (UNDP, 2011b) with 13.1 % of the population living below the international poverty line at $1.25 PPP per day (UNDP, 2011a). Vietnam has also had great success with poverty reduction. Consumption poverty has decreased from 37.4 % to 14.5 % in the period 1998 – 2008 (UNDP, 2011b). From a global view in 2008 Vietnam had reached a position of 53 out of 135 developing countries (UNDP, no date) in the Human Poverty Index. However even though Vietnam has had a high economic lift, there is still a lot of room for improvement which is reflected in the Human Development Index, where Vietnam in 2011 ranked 128 out of 187 countries (UNDP, 2011a). Even though rural poverty has decreased from 44.9 % to 18.7 % in the period from 1998 – 2008, poverty is still an important issue and correlates very much with geography and ethnicity. Poverty and deprivation is highest in the rural areas of the Northern Midlands and the mountainous areas, and the Northern Vietnam is mainly inherent in ethnic minorities. Poverty rates were at 8.9 % for the Kihn majority compared to 50.3 % for the ethnic minorities in 2008 (UNDP, 2011b). Other issues present in North West Vietnam are a) a low literacy rate, in some provinces as much as 60 %, b) inadequate social and state services, c) people relying on subsistence agriculture as well as a depressed economy (UNDP, 2011b). 4 The project area

The project will be implemented in 2 provinces in Northern Vietnam; Nghe An and Hoa Binh. (See Annex I for map of the project area). Hoa Binh has an area of 4595.2 km

2 and holds a population of 793,500

inhabitants (GSO, 2012). The project will be implemented in the following 5 out of 10 districts; Da Bac, Ky Son, Cao, Phong, Lac Son and Lac Thuy, which represent 30 communes. The main ethnic groups in the province are Muong, Thai, Tay and Dao. Nghe An has an area of 16490.7 km

2 and holds a population of 2,917,400 inhabitants (GSO, 2012). The

project will be implemented in the following 3 out of 17 districts; Tan Ky, Nghia Dan and Quy Hop. The main ethnic groups in the province are Thai, Muong and Chut, representing 50 communes. With the GDP per capita (PPP) for Vietnam at $2840.4, the two selected provinces lie very low with corresponding values for Hoa Binh at $1384.1 and for Nghe An at $1692.2 (UNDP, 2011b). The Northern areas are mountainous and have suffered great environmental damage over more than the last 50 years. Historically, war, migration and development programs have had a negative impact on the environment. From 1943 to 1990 the forest coverage in Vietnam has been reduced from 57% to 26 %. In the mountainous areas the reduced forest coverage results in big problems with erosion. The agricultural production potential of the soils has been greatly reduced and the access to natural resources such as wood, non-timber forest products, fish and wild animals has also been greatly reduced (ADB, 2002). For the ethnic minorities living here, subsistence agriculture is the main income generating activity. Generally the ethnic minorities experience food production deficit for 3-6 months per year. This is caused by several factors including the use of slash-and-burn agriculture and a nomadic lifestyle that has contributed to soil erosion which in turn is negatively affected by an increased number of people in the areas limiting the land resources and the possibility for fallow land. Additionally, droughts and floods affect the areas severely and result in even lower soil fertility (ADB, 2002). 5 Development policies for the area

A number of policies that are relevant and present concerning the same topics dealt with by this project are mentioned here. National Target Program for New Rural Development Currently the Vietnamese State has 15 National Target Programs (NTP) of which NTP for New Rural Development (NRD) is one. The NTP NRD will be implemented during 2010- 2020 and includes 11 specific activities for development in the rural areas of Vietnam. These activities are:

• Planning to build a new countryside

• Developing socio-economic infrastructure

• Restructuring and developing the economy and increasing income

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• Poverty reduction and social security

• Renewing and developing forms of effective production organization in rural areas

• Developing education and training in rural areas

• Developing medical services and providing health care for rural inhabitants

• Building a cultured life and developing information and communications in rural areas

• Clean water supply and environmental sanitation in rural areas

• Raising the quality of Party organizations, administrations and socio-political organizations in localities

• Maintaining social security and order in rural areas” (Decision No. 800/QD-TTg). The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is overall responsible for carrying out the NTP. The NTP is implemented in all rural areas in Vietnam affecting the two provinces in the current project, too. There is a very good coherence between the NTP and the current project, and ADDA and FU can be of assistance by showing good examples for the NTP to follow. A focus on rural areas is the main topic for both projects and ADDA/FU can advocate for including ethnic minorities in the NTP. National Program on Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Development Another current program with special importance for agriculture is the National Program on Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Development also called Tam Nong resolution 26. The Tam Nong has 7 specific goals:

• “Building up a comprehensive agriculture toward modernization, in accordance with strong development of rural industries and services

• Construction of the socio-economic infrastructure in connection with urban development.

• Improvement of spiritual and physical life of rural residents, particularly in stricken areas

• Reform and renovate the production types, services for better effectiveness in rural areas.

• Develop the research, the transfer and application of science and technology, training of human resources, to create a breakthrough for modernization of agriculture, and industrialization of rural areas.

• Renovate the mechanism, policies to mobilize the resources, for rapid development of rural economies, to improve the physical and spiritual life of the farmers

• Enhance the leadership of the Party, the governance of the state, upholding the strengths of the socio-political organizations, particularly the Farmer Association” (Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW).

The Farmer Union (FU) has a big role in implementing the activities in Tam Nong, and the specific role of FU is specified in decision No. 673/QD-TTg. The Tam Nong is implemented in all rural areas in Vietnam, affecting the two provinces in the current project, too. There is a good coherence on some of the objectives in Tam Nong with the ADDA/FU project. Tam Nong will focus on bigger agricultural enterprises, while this project will focus on the small-scale farmers, which will contribute to improvement of the overall agricultural sector in Vietnam. None of the objectives in the two projects are conflicting and, overall, they lead to the same goal. The ADDA/PFU project will contribute in achieving some of the goals of Tam Nong by increasing participation and ownership among the target group and by using a bottom-up approach including and involving the target group. The Danida ARD-SPS The Agriculture and Rural Development Sector Program Support (ARD-SPS) is implemented from 2007 to 2012 and focuses on the official structure of society. The program is currently being phased out, and has been implemented in 5 provinces differing from the current project. The program has put priority on focus on the aid to reduce poverty and improve the vital necessities of the rural population, with emphasis on the upland poor and vulnerable groups, e.g. ethnic minorities and women headed households. ADDA and PFU are aware of the objectives and goals of the ARD-SPS and will use relevant information from evaluations etc. in the project whenever possible.

Ethnic minorities

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The Socio-economic development programme for extremely problematic communes in ethnic minorities and mountainous areas is the second part of a large scale program called 135, implemented from 2006-2010 and targeted ethnic minorities in Vietnam. Specific objectives of the program were:

• To upgrade the agricultural production skills of the population to help reduce poverty • To ensure infrastructural development in the remote areas such as roads, irrigation systems, and

electricity etc. • To improve standards of life with improved hygiene, minimizing diseases, enhanced school

enrolment rates etc. • Capacity strengthening of the communes to improve service of rights and needs for the inhabitants

The Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs (CEMA) is the overall responsible government body in charge of the program (Decision on the approval of the Socio-economic development programme for extremely problematic communes in ethnic minorities and mountainous areas in the period 2006-2010, 30/8-2006). The program has worked with many issues similar to the current project, and the outcome from the current project will definitely contribute to the overall goals of the Vietnamese state, i.e. poverty reduction and development of the rural areas inhabited by ethnic minorities.

B.2 How has the project been prepared? The main idea for the project came from NAFU and HBFU, who contacted ADDA for help with strengthening the capacities of farmer cooperatives. ADDA is overall responsible for writing the project proposal as they are able to apply for funding through PATC. Due to a long and close working relationship between ADDA, VNFU, NAFU and HBFU, the partners are in continuous contact and dialog. NAFU and HBFU have been involved in creating the LFA for the project approved by both these places. Furthermore ADDA NAFU, and HBFU have been in regular contact about formulating the project proposal, so all organisations are fully aware of and agreeing on the content of the proposal. As ADDA has an office in Hanoi, contact between ADDA Denmark, ADDA Vietnam, NAFU, and HBFU has been relatively easy and very frequent. The local authorities at province, district, commune, and village level have all been very pleased with the CDEM project, its activities and results, and likewise all are looking forward to engage in new projects. Since this project is targeting a target group that has already been involved in a previous and still running ADDA/VNFU project, the relationship with the target group is very close. This means that during several monitoring and evaluation visits in the villages, the FIGs have come with several ideas and suggestions on how they can be strengthened and these are the topics incorporated into the present project proposal. All analysis for the current project proposal has been made with a background in existing results from the CDEM project. During several visits and talks with the FIGs, the FIG members themselves have expressed a strong request for further training activities. The FIG members have experienced the advantage of working together as a group, and they have many ideas on how their groups can be strengthened, especially as working as legal cooperatives under decree 151 or the Cooperative Law .Therefore the FIG members have asked VNFU and ADDA to assist them with this. The FIGs wishes to be able to act as civil society organizations, taking responsibility for community development activities, including organizing, fundraising, implementing and maintenance. The CDEM project has not focused on these areas, which are needed to equip the FIGs for these tasks. The target group for the new project has been chosen deliberately, even though it overlaps with the CDEM project. It is indeed sustainable for future activities, since this target group already has been established as civil society groups. If another target group was chosen, the project would need focus on the establishment of the FIGs and very little focus could be given for the future development. Taking the Vietnamese context in consideration, the time is now mature for an increased potential of very locally based civil society organizations.

B.3 Problem analysis The main problems this project is attempting to solve are the poverty and the poor organisation among ethnic minorities. Facts and causes concerning poverty are explained below.

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1 Ethnic minorities and poverty

In total there are 53 other ethnic groups than the Kinh majority. These are the groups referred to as the ethnic minorities. Each of these groups has their own specific culture, language and lifestyle. The majority, almost 75 %, of the ethnic minorities live in the mountainous areas in Northern Vietnam (PT, 2002). In the national census from 1999 the ethnic minorities were counted to 10,527,000 individuals (ADB, 2002). This means that the ethnic minority groups in Vietnam account for 14 % of the country’s population but also that they account for 29 % of the poor people in Vietnam (ADB, 2002; PT, 2002). Hence, poverty is a very important issue in Northern Vietnam as the ethnic minorities living there account for more than 25 % of the poor in the country (ADB, 2002). As restrictions to ethnic minority development and increased well-being is mentioned: “isolation and remoteness; reduced access to forest and other land; low access to credit and productive assets; limited access to quality social services; and limited participation in government structures and public life” (PT, 2002,p.3). Social problems also contributing to the poverty among the ethnic minorities are a) insecure land tenure and b) lack of knowledge about laws concerning land tenure as well as c) loss of land to wealthier immigrants in the areas. Poor knowledge of farming and sales skills combined with less access to irrigated land also contribute to the very hard conditions for the ethnic minorities (ADB, 2002). Other causes for poverty among ethnic minorities are the low educational level, the ignorance about legal rights, less access to remittances, less access to water sources, poor health, and geographical remote areas with poor infrastructure (ADB, 2002). Previous government programs targeting ethnic minorities have had some difficulties reaching the right target group. Evaluations of previous development programs targeted at ethnic minorities highlight that the needs of the target group have neither been properly investigated nor met (PT, 2002) and the focus on culture, lifestyle, indigenous knowledge and village organizational structures have been vague (ADB, 2002). Some direct examples of these problematic programs are described as a) very top-down approaches that do not create ownership of the projects, b) the use of Kihn (Vietnamese language) lose out a lot of the participants, especially the women, and c) lacking focus on the cultural life of the ethnic minorities as well as on focus on development of infrastructure to obtain human development (ADB, 2002). Recommendations for future development programs are to involve ethnic minorities in decision and policy making in their local areas. This recommendation is based on a strong urge from the ethnic minorities themselves that ask for training in project management to be able to facilitate development activities (PT, 2002). It seems that in Vietnam there is a common hesitance to work with ethnic minorities. Many International NGOs (INGOs) and Vietnamese authorities are concerned and engaged in the complex of problems concerning ethnic minorities, but very little true action is taken. It is commonly said that ethnic minorities are difficult to work with and are very slow to adapt to new programs and projects. With this project ADDA will show how ethnic minorities can be included in development projects and how they themselves can be empowered to carry out development activities. To help reduce rural poverty it is obvious to look at the agricultural production and at how this sector can help the poor to increase their income. 2 Agricultural production

Agriculture is a very important part of many people’s lives in Vietnam. About 71 % of Vietnam’s population live in the rural areas and about 62 % of Vietnam’s population are depending on agriculture for their livelihood (FAO, 2011). Challenges for the agricultural sector in Vietnam have been described by the World Bank, and are among others: “..a stagnant agricultural productivity, Slow rate of investment in agricultural diversification. Underdeveloped marketing channels, institutions and infrastructure. A widening gap between urban and rural areas and ethnic populations in particular Unsustainable and inequitable patterns of natural resource use, access and control and limited capacity of public institutions and misalignment of public expenditure serving rural sector interests “ (WB, 2007). Inefficient agricultural extension service is also a problem in Vietnam, and is characterized by two main problems; a) the extension service is short of staff and b) the methodologies are heavily top-down approaches. These factors combined contribute to a low and inefficient agricultural knowledge among the ethnic minorities.

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Additionally, poor organization among ethnic minorities is a vast problem connected to poverty as well as to development. 3 The civil society in Vietnam

The civil society is defined by CIVICUS as “ the arena between the family, state and the market, where people associate to advance common interests” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). This definition will also be used as a reference point to the civil society in this project. Until recently the political organization of Vietnam, combined with the tradition of a one party state, allowed only little space for growth of an independent civil society. The beginning of civil organization in Vietnam didn’t open up till in the early 1990´s. Before this time only mass organizations under the Fatherland Front under The Communist Party of Vietnam existed (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). Today the civil society in Vietnam consists of 4 broad categories of stakeholders; all defined as Civil Society Organizations (CSOs): 1) Mass organizations (MO), 2) Umbrella organizations and professional organizations, 3) Vietnamese NGOs (VNGOs) and 4) Community based organizations (CBOs) (CIVICUS et. al., 2006, UNDP 2006). Yet another type of stakeholder is the international NGOs (INGOs) which are also very important for the Vietnamese society, even if these are not considered as part of the civil society in Vietnam, since they do not have members in Vietnam (CIVICUS et. al., 2006) and cannot implement any programs without a Vietnamese partner organization. The role of the MOs is both to implement party policies and to help and to listen to the voice of the people. The MOs have been very important for the civil society since they have been the only organizations in contact with the rural population before the mid 1990´s (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). The CIVICUS study also shows that the civil society in Vietnam is very widespread as well as widely distributed in Vietnam, with 73 % of the population being members of an CSO and on average each person is a member of 2,33 CSOs (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, there is a concern that the civil society does not have any means to hold the authorities responsible for their actions (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). E.g.in Vietnam there has been no tradition for the civil society to complain in public and the Vietnamese population is unfamiliar with political actions seen in many other countries, when the people are discontent with their situation. Furthermore, several researchers argue that membership of the MOs might not be really voluntary (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). Additionally there are discussions about whether the MOs are really CSOs, the argument being that they are not voluntary, self-managed or financially self-reliant (VUFO, 2008) and dealing with politics. This is, among many other things, contributing to an unclear line between the state and the civil society that is very special in the Vietnamese context (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, regardless of the discussions about the MOs being CSOs or not, it is absolutely necessary for any international NGO to have an MO as a partner to get approval from the Vietnamese state to be able to implement programs or projects in Vietnam. Even though memberships of CSOs are very common in Vietnam, one group of people is very little represented in the CSOs, i.e. the ethnic minorities (Norlund 2003 in CIVICUS et. al. 2006). The recommendation made for INGOs is to facilitate the CSOs in remote areas for ethnic minorities (VUFO, 2008). The CIVICUS study highlighted this problem as: “One of the most difficult issues facing Vietnam today is to help ethnic minorities develop and achieve a higher level of civilization, which should lead to better living standards” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). This quote highlights the very essence of what this project will be striving to achieve. The CIVICUS finishes by analyzing the impact from the civil society on the Vietnamese society. The main functions measured are: “Influencing policy, holding the state and private sectors responsible, responding to social interests, empowering citizens and meetings social needs”. The score was lower than average and described as “a quite moderate impact” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006).

4 Working with cooperatives

Officially the year 2012 has been declared International Year of Cooperatives by UN. This year the UN will focus on how important cooperatives are for both poverty reduction and socio-economic development in developing countries (UN, 2012). The definition of cooperatives made by the International Co-operative Alliance will be the one referred to in this project: “A co-operative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise” (ICA, 2007). There are many advantages for farmers working in cooperatives. Some are mentioned as: “…when empowered by membership in a larger group, smallholder farmers and other producers can negotiate better terms in contracts, and lower prices for agricultural inputs like seeds, fertilizer .[..]. They can reduce risks and

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gain enough influence to secure land rights and better market opportunities” (FAO, 2012). This quotation perfectly highlights some of the positive experiences from the previous projects of ADDA and VNFU with establishing farmer cooperatives. Furthermore, the experience is that some FIGs are able to cooperate when producing and selling a product and have created good business potential for themselves. The fact is that the combination of the partnership’s great success with establishing Farmer Interest Groups among ethnic minorities and this being exactly the recommendation from CIVICUS, encourages and highlights the importance of future work with these groups. Guidance is important to maintain the success and even heighten the income level so the effects can rub-off in their local communities. It is very important to keep working with these groups in order to be able to show the good results to the Vietnamese authorities as an effective way of community development among ethnic minorities. Problems for the FIGs and other farmer groups are their lack of knowledge about the legal framework regarding cooperatives and on the possibility and the procedures for operating as legal cooperatives. The legal frameworks applicable for working with farmer cooperatives are briefly explained below. 5 Legal framework

A very central part of the project will be to inform the farmers of their opportunities for working as legal cooperatives. The availability of this kind of information has previously been very limited to the farmers. Actually, only a few of them are aware of how to obtain a certification, and likewise they are hardly aware of how and who they should contact for help. The opportunities this project will work with, is as follows: The Law on Cooperatives (No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003) states the framework in which cooperatives should operate. The law describes how cooperatives should function with among other things business registration dossier, congress of cooperative members, managing board as well as a control board. The certificates for business registration can be issued at the provincial- or district-level business registration office, when all requirements are met and when a business registration fee is paid. This kind of cooperation is suitable for bigger and well established groups as well as for small scale enterprises (Law on Cooperatives, No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003). For smaller groups the above mentioned requirements may very well be impossible to fulfill, and to meet the needs from these smaller groups, there is another alternative. The decree on the organization and operation of cooperative groups (No: 151/2007/ND-CP) also referred to as decree 151, provide an opportunity for smaller cooperatives to be established. The formal requirements are less than in the Law of Cooperatives and include a group contract. The Decree 151 is issued when the group contract is authenticated by a stamp from the Commune Peoples Committee (CPC) (Decree on the organization and operation of cooperative groups, No: 151/2007/ND-CP). It is possible and legal for farmer groups to function as small businesses without any of the above-mentioned certifications. They are then operating as informal cooperatives and can sell their products as they wish. However it is an advantage for any farmer group to get the certification that suits their abilities and to become legal cooperative entities. This will also justify the rights of the group to receive guidance and counseling from the CPC on any issues related to operating as a cooperative. When a co-operation starts to make money there might be internal and external disputes about legalities and distribution of funds etc. which all are subjects the CPC can advise about. It will definitely help any farmer group with a business potential to get legalized. Additionally, when the FIGs are certified as legal entities, they are also entitled to the opportunity to apply for very advantageous loans administrated by the FU. These loans will help the FIGs increase their production and sale of products, and help strengthen the economy in the local communities. 6 Gender

In general, Vietnamese women have more rights and opportunities than women in most other developing countries, and the Vietnamese women hold a relatively high share of leadership positions in CSOs. One issue where women are not equal to men is the right to inherit land. They are not very active in politics and are expected to be the primary caretaker of their children (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, building on top of the analysis made for the CDEM project, it is disclosed that gender roles in Vietnam are still uneven. Women have a very heavy work load because they are both in charge of the majority of agricultural tasks and responsible for most household duties. Women are the main responsible people in food production for the family and have many ways of generating income for the family. Men’s contribution varies, but is often related to specific agricultural tasks, occasional construction work and wage

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jobs. Even though the situation in Northern Vietnam in general has improved a lot, the women from some of the ethnic minority groups are almost systematically excluded from access to resources, essential services and decision-making. They are usually selling their products at the local market, but have to deliver the turnover to their husband at home. Other issues constraining women in agriculture are less access to capital, less access and control over resources, as well as less access to land. These constraints limit the possibilities for women’s agriculture as well as hinder them in engaging in new methods and techniques that require capital and secure access to land. The above-mentioned gender issues are obviously serious constraints to agricultural development. It seems that gender relations are changing slowly, and most people will admit that things have moved on since the time of their parents or grandparents. These days, for economic reasons, men must start helping their wives more, since one person can no longer carry the burden of supporting the family, and raise enough income to educate the children, pay for medical treatment, clothe the family, pay taxes, etc. Particularly the younger husbands are willing to take on at least some of the household tasks some of the time. The relationship between husband and wife is also changing, e.g. men listen more to women than they did in the past, and women can now own things themselves, cultivate their own land, and run their own businesses. However, changes are less apparent where income is concerned; it seems that men continue to have control over most income earned from family ventures, in particular when incomes are in the form of one-off payments as is the case for many seasonal cash crops.

B.4 Stakeholder analysis The stakeholders are divided into different categories, according to their role in the project. Partner organization: NAFU and HBFU are the partner organizations. Here the structure of the mass organization is described. Vietnamese Farmers Union (VNFU) Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) is a mass organization representing Vietnamese farmers. VNFU is under the Fatherland Front in Vietnam. In 2011 VNFU had almost 12 million households as members which roughly accounts for 60 million people. VNFU is organized in all provinces and districts and nearly all 10,000 communes in Vietnam. VNFU membership is voluntary and the membership fee is 6000 VND per year. The small membership fee allows everybody to become a member, and almost all rural residents are members of VNFU. The members are not only farmers, but also representatives from different rural economic sectors like agriculture, forestry, fishery, handicraft, small industry, processing and circulation of goods and services in the rural areas. At national level, the Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) is acting as an advising body towards the Vietnamese Government in questions related to agricultural development and it has taken on an increasingly important role in implementing government poverty reduction programs. VNFU is also the organization given the mandate to encourage the formation of new democratic member-driven cooperatives. The purpose of VNFU is among other things to support the organisation and production development of farmers, defending the interest of farmers and present proposals to the government on behalf of the farmers, and furthermore to inform the farmers on government policies. VNFU has a structure reaching from the centre right down to the village level. It is organized in four levels: national level (VNFU), provincial farmer union (PFU), district farmer union (DFU) and commune farmer union (CFU). When not referring to a specific branch of the organization, the term Farmer Union (FU) will be used, and will cover all the local levels except the national level (VNFU). At the commune level it is further organized on a village and sub-village basis, with core groups consisting of 15-40 farmers supporting each other. At the village level the farmers themselves manage all the activities. All levels of FU beneath provincial level will be referred to as grassroots level Farmer Union. With the organization at community base FU has a good understanding of the farmers’ situation and needs, and a strong capacity to mobilize the community. The partner organizations in the current project are the Provincial Farmer Unions in Nghe An (NAFU) and Hoa Binh (HBFU). However, also DFU and CFU in these two provinces will be involved in implementing the project activities. ADDA has had a good relationship with VNFU for many years, as VNFU has been ADDA’s main partner organization since 2006. Both VNFU and ADDA are aware of issues that could be improved in the VNFU structure. For VNFU it is very new to focus on member inclusion and therefore there is a need for learning bottom-up and member

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centered approaches. Since VNFU is part of the communist party, the structure is not easy to change, but hopefully this project can contribute with some suggestions in this direction. Organizational and administrative strengths of the partners NAFU and HBFU are among others, a large and widespread network covering all provinces in Vietnam where both staff and members are very locally placed. The structure of the VNFU organization is transparent, and management procedures are very similar in the various provinces. Because the provincial levels of VNFU is chosen, the partners are more close to the target group. Due to the cooperation with NAFU and HBFU, the process of implementation is relative fast, due to the large size and ballast of the partners. Organizational and administrative weaknesses of the partners NAFU and HBFU are also that the organization is very large with many specific procedures, and due to this bureaucracy, things can take long time. The structure of VNFU is very top-down, and not member inclusive. These are some of the challenges that this project will try to change, by showing VNFU the advantages of including its members on many different decision levels. This top-down approach is very characteristic for the old Mass Organizations (MO) of Vietnam. The MOs also have a new role to fill in the changing Vietnamese society. One challenge is that the MOs are expected to act more and more as CSOs. This is also a great opportunity for this project, since during the CDEM, capacity building of the partner has mainly been on managing of large partnership projects. Now there is an opportunity to work more with the structures of the organization and there will e.g. be a focus on how to enhance member involvement in the entire organization. By working with this issue, the members of VNFU will experience more local participation and more influence on VNFU decisions Authorities: The most important authority in this project is the CPC. Other authorities are also stakeholders, but are not crucial for the implementation of the project. The CPC is the authority able to approve the project activities. Furthermore this stakeholder will also be target for advocacy work. CPC – Commune People Committee CPC is a sublevel of the party structure, and is present in all communes in Vietnam. Each commune consists of a number of towns and villages. CPC is the local authority at commune, town and village level. Furthermore CPC is the executive power at village level and CPC is an important stakeholder on several project outputs. Service providers: These stakeholders will be providing training to the FU staff and FIGs in their special area of expertise. This is also an opportunity for both ADDA and PFU to experience the capacity of these stakeholders and maybe to enter into cooperation on future projects. Vietnamese Lawyers Association (VLA) VLA was established in 1955, and is one of the biggest and the most long-standing social organizations in Vietnam. VLA has 33,000 members throughout the country. There are 4 levels in VLA: central, provincial, district and commune level. There are 13 specialized units directly under the VLA and each unit has their own function and tasks. VLA is a professional-social organization. VLA only receives a small funding from the government which is to be used for general administration of the head office in Hanoi, but no salaries and no activities are based on government support. VLA is the partner organization in the ADDA/VLA project supported by DANIDA; Legal aid to the rural population phase II, 2011-2014. In current project VLA will be used as service provider, being responsible for training of FU staff in legal aspects of Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law. VCA - Vietnam Cooperative Alliance Vietnam Cooperative Alliance is representing the cooperative movement in Vietnam. Among other things the entity is contributing in formulating the legal policies and norms on cooperatives and also mobilizing and supporting the establishment and development of cooperatives. Furthermore the entity is representing and protecting the legal rights of cooperatives and laborers in cooperatives as well as members of the VCA. The role of VCA is also to strengthen the international relations and cooperation with other countries (VCA, 2012). VCA’s role in the current project will mainly be as a service provider regarding legalities of cooperatives. Furthermore, VCA will participate in the final stakeholder workshop as guest speakers as well as participants. Extension service

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The extension service is a part of DARD and is represented in every district of Vietnam. The extension service will be used as a service provider in the project, and be in charge of the training activities regarding enhanced agricultural production. It is also hoped that the extension service will report back the good results regarding training of farmer groups to DARD and MARD. The target group: The FIGs are the main target group but also important is reaching a broader category of people; i.e. the acquaintances of the FIGs. FIGs – Farmer Interest Groups After participation in an FFS, the farmers have learned to appreciate working together as a group. Many participants in an FFS therefore want to continue these group activities and establish a FIG afterwards. The FIG chooses an area of production, in order to have something to work on jointly. The products of the FIGs are not meant to overtake the normal production of the farmers but are seen as a supplement to their personal production. The products of the FIGs vary a lot from group to group. Some will work on maize or vegetables depending on what they have gained knowledge in the FFS but many choose a different product for commercialization, e.g. production of pork, breeding piglets, growing peanuts, and poultry breeding. Friends/neighbors/family of the FIG members The project is mainly targeting the FIGs and the FIG members; however the project is also anticipated to have a positive spill-off effect on friends, family and neighbors of the FIG members. In the 80 villages where FIGs will implement a community development project (CDP) most of the villagers will benefit directly from the project. Besides this, it is also expected that each trained farmer will inform others of the outcome of the training. In the CDEM project phase I, it was discovered that each trained farmer has passed on the newly gained knowledge to, on average, 7 other people. Others: The following stakeholders will not play a direct role in implementation of any project activities. They will all be invites for a stakeholder workshop in the end of the project period, when the good results from working with ethnic minorities and farmer interest groups will be shared. It is anticipated that some of these stakeholders will see the relevance and durability of the project results and hopefully this will encourage them to do similar work. MARD – Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MARD was established in 1995. MARD is as a governmental agency performing management functions in the areas of agriculture, forestry, salt production, fishery, irrigation/water services, and rural development nationwide. It is also the ministry’s role to deliver public service in accordance with legal documents. Several departments related to crop production, animal health, plant protection, legislation etc. function under MARD. In relation to the project implementation MARD will not be directly involved. MARD will be invited to relevant seminars and workshops when their expertise and view is needed. Furthermore, as MARD is shifting their development strategy from a supply-driven to a demand-driven approach this project has an important role in presenting working methods and results for inspiration for the new development strategy (MARD, 2012). Prior contact between FU, ADDA and MARD has been positive. DARD - Department of Agriculture and Rural Development - DARD is a department under MARD with 64 regional departments spread out in all 8 regions of Vietnam. IPSARD - Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development The institute was established in 2006 as a response to the changing development strategy of MARD. The role of IPSARD is to improve quality of research and information activities. This is done by communication with various agencies and leaders domestically as well as the international organizations. IPSARD should preferably function as a think-tank for MARD, providing the analysis and results supporting strategy and policy formulation process in agriculture and rural development (IPSARD, 2012). CEMA - Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs

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CEMA is a government body under MARD and has representative agencies at district level in areas with an ethnic minority population of 5000 or above. CEMA is concerned with legislation related to ethnic minorities and other functions also include inspection of programs and policies on socio-economic development in areas inhabited by ethnic minorities (CEMA, 2012). On provincial level CEMA is divided in two parts; Provincial Ethnic Minorities Committee and Provincial Committee on Religion, who will both be invited for the stakeholder workshop. (The Vietnam) Fatherland Front - The association is an umbrella for political and socio-political organizations and all mass organizations. Youth Union - The union is a mass organization and is a member of the Fatherland Front. Women’s Union - The union is a mass organization with approximately 13 million members across Vietnam. The organizational structure of the union is divided into four levels: central, provincial, district and commune level. The organization is working on women’s legitimate rights and gender equality (VWU, 2012).

C. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

C.1 Target group and participants The main target group is 220 Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) with approximately 25 members each, equalling about 5,500 persons. These 220 FIGs are distributed in 2 provinces in Northern Vietnam; Nghe An and Hoa Binh. Furthermore, previous ADDA projects have shown great spill-over effect of knowledge to the families, neighbors and friends of the target group, and it is estimated that approximately 27,000 people will have increased their knowledge on agricultural production, group formation or community development after the project period. Since the project is using a target group that has already been involved in a previous ADDA/VNFU project, the participating FIGs will be selected according to how long they have been working and how well they are operating. Since the CDEM project is still running and establishing new FIGs, only FIGs that are at least 1 year old will be considered for this project, as it is very important to let them learn how to work as a group before providing them with more training. Around half of the FIGs will be 5 years old and the other half will be 1.5 years old. This means that approx. 50 % of the FIGs will have been established during phase one of CDEM. The other 110 FIGs will come from the current CDEM project, and therefore the new project includes only a small part of the target group involved in the CDEM project; less than 20 %. By using both mature FIGs as well as more recently established FIGs, the project will benefit from this synergy and the newer FIGs will be able to use the older FIGs as inspiratory/mentors during the project. Furthermore, HBFU and NAFU will be able to investigate the most fruitful timing for starting to work more intensively with already established farmer groups. Considerations for choosing the target group:

• The FIGs are already established and functioning as organizations in the civil society

• The economic inputs of the project will be low due to working with already established CSOs

• Sustainability of the groups after the project

• The FIGs represent the community with both male and female members

• Good prospect for advocacy due to prior organizational training

• Further strengthening of the FIGs will give them opportunities for more influence on a political level

which can result in better living standards in the local communities

The partner organizations HBFU and NAFU are very legitimate for development actors of the target group. HBFU and NAFU have branches at all levels, right from the province, commune to village level. Furthermore the FU facilitators in charge on the daily contact with the FIGs will live nearby and are very much aware of the local conditions for the FIGs.

C.2 The project’s objectives and success criteria (indicators) The logics of the project can be viewed in the Logical Framework Approach matrix in Annex G.

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The Development objective for the project is: The development objective is not expected to be achieved within the project period, but the effort of the project must contribute significantly to this development. The following indicators will serve as success criteria for the development objective:

• By 2015, members of Farmer Interest Groups among Ethnic minorities in 8 districts within 2 provinces are actively improving their personal income

• By 2015, at least 35 % of the ethnic minorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh spend a larger proportion of their income on school, health care and non-food items compared to project initialization

• By 2015, inhabitants in 200 villages in Nghe An district and 300 villages in Hoa Binh district have gained acquaintance with advantages of group organisation and enhanced production techniques

Immediate objective 1 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• By 2015, 60 % of the FIGs report on increased production and sale of their products

• By 2015, 50 % of the FIG members have increased their personal income with at least 35 % compared to project initialization

• By 2015, 50 % of the FIGs have increased their group income from income generating activities with at least 35 % compared to project initialization

The above mentioned indicators will be measured by means of a baseline study conducted as the first project activity and compared to findings from an impact assessment that will be the last project activity. The same questions and geographical areas will be used for the baseline study and impact assessment. Immediate objective 2 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• 80 FIGs are able to make detailed plans for community development in cooperation with fellow villagers

• 80 FIGs assisted by grassroots level FU have approached their Commune Peoples Committee (CPC) with a plan for a small-scale community development project

Immediate objective 3 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• 60 of the 80 FIGs that received management training have approached CPC with plans for a new small-scale community development project

By 2020, ethnic minorities in the rural areas in Northern Vietnam have increased their livelihood due to better organization in the local communities

By 2015, 50 % of the 220 Farmer Interest Groups in Nghe An and Hoa Binh have increased their income by 35 %

By 2015, FU and the 220 FIGs are increasingly influencing local and national decision making regarding rural development and ethnic minorities

By 2015, 80 of the 220 Farmer Interest Groups in Nghe An and Hoa Binh are better organised and are able to facilitate community development activities

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• By 2015, FU and CPC have advocated for community development in rural areas inhabited by ethnic minorities to relevant authorities

Means of verification for the project outputs can be viewed in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex G.

C.3 Outputs and activities The scheme below presents the outputs and the activities connected to the three immediate objectives described above. A further overview can be seen in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex G and the time perspective can be seen in Annex L – the project implementation plan.

Regarding objectives

Expected outputs Activities

In pursuit of objective 1

1.1. By 2015, Farmer Union (FU) staff in Nghe An and Hoa Binh have supported 220 FIGs in implementing enhanced production techniques

1.1.1 Conduct baseline study of farmers socio-economic factors 1.1.2 Conduct baseline study of FIGs and their production 1.1.3 Market surveys for the selected products is made 1.1.4 Arrange training of FIG members in enhanced production techniques 1.1.5 Follow-up visits by the extension service

1.2 By 2015, 220 FIGs are able to analyse the market and adapt their production according to market demand as well as selling produce to local markets and wholesale traders

1.2.1 Training for the facilitators and the FIGs in conducting market analysis and business plans 1.2.2 Follow-up seminar for FIGs organised by FU on issues related to their new business plan 1.2.3 Follow-up seminar for FIGs organised by FU on issues related to their market analysis 1.2.4 FU facilitators assists the groups to initiate the market analysis and business planning 1.2.5 FU staff assists the FIGs in marketing of their products

1.3 By 2015, 220 FIGs are aware of the possibilities of getting loans for production from either FU managed funding or any other local credit agencies

1.3.1 Training for facilitators on farmer credit schemes 1.3.2 Distribution of information to the FIGs by FU facilitators about opportunities and limitations of the loans available for groups 1.3.3 Assisting selected FIGs in getting loans 1.3.4 Assistance for FIGs with approved loans on management of the loan

In pursuit of objective 2

2.1 By 2015, staff from the Hoa Binh Farmer Union (HBFU) and Nghe An Farmer Union (NAFU) have been trained in strategic methods for active member involvement

2.1.1 Identification and planning of training by ADDA and HBFU and NAFU 2.1.2 Training for grassroots level FU staff in member involvement (incl. communication styles,

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participatory rural appraisals, leadership styles, conflict resolution) 2.1.3 Workshop with FIG members on ideas for future communication between grassroots level FU and its members 2.1.4 Write guideline for strategic methods for active member involvement

2.2 By 2015, 80 of the 220 FIGs have been supported by grassroots level FU with organisational management skills

2.2.1 Selection of 80 FIGs to pursue a Community Development Project (CDP) and planning of training activities 2.2.2 Training of FU facilitators in organizational management 2.2.3 Training for the FIGs in organisational management (e.g. fundraising, economy, project planning, group dynamics, action plans, M&E, conflict resolution) 2.2.4 Supervision on action plans by FU facilitators

2.3 By 2015, 80 villages have improved their local community with a development project

2.3.1 FU staff assess action plans 2.3.2 FU staff communicate projects to CPC 2.3.3 FU staff obtain approval from CPC 2.3.4 FU staff supervise project implementation 2.3.5 FIGs and FU facilitators mobilise local resources for project implementation 2.3.6 FIGs and FU facilitators design a system for user payment for project maintenance 2.3.7 FIGs and FU facilitators design an operation and maintenance plan 2.3.8 1 CDP is facilitated and implemented by each of the 80 FIGs

In pursuit of objective 3

3.1 By 2015, 220 FIGs have strengthened their knowledge about the Cooperative Law and the Decree 151 on organisation and operation of groups

3.1.1 Training of FU staff by VCA and VLA in assisting FIGs with legal rights of co-operations among farmers 3.1.2 Training for facilitators in opportunities and limitations of operation within Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law 3.1.3 Training for FIGs in opportunities and limitations of operation within Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law

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3.2 By 2015, the 220 FIGs operate as legal entities within either the cooperative law or the degree 151

3.2.1 FU meetings with FIGs 3.2.2 Contact and follow-up with relevant authority 3.2.3 Follow-up meetings with the FIGs by FU facilitators

3.3 By 2015, 100 FIGs have approached the CPC with suggestions on future community development activities

3.3.1 Meetings between the FIGs and FU in each commune 3.3.2 Meetings between the CPC and FU

3.4 By 2015, local authorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh are aware of the positive results of the FIG activities

3.4.1 Invite CPC to visit CDPs 3.4.2 Invite the press to publish the results of the training and/or from completed CDPs

3.5 By 2015, the results of the community development work conducted by the FIGs have been communicated out to a wider range of Vietnamese organizations.

3.5.1 Planning of workshop 3.5.2 Conduct a stakeholder workshop with Vietnamese Mass Organizations (Fatherland Front, Women’s Union, VNFU, Youth Union etc.) and State institutions (MARD, DARD, IPSARD, CEMA, Provincial Ethnic Minorities Committee, Provincial Committee on Religion etc.) and VCA to discuss opportunities for farmers within the decree 151 with focus on ethnic minorities 3.5.3 Follow-up meeting on possible joint initiatives 3.5.4 Make a documentary film on the effects of farmer groups and launch it in National and local television program 3.5.5 Document successful stories of farmer groups for replication

C.4 Strategy 1 Methods

The first project outputs are to increase the income of the FIGs. In the still running CDEM project, each FIG has chosen a product to produce and sell but very few of the FIGs have received agricultural training in the production of the specific product, because they often choose a different product than the one they learnt about during the initial Farmer Field Schools (FFS). The FFS product is often a staple crop like maize or vegetables, which is mainly used for household consumption. The products of the FIGs are supplementing the member’s personal production. The FIGs will receive training in enhancement and optimization of the product which is being produced, and this will and help them increase their production and income.. When initializing this project, 220 FIGs will be selected to participate, complying with the requirements made in the description of the target group. Additionally, only FIGs producing a product not included in the FFS curriculum will be chosen. Furthermore, a limit of 10 different products will be chosen, since otherwise it will be too much to administrate. Before the FIGs can receive training in enhanced agricultural production techniques in their specific product, a market analysis of each of the products will be made. Should some of the products, against the expectations, have a very poor business potential, the product will be replaced with another product with more fruitful business potential, and some other FIGs will be chosen to participate. The FIGs will be trained in the new techniques during a 5 days intensive course when the extension service is the service provider.

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Additionally to this, the FIGs will be trained in conducting market analysis and in making business plans, so they can adapt their production to current market needs continually. The FIGs have different ways to divide the earnings from their production; some have a shared pool of earnings and some have the earnings clearly divided. The type of division of the money chosen by the FIG will also be supported by this project. When the FIGs have been trained in enhanced production techniques, they will also be assisted with obtaining a legal certificate either under the Cooperative Law or Decree 151. This will strengthen the FIGs in their business´ as well as it legitimates support from various stakeholders, e.g. the CPC can provide legal advice to the farmer cooperatives and FU can assist the FIGs in obtaining very advantageous loans for production and marketing of their products. These loans can help the FIGs with investments in inputs, equipment, market stalls etc. An important factor regarding the certifications and loans is that the involved FIGs will get assistance and training in the subjects relevant for them. Furthermore the FIGs will receive organizational management training in fundraising, economy, project planning, group dynamics, M&E and conflict resolution. In order to increase the organisation of the FIGs special attention will be given to training in organizational skills. As a part of the organizational management training, the FIGs will receive training in designing action plans. To put the training into action, the training will conclude in community development, as the FIGs with their newly required skills, will be able to facilitate a community development project (CDP). For this part of the project a total of 80 FIGs will be selected to participate. This choice is made due to the costs regarding the activities. The 80 FIGs that have shown great interest in community development as well as personal energy to handle both their bushiness and activities for community development will be chosen to participate. If possible 40 FIGs from each of the two provinces will be chosen. The training will include how to make a detailed plan for a CDP for each FIG. Furthermore, a small number of FIGs have already successfully conducted a community development project, with the support from ADDA’s own funds, and these FIGs will not be chosen for this part of the project. After the training sessions a curriculum for organizational management as well as a monitoring and evaluation guideline will be made in co-operation with the FIG members, and will be available for FU in their future work with farmer groups. In general, the methods used for the project activities are either the FU staff will receive training in a topic in which they subsequently will conduct training sessions for the FIGs, or that an external service provider will provide the training directly to the FIGs. After each training session there will be a follow-up session for the FIGs with the FU facilitators. Since not all FIG members can participate in the trainings, there is time for them to disseminate their newly gained knowledge to the rest of the FIGs and start implementing it. After some time the facilitator will visit the entire FIG making sure that they are on the right track. Furthermore if the FIGs require additional assistance they can contact the DFU for free advice. This will also be possible after the project period has finished. 2 Gender

The FIGs are comprised of an equal number of male and female participants, as this was one of the requirements made when the FIG members originally received training during an FFS. The equal distribution of gender is also present in the composition of the FIGs and will be the basis for all trainings for FIG members. The training sessions will be available for 4 persons from each FIG, and the project management will request the FIGs to send 2 male and 2 female participants whenever possible. Often the FIGs have a higher number of female members, but the number of female group leaders is not reaching 50 %. This is because in a Vietnamese context it is very new for women to take charge of these positions. The project management is very aware of this, and as such it is being worked on. The project will prioritize women in the same way as men, and encourage their participation whenever possible. All trainings and training venues will be suitable for both male and female participants. 3 Connection to the Change Triangle

In the methods section above, the main connection between most of the activities are explained. This section will elaborate on how these activities are connected to the framework of the Change Triangle. Capacity building

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NAFU and HBFU will receive capacity building in several ways during the project. PFU staff will be the target for several training activities and both FU district level, commune level and branch leader level will participate in the training. These trainings will strengthen the capacity of the PFU to further work with farmer groups. The FU staff will receive training in communication styles, participatory rural appraisals, leadership styles and conflict resolution. The FU will also receive training and hands on experience in active member involvement. All these trainings will, first of all, be beneficial for PFU in one of its prime tasks; i.e. communicating with its members. The training in active member involvement is essential, since it is the goal of the project to make sure the FIGs are organised better in order to have their voice heard. And in order to do so, their member organisation needs to be so as well. A strategic guide for bottom-up member involvement will be made after training of the FU staff and after they have tested the new techniques, and it will be available for the entire VNFU. Furthermore the FU staff will receive training in legal rights of cooperatives. In the future this will strengthen their work with farmer cooperatives and prepare FU to assist even more FIGs and other farmer groups to obtain certificates of legal cooperatives. The above-mentioned capacity building will also make FU staff capable of providing the FIGs with trainings and competent assistance during the project. Strategic services The training for the FIGs in enhanced agricultural production techniques is a strategic service chosen for the project. Agriculture is the main income activity for the majority of the poor farmers of ethnic origin, and because the main part of the FIGs have chosen a new product for their group activities, not previously trained, increased knowledge on production techniques have been demanded by the FIGs. There is a great potential for improvement in the agricultural sector, and providing the FIGs with this knowledge will create better life conditions for the target group. By improving the knowledge and skills of the FIGs, they get a better opportunity for higher yields of their products and hence a better potential for increasing their income. The CDP is also a strategic service, helping the FIGs transfer the knowledge gained regarding organizational management on a real project, where they can actually help their own communities. The CDPs are meant to be of benefit for the whole community where the FIGs live, and whole communities are anticipated to participate in the planning and implementation of the CDPs. Before attending the training, the FIGs will have to discuss the need(s) of the village at a village meeting and by consensus decide on an issue to work with. As the target group, mainly the FIGs is in direct contact with the project management, it is also a goal of the project to inspire the friends, families and neighbours of the FIGs to engage in community development activities. The CDP approach is chosen as many of the FIGs have wished to work with community development, too. As they work well together in their groups, they realize that they have abilities to do good things for their surroundings. The need is big in the remote, isolated areas where the FIGs live, and include e.g. communal water tanks, wells, dams to protect flooded village roads and communal small-scale irrigation systems. Each CDP is expected to benefit approximately 500 people. By making the FIGs use their knowledge on a concrete community development project, they learn how to plan, implement and evaluate a project. Furthermore they will learn how to cooperate not only with each other, but with their entire village, since everyone will contribute with labour and mostly only building materials will be bought. In addition to this, the FIGs are required to set up, first and foremost, a method to collect communal funds for the CDP. Each CDP is allocated 1.200 $ from the project budget, but it is expected that a CDP will cost the at least 2000 $. A user payment system will be established for maintenance of the CDP as well as the villagers will have to contribute with the rest of the funds. This method is used for the villagers and the FIGs members to have ownership of the CDP and to make sure that maintenance will be present after the construction phase. Advocacy The two areas of strategic services; agricultural training and community development projects, are the cores of the advocacy work in the project. After providing agricultural training to the FIGs and helping them operate as legal cooperatives, the project will have shown a very cost efficient way to work with ethnic minorities and in a sustainable way assisting them in reducing poverty for themselves. It is the goal of the project to encourage the Vietnamese authorities to strengthen their work with ethnic minorities and show them a fruitful and sustainable method for doing so. During the project period there will be continuous contact and dialog with the authorities. A stakeholder workshop will be hosted at the end of the project period when ministry bodies and mass organisations will be invited. The results from training the

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FIGs in agricultural techniques and assisting them with getting legal certificates will be presented. Furthermore, it will be discussed how the participating stakeholders themselves can work with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. A joint note sheet for further initiatives will be written at a follow-up meeting on these joint efforts. The results from the activities regarding the CDPs will be used for advocating towards local and national authorities, showing them that the FIGs are very useful for serving as community development actors, and with very few funds they can implement great positive changes in and with their communities. This approach is very much in line with the strategy of the government program previously described bringing development to the rural areas and letting people take an active part themselves. After providing the FIGs with organizational management skills and after completing their CDPs, the FIGs will have gained experience and sufficient self-confidence to address their local authorities. They will know which procedures to follow. Different strategies will be used to get the attention of the authorities. On completing the CDPs the CPC will be invited to the opening ceremony of each of the 80 FIGs.The FIGs, FU staff and village heads will present the results of their work. The local press will also be invited for documenting and publishing the effects of some of the CDPs. After completing a CDP the FIGs will evaluate the project with their villages, and together make a new project proposal for a community development activity. With this proposal they will address their local authorities, the CPC, assisted by FU staff, and suggest that funds are allocated for their proposal as well as inform the CPC of their capabilities to implement such projects. Furthermore a video film will be produced about how the FIGs work as civil society organizations as a business potential and as community development actors. The film will be distributed to relevant players working with ethnic minorities and poverty reduction, including the participants at the stakeholder workshop. Additionally the film will be used for information work in Denmark. 4 Strengthening civil society

The FIGs, as the main target group, are already now small civil society organisations (CSOs). After completing this project, the FIGs will be able to function more independently as CSOs. Firstly the FIGs will receive training in enhanced agricultural production techniques helping them raise their production and income. Furthermore they will be certified as legal cooperatives. It is planned that by the end of the project all the 220 FIGs will be operating under the decree 151 and it is estimated that 15% of these groups will have the size and skills to be certified under the Law of Cooperation. It will be the aim of ADDA and PFU to assist the FIGs in obtaining the certification most suitable for the individual groups. When able to operate as legal cooperatives, the FIGs will also gain status in their local villages. They may be an inspiration to others on how to start up group activities as well as provide agricultural knowledge to those interested. Secondly the FIGs will receive training in organisational management contributing to their internal strengthening. Furthermore the FIGs will take part in a CDP where they will be in charge of coordination with their village regarding planning and implementing the CDP. From this activity the FIGs will gain direct experience in carrying out community development activities as well as be in contact with the authorities (FU and CPC). This will enable the FIGs to participate further in community development activities as well as provide confidence in dialog with local authorities. By strengthening the FIGs consisting of both male and female members, the project will also help strengthen the role of women in society. The female FIG members will be viewed as positive role models for other women to take active part in formation of civil society. Finally,the project will strengthen the abilities of NAFU and HBFU to work on behalf of the farmers and thereby strengthening civil society. By using a bottom-up approach where NAFU and HBFU are very much present in the local communities, their knowledge of the local contexts will expand. Combined with training for NAFU and HBFU staff in member involvement methods, there is a great potential for raising the voice of the farmers. 5 Stakeholders

In the previous DANIDA supported project: Community Development among Ethnic Minorities Phase I and II ADDA has partnered with the national level of Farmer Union (VNFU). After establishing a good working relationship with VNFU, it is now possible to partner up with more local levels of Farmer Union, namely Provincial Farmer Union (PFU), District Farmer Union (DFU), Commune Farmer Union (CFU) and local Farmer Union branch leaders in the communities. In the current project, ADDA and VNFU will take the

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partnership to a more local level of organisation, which will increase the benefits for the target group, since the Farmer Union staff at province, district and commune levels is much closer to the villages than the national staff can be. Support is definitely present from all levels of FU. VNFU have been the main partner of ADDA and there has been a good relationship between the partners. CPC is a very important stakeholder in regards of the community development that will be initialised by the CDPs and carried out by the FIGs. In order to create a good working relationship with CPC, NAFU and HBFU will be in close contact to ensure that the project activities are in line with the goals of CPC. CPC will also be a target for advocacy both from the FU and from the FIGs. Here it is important to make statements heard and at the same time maintain a good relationship. This will also be coordinated by NAFU, HBFU and the ADDA staff if any problems occur. VLA, VCA and the extension service are all stakeholders that will be used during implementation of activities. These stakeholders will be paid when used as service providers. 6 Special inputs

The project will hire an expatriate project coordinator for a total of 7 months fulltime complying to approximately 1,5 day per week during the entire project. As primary partners NAFU and HBFU are new to ADDA. Previously ADDA has partnered with the nationally based organisation VNFU. Both PFUs have been involved in ADDA’s previous projects, but as the partners have not been the primary partner before, it is necessary for the expatriate project coordinator to be in very close contact with NAFU and HBFU during the project. This contact will involve guidance on administration and budgeting, coordination on implementing the activities and any other project related management issues. Furthermore the coordinator will be in charge of all communication and report writing to PATC and ADDA. Additionally there will be specific activity tasks that the expatriate project coordinator will be in charge of and conduct with the PFU staff, e.g. the baseline studies, assistance to PFU in writing a strategic manual for active member involvement, facilitate a stakeholder workshop and the impact assessment etc. The project will hire an expatriate project counselor for a total of 2 months fulltime. The counselor is already stationed in Hanoi at the ADDA office and is the overall responsible of ADDA’s other activities in Vietnam. The tasks will be divided as follows, a) a total of 1 month is used for participation in the 2 monitoring seminars when all implementing parts will discuss the progress and further work of the project, b) a total of 1 month will be used whenever needed for coordinating with ADDA’s other project activities and counseling on daily operation issues. Job descriptions can be viewed in Annex J.

C.5 Phase-out and sustainability Phase-out The local partner organisation will be the overall responsible for carrying out the project activities, and staff from the partner organization will also be the target group for some of the training. NAFU and HBFU will not benefit economically from this project and will therefore not be economically dependent, since they have their own funds both during and after the project. The partners will gain strengthened organizational capacity which will be of benefit to them long after the project period. The FIGs will gain a lot of training and will benefit from this long after the project has finished. The local partner organisations NAFU and HBFU will be available for the FIGs, since they are members of FU, and will be able to keep guiding the FIGs when questions arise after the project period. The FIGs have learned a constructive way to approach local authorities and will be able to use these channels after the project period has come to an end. Sustainability The positive results coming from this project are:

• 220 FIGs are increasing their income due to enhanced agricultural techniques and better organisation.

• 80 FIGs are operating as civil society organisations and encouraging others to do the same

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• NAFU and HBFU are able to facilitate cooperative approvals and loan approvals for farmer groups. • NAFU and HBFU are able to facilitate large-scale development projects with the INGOs. • Local and national Vietnamese authorities are aware of the positive results of working with ethnic

minorities and farmer groups. • Local and national Vietnamese authorities are aware of the benefits of collaborating with ethnic

minority groups for local community development projects. Sustainability of the project will be centred on three aspects found important for current project: Organisational: FU staff will receive training during the project both to help raise the organizational capacity and also to raise the member involvement in the organisation. The training will ensure FU improve their capability of facilitating large development projects alone or with counterparts, as well as being an MO closer to its members. 80 FIGs will receive organizational management as well, and will be able to function as legal cooperatives after the project. If they should encounter problems, FU staff will always be available to help them solve these. Economically: The 220 FIGs trained during the project will benefit from enhanced production techniques adapted to the local conditions. This will ensure that an increased income will benefit the FIGs during and after the project. The fact that the FIGs will be certified as legal entities and their increased contact with FU staff will contribute to a fruitful economic perspective. The trainings provide sustainable knowledge for the FIGs and this will be part of their working habits long after the project has ended. Socially and culturally: During the project, democratic processes will be employed internally in the FIGs and on village level. When implementing the CDPs, the FIGs will need to involve the entire village to choose a project and design a joint plan of operation. These processes will create ballast for future democratic processes even after the project ends. The partners in the current project are very much aware of the advantages and the challenges of working with ethnic minorities. The goal is to help reduce poverty and strengthen opportunities for ethnic minorities in Northern Vietnam. Furthermore it is important to help the minority groups maintain their identity and the integrity of their own culture. Whenever training or communication are targeted the ethnic minorities, this will be done in their own language. This is to involve the target groups better and also to state the importance of maintaining culture. The project design implements a bottom-up approach, and the training in agricultural techniques will be chosen by of the FIGs themselves, since they are the ones originally to have chosen the production focus. This project will not determine a certain topic of agriculture to be taught on but ask the FIGs to pronounce the knowledge they need. Systematisation and dissemination of experiences will be done systematically during the project period. At the end of the project a final report will be made documenting positive and negative experiences of the project. Furthermore an impact assessment will be made in the end, and these findings will be available for the final report. The final report will be available to ADDA, FU and other interested stakeholders. The experiences will definitely be used by ADDA in any future project in Vietnam and the findings will be used by FU on several levels when deciding on working with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. A workshop will be conducted as one of the final activities, when several Vietnamese stakeholders will be invited for the purpose of sharing the results of the project. It is hoped that by seeing the positive results, it will engage them to work with the same issues. The ADDA expatriate project coordinator will be the overall responsible for systematising the experiences. In practise this will be executed in cooperation with the partner organisation. ADDAs previous experiences show that political decisions in VNFU can be affected by positive project results. It is the fruitful outputs of the project that make sure that the methods will be used in the future. Previous successful cooperation between ADDA and VNFU has shown great results which have concluded

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in VNFU allocating budget funds for expanding the use of the methods. It is the responsibility of VNFU to strengthen farmer/producer groups through, among other initiatives, decree 151 and the Cooperative Law. By having this project, implemented in 2 out of 64 of the Vietnamese provinces, VNFU will get results from a tested model on how to do this, and this will open the prospects that this model or parts of the model will be implemented by VNFU in the remaining provinces. The partners in the project will make sure that the results from the model are made public. Furthermore meetings with national level of VNFU as well as MARD will be held during the project period, where the model set-up and results can be discussed. It is also the tendency that more funds are available from the Vietnamese state, and therefore is very likely that the state will be able to fund the spreading of a model. Therefore is also important for VNFU to be a part of this process.

C.6 Assumptions and risks To reach the project results successfully there are a few assumptions made in the project design. These can be viewed in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex I. No major risks have been identified. Below, the main assumptions are analysed. Below the assumptions for immediate objective 1 as well as for the means of coping with these are stated:

• A market for the products is continuously present

o When dealing with market prices, there is always some uncertainty regarding market demands. Before any training for the FIGs, a comprehensive market analysis of the products will be made to make sure there is a market for the products of the FIGs.

• The FIGs will continue to work as a group o Since the FIG members express great satisfaction with working as groups, no problems are

expected to occur with groups wanting to leave the project or stop being a group. However, when working with human beings there is always a risk of personal issues hindering voluntary work in a group/cooperative. If any problems should occur, the project has very skilled facilitators knowing the group and its members personally and they will be able to help the group.. Furthermore the facilitators will be training skills in conflict resolutions, and this may become convenient if personal disputes should happen in any of the groups.

• No major pests/diseases will affect the products of the FIGs o When dealing with natural resources there is always a risk of some unpredictability. As a way of

risk reduction, the agricultural products of the FIGs will not be the same. This means that if e.g. a major pest will affect the entire maize production, only a minor number of the FIGs will be affected by it.

Below the assumptions for immediate objective 2 as well as the t means of coping with these are stated: • CPC are open towards ideas and suggestions from FU and the FIGs towards community development

o The CPC is the first authority to be convinced of the advantages of involving the local population and distributing funds for community development in rural areas. Both ADDA and PFU will be in close contact and frequent dialog with CPC to ensure the CPC are well informed and pleased with the project activities and outputs.

Below the assumptions for immediate objective 3 as well as for the means of coping with these are stated: • The Vietnamese authorities are willing to have dialog on proposals for development

o A fruitful contact to the Vietnamese authorities is important for the FIGs and FU to influence the legislation. As an INGO, ADDA has the advantage of being an “outsider” and can, for this reason, help facilitate the process. As an MO, FU also has a certain status and is therefore able to help the FIGs in their advocacy.

• Formal procedures are functioning as planned

o For all of the 220 FIGs to be certified under either the Cooperative Law or the Decree 151 there is only a few formal procedures and little paperwork that needs to be done. FU staff has been

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allocated sufficient time during the project to facilitate and assist this process. Should all the certifications, contrary to expectations, not be finished during the project period, FU staff will facilitate the rest after the project period.

• The Vietnamese authorities are willing to actively participate in the debate and take action

o By inviting Vietnamese authorities and legal stakeholders to the workshop regarding ethnic minorities, farmer groups and community development, it is anticipated that the positive results will encourage these stakeholders to start working with the same issues. However, whether this will suit the organizations cannot be predicted beforehand. To minimize this risk,,a joint note sheet on further actions on the subjects as well as a follow-up meeting when progress will be discussed, will be made. Hopefully, these initiatives will also encourage and remind the stakeholders about the issues.

D. PROJECT ORGANISATION AND FOLLOW-UP

D.1 Division of roles in project implementation 1 Project management

NAFU, HBFU, and ADDA will organise and implement the project jointly. NAFU and HBFU are the implementing organs, and ADDA will be providing assistance to NAFU and HBFU. ADDA applies for the financial support for the project funds from PATC, and ADDA is responsible for the project results and the outcome in accordance with the project document, and with respect for PATC´s requirements in terms of policy, reliability and efficiency. NAFU and HBFU are responsible for implementing the project efficiently for the benefit of the rural population in Northern Vietnam. NAFU and HBFU are further responsible to the Vietnamese government and will ensure the project activities are in accordance with Vietnamese policies and laws.

ADDA will employ a Vietnamese project manager (full time) and a Vietnamese project assistant (part time), to be the responsible person for the daily management of the project. ADDA Denmark is employing an expatriate project coordinator (approx.1,5 day per week) to be responsible for the overall direction and methodology of the project, as well as an expatriate project counsellor consultant (2 months) to be responsible for the coordination with ADDA’s other projects in Vietnam. The Vietnamese project manager, with the support from the ADDA expatriate project coordinator, who is responsible for the daily management. Detailed job descriptions for the ADDA staff can be read in Annex J. An Executive Managing Unit (EMU) will be established for the overall project management. The EMU will consist of the directors in NAFU and HBFU, who each will appoint and establish a management unit consisting of permanent PFU staff. The 2 PFU project directors will, with the support from the ADDA project manager, be responsible for the daily management. The project co-ordination must be in line and supervised by the PFU from the Excecutive Managing Unit (EMU) of the project and the project coordinator in Denmark. The directors in NAFU and HBFU take overall responsibilities regarding project intervention towards the Vietnamese Authorities and take the directing role of project implementation.

The EMU will be supported by the ADDA project manager, ADDA expatriate project counselor, ADDA expatriate project coordinator and ADDA administrative staff for efficient implementation. The objective and the tasks of the project EMU are: • Day to day operations of the project under the leadership and guidance of the assigned PFU leaders for

all project activities on the basis of the project document • All major decisions on implementation are taken by the EMU with reference to the project document. • Assignment of PFU staff to be working in the project. • Co-ordinate the project activities with all relevant national institutions • Ensure project activities are implemented according to Vietnamese regulations, policies and desires. • Project EMU will meet every month, but may call for extraordinary meetings if required.

Provincial Project Management Units (PPMUs) will be established in both provinces and they will also involve the total 8 districts of the project area for local implementation. The Chairman of the PFU will be head

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of the PPMU and all other supporting staff to be involved in the project activities will be assigned by the head of PPMU. The FU facilitators will report to the PPMUs. Please, see Annex H for the organizational chart. 2 Facilitators

The project will hire 37 FU facilitators to be in charge of most of the contact with the FIGs. The facilitators are FU- members having shown excellent farming skills, and in the CDEM project have been trained as FFS trainers at a Training of Trainers (ToT) course. After conducting an FFS, they have also helped the FIGs in starting up their group activities. The facilitators are living closely to the FIGs, and can easily reach the FIGs whenever needed. The fact that the facilitators have a good relationship to the FIGs and know them very well, strengthens their ability to help the FIGs prosper, since the facilitators already know the production strategy, and strengths and weaknesses of the FIGs. In Hoa Binh there are 19 facilitators, of which 8 are women. The facilitators are of Mường and Kinh origin. In Nghe An there are 18 facilitators, of which 8 are women. The facilitators belong to the following ethnic

groups; Thổ, Kinh and Thái.

Each FIG will be connected to 1 facilitator. ADDA encourages an equal number of male and female facilitators because this also motivates and encourages, e.g. when the female members of the FIGs in their work, meet a woman in an agricultural leader position. The female facilitators in the CDEM project have shown to be great role models for the female farmers.

D.2 Monitoring and evaluation in project implementation 1 Monitoring

Monitoring will take place throughout the implementation on a regular basis. Monitoring will be done regularly by FU and reported to ADDA on a quarterly basis as per agreed requirements. The reporting will be based on the monitoring system consisting of: • The project logical framework • The annual workplan • The quarterly workplan • The project budget • The allocated funds Yearly, twice during the project period, a monitoring seminar will be organized with the EMU, the ADDA expatriate project counselor, the ADDA expatriate project coordinator, the ADDA project manager, the ADDA project secretary, the ADDA assistants as well as selected FU representatives at grassroots’ level. The purpose of the monitoring seminars is to seek the causes and explanations as to why activities succeed or fail to succeed, and to produce information that helps to make future activities more relevant and effective. The monitoring system is designed as a tool providing information on inputs, activities, outputs and objectives, and enables managers in ADDA and FU to see if the achievements are in accordance with the intention. This means that achievements will be compared to the plans given. Planning and monitoring are closely linked, and therefore need to be considered together. The monitoring system is based on regular and planned collection of data and results. The planning of data collecting is coordinated according to the LFA. The monitoring will consist of:

• Monthly progress report made by NAFU and HBFU • Quarterly monitoring reports made by NAFU and HBFU • Annual progress reports made by ADDA’s expatriate project coordinator and EMU

Monitoring the input will be done quarterly by comparing the funds received and available, to the needed amount for carrying out the planned activities. Indicators of the inputs are to which degree the planned amount is received and spend, and will be reported by the accounting system.

Monitoring the activities employs the progress monitoring. The project implementation plan (Annex L) will be divided into annual work-plans, and then again into quarterly work-plans. Planned activities are linked with quantifiable indicators, a source of information and a target for the quarter. These are monitored by actual achievements for the quarter. Plans will be developed by the project staff in collaboration with the project

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management, and distributed to the relevant implementers. The project staff in the provinces will be responsible for monthly reporting on the progress to the EMU. The PFU will be responsible for collecting the information from the Means of Verification in the LFA to use for continuous monitoring. This will also be a part of the monthly progress report.

At a quarterly basis the FU project director reports on progress. Based on the quarterly monitoring a need for readjusting the activities for the remaining quarters of the year might appear. This must be reported in the quarterly progress report. The annual progress report will be submitted to ADDA for approval.

ADDA will be responsible for the output monitoring of which the main purpose is to improve the quality of the activities through increasing knowledge about the effects. Output monitoring is carried out on an annual basis, and provides the basis for planning the following year. It also aims at documenting progress at output level for the use of project management in the annual report. Further to monitoring the effect, a methodology quality assurance should be carried out whenever needed.

The objective of impact monitoring is to analyze whether the objectives of the activities of the project have been met. If this is not the case, the strategy must be reviewed. Impact and baseline studies must be based on the same indicators and relate to the same geographical area. Responsible for carrying out the baseline study and the impact assessment is both the ADDA expatriate project coordinator and the PFU. 2 Revision of the project document

The project document is signed by all stakeholders, and presented to the various ministries and departments. Therefore the project document may not be changed, but only adjusted by addenda to the project document. This does not mean that no changes to the project set-up and project design may be carried out. It is extremely important to reflect on the substance and to act on sudden changes in the context and to include in the gained experience. Therefore the project design, as presented in the project LFA, must be considered as an organic paper. The project design will constantly be scrutinized and it is expected that adjustments to the project design will be proposed. A revised LFA can be part of the annual monitoring report, and must be approved by the VNFU and the ADDA board.

As described in the monitoring procedures two output monitoring seminars resulting in possible changes of different parts of the project design, will take place. At these seminars the outputs are monitored, and the plans, the targets etc. are reconsidered. During the output monitoring, the following steps will take place as standard monitoring/ planning procedures:

• Comparing achievements to the annual targets and the overall target. • Assessment of achievements. • Ensuring the final results can still be reached. • A possible redefinition or reformulation of the outputs, depending on the actual context. • Reconsideration of needs, approaches, strategies and thus the relevance of the output. • Reconsideration of the related indicators • Reconsideration of the planned activities for the following year

This will obviously influence the project design, thus the LFA must be adjusted whenever needed. All changes of the project design will be formulated as addenda to the project document. 3 Evaluation

An evaluation will be carried out by the end of the project. No external evaluations are planned for, as they will take place only on request from the PATC or the Vietnamese government. The evaluation will be organized by ADDA and PFU and will be a total revision of the results of the project as well as of the partnership. The impact assessment will be conducted and compared to the findings of the baseline study. An evaluation seminar with all the implementing partners will also be established. An evaluation report will be made on the conclusions from both the impact assessment and the evaluation seminar.

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E. INFORMATION WORK

E.1 Has project-related information work in Denmark been planned? The information work in Denmark will take its point of departure in the ethnic minorities being the target groups of the project. The subject and the direction of the information work will be in line with the campaign: The World’s Best News, “Verdens Bedste Nyheder”, stating that development work actually does make a difference and that it works. Furthermore it is hoped that through the information work, ADDA will get more Danish members. A film about the FIGs in Vietnam will be produced as a project activity. This film will be used for advocacy in Vietnam and for the information work in Denmark. The film will be used on the ADDA webpage and furthermore will be used for presentation of ADDA’s work in Vietnam, when ADDA members in Denmark conduct small lectures for the Danish public. Additionally, a range of photographs documenting the training as well as the life of the target group will be produced and displayed at 3 public places in Denmark, e.g. in libraries. The target group for the information work in Denmark will be the members of ADDA and other people using the ADDA website and newsletter, and the public visiting the ADDA display. The information work in Denmark will be prepared and carried out by the Danish project coordinator.

a

REFERENCES

ADB (Asian Development Bank) 2002. Indigenous Peoples/Ethnic Minorities and Poverty Reduction in Vietnam. ADB, Manila, Philippines 2002 CEMA, 2012. Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs. Available online: (http://www.cema.gov.vn/index.php?newlang=english) cited on 1/3 2012 CIA, 2012. World Fact Book. Available online: (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/vm.html). Cited on 31/1-2012. CIVICUS, VIDS, SNV, UNDP. 2006. The Emerging Civil Society: An Initial Assessment of Civil Society in Vietnam (Hanoi, March) Decision No. 673/QD-TTg May 2011, On the Vietnam Farmers’ Union directly implement and coordinate the implementation of some cultural, social and economic development programs/projects for rural area, period 2011 – 2020 Decision No. 800/QD-TTg, Approving the National Target Program on Building a New Countryside during 2010-2020. Hanoi, 4/6 2010. Decision on the approval of the Socio-economic Development Programme for Extremely Difficult Communes in Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas in the Period 2006-2010, 30/8-2006 Decree on the Organization and Operation of Cooperative Groups, No: 151/2007/ND-CP d-maps.com. 2012. Outline Map of Vietnamese Provinces. Available online: (http://d-maps.com/carte.php?lib=vietnam_map&num_car=14667&lang=en) cited on 8/3-2012. FAO, 2012. Media Centre: Cooperatives Central to Hunger Fight. Available online: (http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/120774/icode/) cited on 31/1-2012. FAO, 2011. Country briefs, Vietnam. Available online: (http://www.fao.org/countries/55528/en/vnm/) cited on 5/3-2012. GSO (General Statistics Office of Vietnam), 2012. Available online: (http://www.gso.gov.vn/default_en.aspx?tabid=491) cited on 17/2-2012. ICA, 2007. International Co-operative Alliance. Available online: (http://www.ica.coop/coop/principles.html) cited on 31/1-2012. IPSARD, 2012. Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development. Available online: (http://ipsard.gov.vn/news/DefaultE.asp) cited on 31/1-2012. Jensen, B. 2012. Personal contact and Annual Monitoring Reports. ADDA representative in Hanoi. Law on Cooperatives, No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003 MARD, 2012. Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Available online: (www.agroviet.gov.vn/en) cited on 1/3 2012. PT (Poverty Taskforce). 2002. Localizing MDGs for Poverty Reduction in Viet Nam: Promoting Ethnic Minority Development, UNDP, June 2002 Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW August 5, 2008 of the 7th Conference of the Party Central Committee (Xth) on agriculture, farmers and rural areas

b

UN, 2012. International Year of Cooperatives 2012. Available online: (http://social.un.org/coopsyear/about-iyc.html) cited on 31/1-2012. UNDP, 2011a. Viet Nam Country Profile: Human Development Indicators. Available online: (http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/VNM.html) cited on 1/2 -2012. UNDP, 2011b. Social Services for Human Development - National Human Development Reports for Vietnam. UNDP, Hanoi UNDP, 2006. Deepening Democracy and Increase Popular Participation in Viet Nam (Hanoi, June) UNDP, no date. Vietnam at a glance – a human development overview. Available online: (http://www.undp.org.vn/undp/about-viet-nam/viet-nam-at-a-glance/?&languageId=1) cited on 29/2 2012. VCA, 2012. Vietnam Cooperative Alliance. Available online: (http://www.vca.org.vn/Default.aspx?tabid=192) cited on 1/3 2012. VUFO, 2008. Forms of Engagement between State Agencies & Civil Society Organizations in Vietnam - Study Report December 2008 VWU, 2012. Vietnams Women’s Union. Available online: (http://hoilhpn.org.vn/newsdetail.asp?CatId=66&NewsId=819&lang=EN) cited on 1/3 2012 WB (World Bank). 2007. Rural development & agriculture in Vietnam. Available online: (http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/EXTEAPREGTOPRURDEV/0,,contentMDK:20534368~menuPK:3127821~pagePK:34004173~piPK:34003707~theSitePK:573964,00.html) cited on 9/3 2012

c

BUDGET SUMMARY

The budget is made in Danish Kroner, the exchange rates used for this calculation is respectively 1 Kr = 3696 Vietnamese Dong and 1 Kr = 0.18 US $.

Budget summary Currency Indicate the total cost (i.e. including contributions from the Project Fund as well as other sources)

4.994.507 DKK

Of this, the Project Fund is to contribute

4.994.507

DKK Of this, indicate the amount to be contributed by other sources of finance, including self-funding by the Danish organisation or its local partner, if any

0

Indicate total cost in local currency

18.459.808.752 Dong

Indicate exchange rate applied

1 Kr= 3696 Dong

If relevant: Indicate the extent of project-specific consultancy assistance (spreadsheet 3 of the budget format), see also ‘Guide to budget preparation’

351.953

DKK

Main budget items: Financing plan Full amount Of this, from

Project Fund Of this, from other

sources

1. Activities 2.919.192 2.919.192 0 2. Investments 50.400 50.400 0 3. Expatriate staff 266.818 266.818 0 4. Local staff 428.960 428.960 0 5. Local administration 224.280 224.280 0 6. Project monitoring 165.795 165.795 0 7. Evaluation 121.274 121.274 0 8. Information in Denmark (max 2% of 1-7) 83.032 83.032 0 9. Budget margin (min 6% and max 10% of 1-8) 340.814 340.814 0 10. Project expenses in total (1-9) 4.600.564 4.600.564 0 11. Auditing in Denmark 67.200 67.200 0 12. Subtotal (10 + 11) 4.667.764 4.667.764 0 13. Administration in Denmark (max 7% of

12) 326.743 326.743 0

14. Total 4.994.507 4.994.507 0

d

ANNEXES OBLIGATORY ANNEXES The following annexes must be submitted both in print by post and electronically by email:

A. Basic information about the Danish applicant organisation B. Fact sheet about the local organisation C. Budget format

The following annexes about the Danish organisation must be submitted in print by post:

D. The organisation’s statutes E. The latest annual report F. The latest audited annual accounts

SUPPLEMENTARY ANNEXES (max 30 pages):

Annex no. Annex title G Logical Framework Approach matrix

H Organisational management chart

I Map of the project area

J Job descriptions

K Letter of Intent from HBFU and NAFU

L Project implementation plan

M Overview of Community Development Projects (CDPs)

i

LARGE-SCALE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (from DKK 1 to 5 million) Project title:

Strengthening Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) among Ethnic Minorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh provinces

Danish applicant organisation:

ADDA - Agricultural Development Denmark Asia

Other Danish partner(s), if any:

-

Local partner organisation(s):

Nghe An Farmers Union (NAFU) and Hoa Binh Farmers Union (HBFU)

Country(-ies):

Vietnam Country’s GDP per capita: $2840.4 (UNDP, 2011b)

Project commencement date: September 2012

Project completion date: January 2015

Number of months: 30

Contact person for the project: Name: Lærke Aaboe-Jacobsen, Email address: laerke@adda.dk Name: Søren T. Jørgensen, Email address: adda@adda.dk Amount requested from the Project Fund: 4.994.507

Annual cost level: 1.997.803

Is this a re-submission? (To the Project Fund or Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs)? [ x ] No [ ] Yes, previous date of application:

Is this a: [ x] A. New project? [ ] B. A project in extension of another project previously supported (by the Project Fund or others)? [ ] C. An intervention conceived from the outset as divided into several project phases, of which this phase is number [ ] out of [ ]? Note that section F must be filled in too in the case of phased projects

Synthesis Projektet skal forbedre levevilkårene for små bondekooperativer blandt etniske minoritetsgrupper i to provinser, Nghe An og Hoa Binh. Ved at kapacitetsopbygge partnerne, NAFU og HBFU kan disse bedre hjælpe deres medlemmer, bønderne. Ved at styrke bondekooperativernes viden om landbrugsproduktion samt ved træning i markedsføring mm. vil de få styrket deres indkomstmuligheder. Ved at træne bondegrupperne i organisationsudvikling vil de dels blive bedre organiserede og dels få mulighed for at organisere sig omkring udvikling af deres lokalområder. Mindre udviklingsprojekter i lokalområderne skal bruges som praktiske eksempler på den træning bønderne får, samt forbedre levevilkårene for de fattige bønder. Derudover skal både lokale og nationale myndigheder gøres opmærksomme på fordelene ved at arbejde med bondekooperativer ved at lade befolkningen selv deltage i udviklingen af deres nærområde. De positive effekter fra projektet skal overbevise andre aktører om at sætte etniske minoriteter på dagsordenen.

Date

Person responsible (signature)

Lærke Aaboe-Jacobsen, Project coordinator

Place Person responsible and position (block letters)

Ref. no. (to be filled out by the Project Advice and Training Centre)

ii

ABBREVIATIONS ADDA Agricultural Development Denmark Asia ARD-SPS Agriculture and Rural Development Sector Program Support CFU Commune Farmers Union CBO Community Based Organization CDEM Community Development among Ethnic Minorities CEMA Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs CSO Civil Society Organization DANIDA Danish International Development Agency DARD Department of Agriculture and Rural Development DFU District Farmers Union EMU Executive Management Unit FIG Farmer Interest Group FFS Farmer Field School FU Farmer Union GDP Gross Domestic Product GNI Gross National Income HBFU Hoa Binh Farmer Union INGO International Non-Governmental Organization IPSARD Institute for Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and rural Development M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MO Mass Organization NAFU Nghe An Farmer Union NGO Non-Governmental Organization NRD New Rural Development NTP National Target Program PATC The Project Advice and Training Centre PFU Provincial Farmers Union PPMU Provincial Project Management Unit PPP Purchasing Power Parity ToT Training of Trainers VCA Vietnam Cooperative Alliance VLA Vietnamese Lawyers Association VNFU Vietnamese Farmers Union VNGO Vietnamese Non-Governmental Organization

iii

Content

A. THE PARTNERS ........................................................................................................................ 1

A.1 The Danish organisation ........................................................................................................ 1

A.2 The local organisation ........................................................................................................... 1

A.3 The cooperative relationship and its prospects ...................................................................... 2

B. PROJECT ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................ 2

B.1 In what context is the project placed? ................................................................................... 2

1 Background for the project .................................................................................................... 2

2 Population .............................................................................................................................. 3

3 Socio-economic situation ...................................................................................................... 4

4 The project area ..................................................................................................................... 4

5 Development policies for the area ......................................................................................... 4

B.2 How has the project been prepared? ...................................................................................... 6

B.3 Problem analysis.................................................................................................................... 6

1 Ethnic minorities and poverty ............................................................................................... 7

2 Agricultural production ......................................................................................................... 7

3 The civil society in Vietnam ................................................................................................. 8

4 Working with cooperatives ................................................................................................... 8

5 Legal framework ................................................................................................................... 9

6 Gender ................................................................................................................................... 9

B.4 Stakeholder analysis ............................................................................................................ 10

C. PROJECT DESCRIPTION ........................................................................................................ 13

C.1 Target group and participants .............................................................................................. 13

C.2 The project’s objectives and success criteria (indicators) ................................................... 13

C.3 Outputs and activities .......................................................................................................... 15

C.4 Strategy ................................................................................................................................ 17

1 Methods ............................................................................................................................... 17

2 Gender ................................................................................................................................. 18

3 Connection to the Change Triangle ..................................................................................... 18

4 Strengthening civil society .................................................................................................. 20

5 Stakeholders ........................................................................................................................ 20

6 Special inputs ...................................................................................................................... 21

C.5 Phase-out and sustainability ................................................................................................ 21

C.6 Assumptions and risks ......................................................................................................... 23

iv

D. PROJECT ORGANISATION AND FOLLOW-UP .................................................................. 24

D.1 Division of roles in project implementation ........................................................................ 24

1 Project management ............................................................................................................ 24

2 Facilitators ........................................................................................................................... 25

D.2 Monitoring and evaluation in project implementation ........................................................ 25

1 Monitoring ........................................................................................................................... 25

2 Revision of the project document ........................................................................................ 26

3 Evaluation ............................................................................................................................ 26

E. INFORMATION WORK .......................................................................................................... 27

E.1 Has project-related information work in Denmark been planned? ..................................... 27

REFERENCES..................................................................................................................................... a

BUDGET SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ c

ANNEXES ........................................................................................................................................... d

1

A. THE PARTNERS

A.1 The Danish organisation The main topics for this project are organisational management of farmer groups, ethnic minorities and agricultural production methods, which are all areas that lie within ADDAs expertise. ADDA has worked extensively with agricultural development in Vietnam since 1998. Apart from Vietnam, ADDA has projects in Cambodia and Tanzania also. So far, 13 projects have been supported by Danida with a total of more than 100 mill. Danish kroner. Additionally, ADDA has received two projects from EU and one from the World Bank, Please see Annex A for an elaboration. The development strategy of ADDA’s work is different in each country and in each specific project, but generally it is centered around a) communication and dissemination of information, b) capacity building of partners and local communities, c) participant oriented methods such as farmer field schools and self-help groups like farmer cooperatives, d) strengthening the civil society and the formation of networks, women empowerment and efficient use of natural resources. Common for all ADDA’s projects is a bottom-up approach where the local community is being strengthened within agriculture, because food supply is a very basic and important factor in development work. In all projects ADDA is training locals to become trainers of the target groups, since this is a good way to keep knowledge within the communities, as well as getting trainers with knowledge of the local agricultural factors. The ADDA board, which is the core of the Danish organisation, has a strong professional approach regarding development and agriculture. Several of the board members are employed at Danish agricultural research institutes, and among the board members there is a strong resource base which is used during implementation of the projects. ADDA has a long experience in working with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. Ethnic minority groups have been the target group for the Danida financed project “Community Development among Ethnic Minorities” (CDEM) that was initiated in 2006 and henceforth ADDA has 6 years of experience in working with these groups. Organisational management has been one of the top priorities in the CDEM and during this project ADDA has succeeded in helping to establish 358 farmer interest groups (FIGs) and aims at initialising 232 more by 2014. From this project ADDA has gained experience on pros and cons of working with these groups. ADDA in Denmark will use knowledge and experience from the long tradition Denmark has had with the cooperative movement (andelsbevægelsen),that has been the core of Danish agriculture as we know it today. ADDA has an office in Hanoi from where all ADDA’s projects in Vietnam are coordinated. This makes it easier for ADDA to maintain a very close and good working relationship with its partner organisations. The ADDA staffs to be involved in the project all hold master degrees within the field of agriculture and agricultural development, and are all very experienced in various aspects of the use of natural resources and working with the local population in developing countries.

A.2 The local organisation The partner organizations are the Provincial Farmer Union (PFU) in Nghe An and Hoa Binh provinces; Hoa Binh Farmer Union (HBFU) and Nghe An Farmer Union (NAFU). Both NAFU and HBFU are experienced in implementing development projects. The reason for involving the Farmer Union (FU) as partners in various international projects is that the FU organization is including every single village in the rural area, and that FU has either staff or volunteers situated everywhere. The FU possess extensive knowledge of the local agricultural situation and the different advantages and obstacles for a specific area. Further to the knowledge on local agricultural conditions, the FU also has a very good relationship with local authorities and has easy access to decision making bodies. HBFU has previously implemented the following projects:

• ADDA: Community Development project 2006 – ongoing • ADDA: Organic Agriculture, 2007 – 2012 • ADDA: More Trees, 2010 – ongoing • Helvetas: Extension and Training Support Project for Forestry and Agriculture 2003-2007 • Oxfam Belgium: Food Sovereignty, 2003 – 2008

NAFU has previously implemented the following projects:

• Danida: Small livestock component of ASPS, 2003-2008 • ADDA: Community Development project, 2006-ongoing

2

The staff from HBFU that will be involved is 1 provincial officer, graduated from the Agricultural University, trained at ADDA’s Training of Trainers course (ToT) and experienced in project supervision, 1 accountant with a university background and experienced in project accounting, and 19 field facilitators – all trained at the ADDA ToT. The staff from NAFU to be involved is 1 provincial officer graduated from the Agricultural University, trained in ToT and experienced in project supervision, 1 accountant with a university background within finance management and experienced in project accounting, as well as 18 field facilitators all trained at the ADDA ToT. Additional information regarding NAFU and HBFU can be found in Annex B 1 +2. Due to very strict Vietnamese rules and policies the annex does not contain information regarding financial status of the organization, and therefore the NAFU and HBFU not have signed annex B. However, NAFU and HBFU have signed a letter of intent (Annex K) that shows their commitment to the project.

A.3 The cooperative relationship and its prospects ADDA, NAFU and HBFU have been working together since 2006 when implementation of the CDEM project began. The mother organisation, Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU), is the partner in that project, and is implemented in 6 provinces including Hoa Binh and Nghe An. In the CDEM, VNFU is in charge and the PFUs are implementing all project activities. Therefore a partnership with NAFU and HBFU as main partner organisations is new, but good contact and working relationship has been present since 2006. ADDA has supported the PFUs in organising and carrying out the project activities in the CDEM project. For this project it has been a strategic choice to form partnership with PFU instead of VNFU. The partnership between ADDA and NAFU and HBFU will be strengthened. By having PFUs as the main partners, the partnership as well as the status and capabilities of the PFUs will be strengthened. Since the PFUs are located in the provinces they are closer to their members, i.e. the farmers and the FIGs, and therefore, obviously they should be involved even more in development activities. In the project cooperation the partners will contribute with their organisation and network as well as their personal expertise and skills; ADDA will contribute with technical methods and provide highly skilled agricultural knowledge as well as experience within project management. Furthermore ADDA will contribute with skills and know-how of participant oriented and pedagogic training methods. NAFU and HBFU will contribute with their organisation being available for the project and the appointed project staff. Finally, PFU will be in charge of all day-to-day implementation of the project activities. This project will definitely help raise the profiles of the project partners as civil society actors. The PFUs have members in all districts, all communes, and almost all villages in the entire country. One of the main objectives of PFU is to speak the voice of the farmers as well as bringing them agriculturally related information. For NAFU and HBFU this project will provide concrete methods to benefit farmers directly in their local areas. NAFU and HBFU will gain visibility by being present in the communities and also gain firsthand knowledge of vital necessities of the target group, which will be useful in other relations. Additionally NAFU and HBFU will show other development actors that they are capable of organizing and managing large development projects. For ADDA this project will allow the organization to enter into a special area of expertise, namely farmer cooperatives, and from this project ADDA will gain very useful skills for this and for future projects in Vietnam as well as in Cambodia and Tanzania.

B. PROJECT ANALYSIS

B.1 In what context is the project placed? 1 Background for the project

This project will focus on ethnic minorities, agricultural production and farmer cooperatives. The project builds on existing results from the Danida supported project “Community Development among Ethnic Minorities” (CDEM) Phase I and II beginning in 2006 and finishing in 2014. During this project, ADDA and its partner organization Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) have trained around 35,000 farmers in new and enhanced agricultural production methods and furthermore helped by establishing a total of 590 Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) (Jensen, 2012); i.e. small scale cooperatives where the farmers work together on producing and selling a product.

3

The methods used to establish the FIGs are implemented by training the farmers at a Farmer Field School (FFS). At the FFS the farmers are taught one day weekly during a whole cropping season. Here they will decide jointly on different methods of cultivating their fields, and by comparison to their normal techniques, they will discuss and agree on more suitable methods. The FFS is run by local facilitators trained in the specific agricultural methods as well as participatory learning styles prior to the FFS. The CDEM has been a huge success with many fruitful results, e.g. the participating farmers have, on average, increased their production and income from maize with 40 % (Jensen, 2012). The establishment of FIGs has also been successful and has helped increase the income of the members. Furthermore, some of the FIGs have shown to act as civil society organizations engaged in community development activities. Since these FIGs are already established and are actively functioning, it is natural and expedient to keep working with them in a new project. As the base for the target groups is already established, this project can focus on more poverty reduction and advocacy, and help build an even stronger civil society in the target area. It takes time to build up strong civil society organizations, and it makes very good sense for a future project to strengthen these fruitful examples. Furthermore, due to the communist approach to bureaucracy, building up successful partnerships in Vietnam takes a long time, as well as it takes considerable time to establish rapport and thrust between partners in order to create formal procedures for project implementation. These formalities are in place, and will be useful and beneficial to maintain and strengthen further. This project will, as mentioned, build on existing results from the CDEM project. In the CDEM, the farmers have received field school training for a whole cropping season either in maize or vegetables mainly for household consumption. The farmers then established the FIGs, because they appreciated working together. This is the origin of this present project, starting up where the CDEM has left the FIGs, and by this new project they are helped to make their communities prosper both economically and socially. This new project clearly distinct itself by having different objectives and activities than the CDEM project. The CDEM project focuses on participatory training methodologies with two purposes 1) enhancing production for the individual farmer and 2) preparing for participating in the group. The CDEM project has trained the individual farmers in enhanced agricultural techniques during a whole cropping season. During this training the farmers have learned and appreciated the group work, and they have been encouraged to establish FIGs. The CDEM project have achieved increased yields for the individual farmers as well as established around 500 FIGs that work together as small production and sale units. FIG group leaders have been trained in group formation, group dynamics and basic administration. However the FIGs have not yet been trained in the legal aspects of cooperatives, neither have there been such great focus on the FIGs themselves. By having established these FIGS, there is now a great potential for them to become real civil society organizations that can work to benefit their communities. This project focuses on supporting existing groups, cooperatives and other production units with a production selected by the members themselves, and these technical skills have not been provided before. Further to strengthen the FIGs own opportunities to take responsibility on behalf of their community, by organizing broader activities, e.g. community development activities for the benefit of the entire community, will be initiated. The Vietnamese context has indeed changed during the entire CDEM project period, which means that more opportunities are now possible. During the CDEM project, the focus has been on the methods for participatory inclusion, which was very new in the Vietnamese context of training at that time. The methods used by VNFU and ADDA have been so successful that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) have allocated state budgets for using the methods in their own programs. The political context is now also more open, and more focus and interest is put on the idea of establishing civil society organizations on very local level. Additionally can be mentioned the fact that the state is interested in and encouraging the establishment of more legal farmer cooperatives. Therefore this project can embrace some of these new opportunities that now have become possible within the Vietnamese context. 2 Population

As of July 2011 the total population in Vietnam is estimated to be 90,549,390 with a population growth rate at 1.077%. The Vietnamese people consist of almost 86 % ethnic Vietnamese (Kinh). The rest of the population consists of various groups of ethnic minorities distributed by 1.9 % Tay, 1.8 % Thai, 1.5 % Moung, 1.5 % Khmer, 1.2 % Mong, 1.1 % Nung and 5.3 % belonging to other ethnic groups (CIA, 2012).

4

3 Socio-economic situation

Vietnam has had a high economic growth in the previous years with an increase in GNI per capita to $1,020 in 2009, the country has now achieved middle-income status (UNDP, 2011b). In 2011 GDP per capita PPP was $2840.4 (UNDP, 2011b) with 13.1 % of the population living below the international poverty line at $1.25 PPP per day (UNDP, 2011a). Vietnam has also had great success with poverty reduction. Consumption poverty has decreased from 37.4 % to 14.5 % in the period 1998 – 2008 (UNDP, 2011b). From a global view in 2008 Vietnam had reached a position of 53 out of 135 developing countries (UNDP, no date) in the Human Poverty Index. However even though Vietnam has had a high economic lift, there is still a lot of room for improvement which is reflected in the Human Development Index, where Vietnam in 2011 ranked 128 out of 187 countries (UNDP, 2011a). Even though rural poverty has decreased from 44.9 % to 18.7 % in the period from 1998 – 2008, poverty is still an important issue and correlates very much with geography and ethnicity. Poverty and deprivation is highest in the rural areas of the Northern Midlands and the mountainous areas, and the Northern Vietnam is mainly inherent in ethnic minorities. Poverty rates were at 8.9 % for the Kihn majority compared to 50.3 % for the ethnic minorities in 2008 (UNDP, 2011b). Other issues present in North West Vietnam are a) a low literacy rate, in some provinces as much as 60 %, b) inadequate social and state services, c) people relying on subsistence agriculture as well as a depressed economy (UNDP, 2011b). 4 The project area

The project will be implemented in 2 provinces in Northern Vietnam; Nghe An and Hoa Binh. (See Annex I for map of the project area). Hoa Binh has an area of 4595.2 km

2 and holds a population of 793,500

inhabitants (GSO, 2012). The project will be implemented in the following 5 out of 10 districts; Da Bac, Ky Son, Cao, Phong, Lac Son and Lac Thuy, which represent 30 communes. The main ethnic groups in the province are Muong, Thai, Tay and Dao. Nghe An has an area of 16490.7 km

2 and holds a population of 2,917,400 inhabitants (GSO, 2012). The

project will be implemented in the following 3 out of 17 districts; Tan Ky, Nghia Dan and Quy Hop. The main ethnic groups in the province are Thai, Muong and Chut, representing 50 communes. With the GDP per capita (PPP) for Vietnam at $2840.4, the two selected provinces lie very low with corresponding values for Hoa Binh at $1384.1 and for Nghe An at $1692.2 (UNDP, 2011b). The Northern areas are mountainous and have suffered great environmental damage over more than the last 50 years. Historically, war, migration and development programs have had a negative impact on the environment. From 1943 to 1990 the forest coverage in Vietnam has been reduced from 57% to 26 %. In the mountainous areas the reduced forest coverage results in big problems with erosion. The agricultural production potential of the soils has been greatly reduced and the access to natural resources such as wood, non-timber forest products, fish and wild animals has also been greatly reduced (ADB, 2002). For the ethnic minorities living here, subsistence agriculture is the main income generating activity. Generally the ethnic minorities experience food production deficit for 3-6 months per year. This is caused by several factors including the use of slash-and-burn agriculture and a nomadic lifestyle that has contributed to soil erosion which in turn is negatively affected by an increased number of people in the areas limiting the land resources and the possibility for fallow land. Additionally, droughts and floods affect the areas severely and result in even lower soil fertility (ADB, 2002). 5 Development policies for the area

A number of policies that are relevant and present concerning the same topics dealt with by this project are mentioned here. National Target Program for New Rural Development Currently the Vietnamese State has 15 National Target Programs (NTP) of which NTP for New Rural Development (NRD) is one. The NTP NRD will be implemented during 2010- 2020 and includes 11 specific activities for development in the rural areas of Vietnam. These activities are:

• Planning to build a new countryside

• Developing socio-economic infrastructure

• Restructuring and developing the economy and increasing income

5

• Poverty reduction and social security

• Renewing and developing forms of effective production organization in rural areas

• Developing education and training in rural areas

• Developing medical services and providing health care for rural inhabitants

• Building a cultured life and developing information and communications in rural areas

• Clean water supply and environmental sanitation in rural areas

• Raising the quality of Party organizations, administrations and socio-political organizations in localities

• Maintaining social security and order in rural areas” (Decision No. 800/QD-TTg). The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is overall responsible for carrying out the NTP. The NTP is implemented in all rural areas in Vietnam affecting the two provinces in the current project, too. There is a very good coherence between the NTP and the current project, and ADDA and FU can be of assistance by showing good examples for the NTP to follow. A focus on rural areas is the main topic for both projects and ADDA/FU can advocate for including ethnic minorities in the NTP. National Program on Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Development Another current program with special importance for agriculture is the National Program on Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Development also called Tam Nong resolution 26. The Tam Nong has 7 specific goals:

• “Building up a comprehensive agriculture toward modernization, in accordance with strong development of rural industries and services

• Construction of the socio-economic infrastructure in connection with urban development.

• Improvement of spiritual and physical life of rural residents, particularly in stricken areas

• Reform and renovate the production types, services for better effectiveness in rural areas.

• Develop the research, the transfer and application of science and technology, training of human resources, to create a breakthrough for modernization of agriculture, and industrialization of rural areas.

• Renovate the mechanism, policies to mobilize the resources, for rapid development of rural economies, to improve the physical and spiritual life of the farmers

• Enhance the leadership of the Party, the governance of the state, upholding the strengths of the socio-political organizations, particularly the Farmer Association” (Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW).

The Farmer Union (FU) has a big role in implementing the activities in Tam Nong, and the specific role of FU is specified in decision No. 673/QD-TTg. The Tam Nong is implemented in all rural areas in Vietnam, affecting the two provinces in the current project, too. There is a good coherence on some of the objectives in Tam Nong with the ADDA/FU project. Tam Nong will focus on bigger agricultural enterprises, while this project will focus on the small-scale farmers, which will contribute to improvement of the overall agricultural sector in Vietnam. None of the objectives in the two projects are conflicting and, overall, they lead to the same goal. The ADDA/PFU project will contribute in achieving some of the goals of Tam Nong by increasing participation and ownership among the target group and by using a bottom-up approach including and involving the target group. The Danida ARD-SPS The Agriculture and Rural Development Sector Program Support (ARD-SPS) is implemented from 2007 to 2012 and focuses on the official structure of society. The program is currently being phased out, and has been implemented in 5 provinces differing from the current project. The program has put priority on focus on the aid to reduce poverty and improve the vital necessities of the rural population, with emphasis on the upland poor and vulnerable groups, e.g. ethnic minorities and women headed households. ADDA and PFU are aware of the objectives and goals of the ARD-SPS and will use relevant information from evaluations etc. in the project whenever possible.

Ethnic minorities

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The Socio-economic development programme for extremely problematic communes in ethnic minorities and mountainous areas is the second part of a large scale program called 135, implemented from 2006-2010 and targeted ethnic minorities in Vietnam. Specific objectives of the program were:

• To upgrade the agricultural production skills of the population to help reduce poverty • To ensure infrastructural development in the remote areas such as roads, irrigation systems, and

electricity etc. • To improve standards of life with improved hygiene, minimizing diseases, enhanced school

enrolment rates etc. • Capacity strengthening of the communes to improve service of rights and needs for the inhabitants

The Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs (CEMA) is the overall responsible government body in charge of the program (Decision on the approval of the Socio-economic development programme for extremely problematic communes in ethnic minorities and mountainous areas in the period 2006-2010, 30/8-2006). The program has worked with many issues similar to the current project, and the outcome from the current project will definitely contribute to the overall goals of the Vietnamese state, i.e. poverty reduction and development of the rural areas inhabited by ethnic minorities.

B.2 How has the project been prepared? The main idea for the project came from NAFU and HBFU, who contacted ADDA for help with strengthening the capacities of farmer cooperatives. ADDA is overall responsible for writing the project proposal as they are able to apply for funding through PATC. Due to a long and close working relationship between ADDA, VNFU, NAFU and HBFU, the partners are in continuous contact and dialog. NAFU and HBFU have been involved in creating the LFA for the project approved by both these places. Furthermore ADDA NAFU, and HBFU have been in regular contact about formulating the project proposal, so all organisations are fully aware of and agreeing on the content of the proposal. As ADDA has an office in Hanoi, contact between ADDA Denmark, ADDA Vietnam, NAFU, and HBFU has been relatively easy and very frequent. The local authorities at province, district, commune, and village level have all been very pleased with the CDEM project, its activities and results, and likewise all are looking forward to engage in new projects. Since this project is targeting a target group that has already been involved in a previous and still running ADDA/VNFU project, the relationship with the target group is very close. This means that during several monitoring and evaluation visits in the villages, the FIGs have come with several ideas and suggestions on how they can be strengthened and these are the topics incorporated into the present project proposal. All analysis for the current project proposal has been made with a background in existing results from the CDEM project. During several visits and talks with the FIGs, the FIG members themselves have expressed a strong request for further training activities. The FIG members have experienced the advantage of working together as a group, and they have many ideas on how their groups can be strengthened, especially as working as legal cooperatives under decree 151 or the Cooperative Law .Therefore the FIG members have asked VNFU and ADDA to assist them with this. The FIGs wishes to be able to act as civil society organizations, taking responsibility for community development activities, including organizing, fundraising, implementing and maintenance. The CDEM project has not focused on these areas, which are needed to equip the FIGs for these tasks. The target group for the new project has been chosen deliberately, even though it overlaps with the CDEM project. It is indeed sustainable for future activities, since this target group already has been established as civil society groups. If another target group was chosen, the project would need focus on the establishment of the FIGs and very little focus could be given for the future development. Taking the Vietnamese context in consideration, the time is now mature for an increased potential of very locally based civil society organizations.

B.3 Problem analysis The main problems this project is attempting to solve are the poverty and the poor organisation among ethnic minorities. Facts and causes concerning poverty are explained below.

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1 Ethnic minorities and poverty

In total there are 53 other ethnic groups than the Kinh majority. These are the groups referred to as the ethnic minorities. Each of these groups has their own specific culture, language and lifestyle. The majority, almost 75 %, of the ethnic minorities live in the mountainous areas in Northern Vietnam (PT, 2002). In the national census from 1999 the ethnic minorities were counted to 10,527,000 individuals (ADB, 2002). This means that the ethnic minority groups in Vietnam account for 14 % of the country’s population but also that they account for 29 % of the poor people in Vietnam (ADB, 2002; PT, 2002). Hence, poverty is a very important issue in Northern Vietnam as the ethnic minorities living there account for more than 25 % of the poor in the country (ADB, 2002). As restrictions to ethnic minority development and increased well-being is mentioned: “isolation and remoteness; reduced access to forest and other land; low access to credit and productive assets; limited access to quality social services; and limited participation in government structures and public life” (PT, 2002,p.3). Social problems also contributing to the poverty among the ethnic minorities are a) insecure land tenure and b) lack of knowledge about laws concerning land tenure as well as c) loss of land to wealthier immigrants in the areas. Poor knowledge of farming and sales skills combined with less access to irrigated land also contribute to the very hard conditions for the ethnic minorities (ADB, 2002). Other causes for poverty among ethnic minorities are the low educational level, the ignorance about legal rights, less access to remittances, less access to water sources, poor health, and geographical remote areas with poor infrastructure (ADB, 2002). Previous government programs targeting ethnic minorities have had some difficulties reaching the right target group. Evaluations of previous development programs targeted at ethnic minorities highlight that the needs of the target group have neither been properly investigated nor met (PT, 2002) and the focus on culture, lifestyle, indigenous knowledge and village organizational structures have been vague (ADB, 2002). Some direct examples of these problematic programs are described as a) very top-down approaches that do not create ownership of the projects, b) the use of Kihn (Vietnamese language) lose out a lot of the participants, especially the women, and c) lacking focus on the cultural life of the ethnic minorities as well as on focus on development of infrastructure to obtain human development (ADB, 2002). Recommendations for future development programs are to involve ethnic minorities in decision and policy making in their local areas. This recommendation is based on a strong urge from the ethnic minorities themselves that ask for training in project management to be able to facilitate development activities (PT, 2002). It seems that in Vietnam there is a common hesitance to work with ethnic minorities. Many International NGOs (INGOs) and Vietnamese authorities are concerned and engaged in the complex of problems concerning ethnic minorities, but very little true action is taken. It is commonly said that ethnic minorities are difficult to work with and are very slow to adapt to new programs and projects. With this project ADDA will show how ethnic minorities can be included in development projects and how they themselves can be empowered to carry out development activities. To help reduce rural poverty it is obvious to look at the agricultural production and at how this sector can help the poor to increase their income. 2 Agricultural production

Agriculture is a very important part of many people’s lives in Vietnam. About 71 % of Vietnam’s population live in the rural areas and about 62 % of Vietnam’s population are depending on agriculture for their livelihood (FAO, 2011). Challenges for the agricultural sector in Vietnam have been described by the World Bank, and are among others: “..a stagnant agricultural productivity, Slow rate of investment in agricultural diversification. Underdeveloped marketing channels, institutions and infrastructure. A widening gap between urban and rural areas and ethnic populations in particular Unsustainable and inequitable patterns of natural resource use, access and control and limited capacity of public institutions and misalignment of public expenditure serving rural sector interests “ (WB, 2007). Inefficient agricultural extension service is also a problem in Vietnam, and is characterized by two main problems; a) the extension service is short of staff and b) the methodologies are heavily top-down approaches. These factors combined contribute to a low and inefficient agricultural knowledge among the ethnic minorities.

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Additionally, poor organization among ethnic minorities is a vast problem connected to poverty as well as to development. 3 The civil society in Vietnam

The civil society is defined by CIVICUS as “ the arena between the family, state and the market, where people associate to advance common interests” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). This definition will also be used as a reference point to the civil society in this project. Until recently the political organization of Vietnam, combined with the tradition of a one party state, allowed only little space for growth of an independent civil society. The beginning of civil organization in Vietnam didn’t open up till in the early 1990´s. Before this time only mass organizations under the Fatherland Front under The Communist Party of Vietnam existed (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). Today the civil society in Vietnam consists of 4 broad categories of stakeholders; all defined as Civil Society Organizations (CSOs): 1) Mass organizations (MO), 2) Umbrella organizations and professional organizations, 3) Vietnamese NGOs (VNGOs) and 4) Community based organizations (CBOs) (CIVICUS et. al., 2006, UNDP 2006). Yet another type of stakeholder is the international NGOs (INGOs) which are also very important for the Vietnamese society, even if these are not considered as part of the civil society in Vietnam, since they do not have members in Vietnam (CIVICUS et. al., 2006) and cannot implement any programs without a Vietnamese partner organization. The role of the MOs is both to implement party policies and to help and to listen to the voice of the people. The MOs have been very important for the civil society since they have been the only organizations in contact with the rural population before the mid 1990´s (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). The CIVICUS study also shows that the civil society in Vietnam is very widespread as well as widely distributed in Vietnam, with 73 % of the population being members of an CSO and on average each person is a member of 2,33 CSOs (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, there is a concern that the civil society does not have any means to hold the authorities responsible for their actions (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). E.g.in Vietnam there has been no tradition for the civil society to complain in public and the Vietnamese population is unfamiliar with political actions seen in many other countries, when the people are discontent with their situation. Furthermore, several researchers argue that membership of the MOs might not be really voluntary (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). Additionally there are discussions about whether the MOs are really CSOs, the argument being that they are not voluntary, self-managed or financially self-reliant (VUFO, 2008) and dealing with politics. This is, among many other things, contributing to an unclear line between the state and the civil society that is very special in the Vietnamese context (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, regardless of the discussions about the MOs being CSOs or not, it is absolutely necessary for any international NGO to have an MO as a partner to get approval from the Vietnamese state to be able to implement programs or projects in Vietnam. Even though memberships of CSOs are very common in Vietnam, one group of people is very little represented in the CSOs, i.e. the ethnic minorities (Norlund 2003 in CIVICUS et. al. 2006). The recommendation made for INGOs is to facilitate the CSOs in remote areas for ethnic minorities (VUFO, 2008). The CIVICUS study highlighted this problem as: “One of the most difficult issues facing Vietnam today is to help ethnic minorities develop and achieve a higher level of civilization, which should lead to better living standards” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). This quote highlights the very essence of what this project will be striving to achieve. The CIVICUS finishes by analyzing the impact from the civil society on the Vietnamese society. The main functions measured are: “Influencing policy, holding the state and private sectors responsible, responding to social interests, empowering citizens and meetings social needs”. The score was lower than average and described as “a quite moderate impact” (CIVICUS et. al., 2006).

4 Working with cooperatives

Officially the year 2012 has been declared International Year of Cooperatives by UN. This year the UN will focus on how important cooperatives are for both poverty reduction and socio-economic development in developing countries (UN, 2012). The definition of cooperatives made by the International Co-operative Alliance will be the one referred to in this project: “A co-operative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise” (ICA, 2007). There are many advantages for farmers working in cooperatives. Some are mentioned as: “…when empowered by membership in a larger group, smallholder farmers and other producers can negotiate better terms in contracts, and lower prices for agricultural inputs like seeds, fertilizer .[..]. They can reduce risks and

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gain enough influence to secure land rights and better market opportunities” (FAO, 2012). This quotation perfectly highlights some of the positive experiences from the previous projects of ADDA and VNFU with establishing farmer cooperatives. Furthermore, the experience is that some FIGs are able to cooperate when producing and selling a product and have created good business potential for themselves. The fact is that the combination of the partnership’s great success with establishing Farmer Interest Groups among ethnic minorities and this being exactly the recommendation from CIVICUS, encourages and highlights the importance of future work with these groups. Guidance is important to maintain the success and even heighten the income level so the effects can rub-off in their local communities. It is very important to keep working with these groups in order to be able to show the good results to the Vietnamese authorities as an effective way of community development among ethnic minorities. Problems for the FIGs and other farmer groups are their lack of knowledge about the legal framework regarding cooperatives and on the possibility and the procedures for operating as legal cooperatives. The legal frameworks applicable for working with farmer cooperatives are briefly explained below. 5 Legal framework

A very central part of the project will be to inform the farmers of their opportunities for working as legal cooperatives. The availability of this kind of information has previously been very limited to the farmers. Actually, only a few of them are aware of how to obtain a certification, and likewise they are hardly aware of how and who they should contact for help. The opportunities this project will work with, is as follows: The Law on Cooperatives (No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003) states the framework in which cooperatives should operate. The law describes how cooperatives should function with among other things business registration dossier, congress of cooperative members, managing board as well as a control board. The certificates for business registration can be issued at the provincial- or district-level business registration office, when all requirements are met and when a business registration fee is paid. This kind of cooperation is suitable for bigger and well established groups as well as for small scale enterprises (Law on Cooperatives, No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003). For smaller groups the above mentioned requirements may very well be impossible to fulfill, and to meet the needs from these smaller groups, there is another alternative. The decree on the organization and operation of cooperative groups (No: 151/2007/ND-CP) also referred to as decree 151, provide an opportunity for smaller cooperatives to be established. The formal requirements are less than in the Law of Cooperatives and include a group contract. The Decree 151 is issued when the group contract is authenticated by a stamp from the Commune Peoples Committee (CPC) (Decree on the organization and operation of cooperative groups, No: 151/2007/ND-CP). It is possible and legal for farmer groups to function as small businesses without any of the above-mentioned certifications. They are then operating as informal cooperatives and can sell their products as they wish. However it is an advantage for any farmer group to get the certification that suits their abilities and to become legal cooperative entities. This will also justify the rights of the group to receive guidance and counseling from the CPC on any issues related to operating as a cooperative. When a co-operation starts to make money there might be internal and external disputes about legalities and distribution of funds etc. which all are subjects the CPC can advise about. It will definitely help any farmer group with a business potential to get legalized. Additionally, when the FIGs are certified as legal entities, they are also entitled to the opportunity to apply for very advantageous loans administrated by the FU. These loans will help the FIGs increase their production and sale of products, and help strengthen the economy in the local communities. 6 Gender

In general, Vietnamese women have more rights and opportunities than women in most other developing countries, and the Vietnamese women hold a relatively high share of leadership positions in CSOs. One issue where women are not equal to men is the right to inherit land. They are not very active in politics and are expected to be the primary caretaker of their children (CIVICUS et. al., 2006). However, building on top of the analysis made for the CDEM project, it is disclosed that gender roles in Vietnam are still uneven. Women have a very heavy work load because they are both in charge of the majority of agricultural tasks and responsible for most household duties. Women are the main responsible people in food production for the family and have many ways of generating income for the family. Men’s contribution varies, but is often related to specific agricultural tasks, occasional construction work and wage

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jobs. Even though the situation in Northern Vietnam in general has improved a lot, the women from some of the ethnic minority groups are almost systematically excluded from access to resources, essential services and decision-making. They are usually selling their products at the local market, but have to deliver the turnover to their husband at home. Other issues constraining women in agriculture are less access to capital, less access and control over resources, as well as less access to land. These constraints limit the possibilities for women’s agriculture as well as hinder them in engaging in new methods and techniques that require capital and secure access to land. The above-mentioned gender issues are obviously serious constraints to agricultural development. It seems that gender relations are changing slowly, and most people will admit that things have moved on since the time of their parents or grandparents. These days, for economic reasons, men must start helping their wives more, since one person can no longer carry the burden of supporting the family, and raise enough income to educate the children, pay for medical treatment, clothe the family, pay taxes, etc. Particularly the younger husbands are willing to take on at least some of the household tasks some of the time. The relationship between husband and wife is also changing, e.g. men listen more to women than they did in the past, and women can now own things themselves, cultivate their own land, and run their own businesses. However, changes are less apparent where income is concerned; it seems that men continue to have control over most income earned from family ventures, in particular when incomes are in the form of one-off payments as is the case for many seasonal cash crops.

B.4 Stakeholder analysis The stakeholders are divided into different categories, according to their role in the project. Partner organization: NAFU and HBFU are the partner organizations. Here the structure of the mass organization is described. Vietnamese Farmers Union (VNFU) Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) is a mass organization representing Vietnamese farmers. VNFU is under the Fatherland Front in Vietnam. In 2011 VNFU had almost 12 million households as members which roughly accounts for 60 million people. VNFU is organized in all provinces and districts and nearly all 10,000 communes in Vietnam. VNFU membership is voluntary and the membership fee is 6000 VND per year. The small membership fee allows everybody to become a member, and almost all rural residents are members of VNFU. The members are not only farmers, but also representatives from different rural economic sectors like agriculture, forestry, fishery, handicraft, small industry, processing and circulation of goods and services in the rural areas. At national level, the Vietnamese Farmer Union (VNFU) is acting as an advising body towards the Vietnamese Government in questions related to agricultural development and it has taken on an increasingly important role in implementing government poverty reduction programs. VNFU is also the organization given the mandate to encourage the formation of new democratic member-driven cooperatives. The purpose of VNFU is among other things to support the organisation and production development of farmers, defending the interest of farmers and present proposals to the government on behalf of the farmers, and furthermore to inform the farmers on government policies. VNFU has a structure reaching from the centre right down to the village level. It is organized in four levels: national level (VNFU), provincial farmer union (PFU), district farmer union (DFU) and commune farmer union (CFU). When not referring to a specific branch of the organization, the term Farmer Union (FU) will be used, and will cover all the local levels except the national level (VNFU). At the commune level it is further organized on a village and sub-village basis, with core groups consisting of 15-40 farmers supporting each other. At the village level the farmers themselves manage all the activities. All levels of FU beneath provincial level will be referred to as grassroots level Farmer Union. With the organization at community base FU has a good understanding of the farmers’ situation and needs, and a strong capacity to mobilize the community. The partner organizations in the current project are the Provincial Farmer Unions in Nghe An (NAFU) and Hoa Binh (HBFU). However, also DFU and CFU in these two provinces will be involved in implementing the project activities. ADDA has had a good relationship with VNFU for many years, as VNFU has been ADDA’s main partner organization since 2006. Both VNFU and ADDA are aware of issues that could be improved in the VNFU structure. For VNFU it is very new to focus on member inclusion and therefore there is a need for learning bottom-up and member

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centered approaches. Since VNFU is part of the communist party, the structure is not easy to change, but hopefully this project can contribute with some suggestions in this direction. Organizational and administrative strengths of the partners NAFU and HBFU are among others, a large and widespread network covering all provinces in Vietnam where both staff and members are very locally placed. The structure of the VNFU organization is transparent, and management procedures are very similar in the various provinces. Because the provincial levels of VNFU is chosen, the partners are more close to the target group. Due to the cooperation with NAFU and HBFU, the process of implementation is relative fast, due to the large size and ballast of the partners. Organizational and administrative weaknesses of the partners NAFU and HBFU are also that the organization is very large with many specific procedures, and due to this bureaucracy, things can take long time. The structure of VNFU is very top-down, and not member inclusive. These are some of the challenges that this project will try to change, by showing VNFU the advantages of including its members on many different decision levels. This top-down approach is very characteristic for the old Mass Organizations (MO) of Vietnam. The MOs also have a new role to fill in the changing Vietnamese society. One challenge is that the MOs are expected to act more and more as CSOs. This is also a great opportunity for this project, since during the CDEM, capacity building of the partner has mainly been on managing of large partnership projects. Now there is an opportunity to work more with the structures of the organization and there will e.g. be a focus on how to enhance member involvement in the entire organization. By working with this issue, the members of VNFU will experience more local participation and more influence on VNFU decisions Authorities: The most important authority in this project is the CPC. Other authorities are also stakeholders, but are not crucial for the implementation of the project. The CPC is the authority able to approve the project activities. Furthermore this stakeholder will also be target for advocacy work. CPC – Commune People Committee CPC is a sublevel of the party structure, and is present in all communes in Vietnam. Each commune consists of a number of towns and villages. CPC is the local authority at commune, town and village level. Furthermore CPC is the executive power at village level and CPC is an important stakeholder on several project outputs. Service providers: These stakeholders will be providing training to the FU staff and FIGs in their special area of expertise. This is also an opportunity for both ADDA and PFU to experience the capacity of these stakeholders and maybe to enter into cooperation on future projects. Vietnamese Lawyers Association (VLA) VLA was established in 1955, and is one of the biggest and the most long-standing social organizations in Vietnam. VLA has 33,000 members throughout the country. There are 4 levels in VLA: central, provincial, district and commune level. There are 13 specialized units directly under the VLA and each unit has their own function and tasks. VLA is a professional-social organization. VLA only receives a small funding from the government which is to be used for general administration of the head office in Hanoi, but no salaries and no activities are based on government support. VLA is the partner organization in the ADDA/VLA project supported by DANIDA; Legal aid to the rural population phase II, 2011-2014. In current project VLA will be used as service provider, being responsible for training of FU staff in legal aspects of Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law. VCA - Vietnam Cooperative Alliance Vietnam Cooperative Alliance is representing the cooperative movement in Vietnam. Among other things the entity is contributing in formulating the legal policies and norms on cooperatives and also mobilizing and supporting the establishment and development of cooperatives. Furthermore the entity is representing and protecting the legal rights of cooperatives and laborers in cooperatives as well as members of the VCA. The role of VCA is also to strengthen the international relations and cooperation with other countries (VCA, 2012). VCA’s role in the current project will mainly be as a service provider regarding legalities of cooperatives. Furthermore, VCA will participate in the final stakeholder workshop as guest speakers as well as participants. Extension service

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The extension service is a part of DARD and is represented in every district of Vietnam. The extension service will be used as a service provider in the project, and be in charge of the training activities regarding enhanced agricultural production. It is also hoped that the extension service will report back the good results regarding training of farmer groups to DARD and MARD. The target group: The FIGs are the main target group but also important is reaching a broader category of people; i.e. the acquaintances of the FIGs. FIGs – Farmer Interest Groups After participation in an FFS, the farmers have learned to appreciate working together as a group. Many participants in an FFS therefore want to continue these group activities and establish a FIG afterwards. The FIG chooses an area of production, in order to have something to work on jointly. The products of the FIGs are not meant to overtake the normal production of the farmers but are seen as a supplement to their personal production. The products of the FIGs vary a lot from group to group. Some will work on maize or vegetables depending on what they have gained knowledge in the FFS but many choose a different product for commercialization, e.g. production of pork, breeding piglets, growing peanuts, and poultry breeding. Friends/neighbors/family of the FIG members The project is mainly targeting the FIGs and the FIG members; however the project is also anticipated to have a positive spill-off effect on friends, family and neighbors of the FIG members. In the 80 villages where FIGs will implement a community development project (CDP) most of the villagers will benefit directly from the project. Besides this, it is also expected that each trained farmer will inform others of the outcome of the training. In the CDEM project phase I, it was discovered that each trained farmer has passed on the newly gained knowledge to, on average, 7 other people. Others: The following stakeholders will not play a direct role in implementation of any project activities. They will all be invites for a stakeholder workshop in the end of the project period, when the good results from working with ethnic minorities and farmer interest groups will be shared. It is anticipated that some of these stakeholders will see the relevance and durability of the project results and hopefully this will encourage them to do similar work. MARD – Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MARD was established in 1995. MARD is as a governmental agency performing management functions in the areas of agriculture, forestry, salt production, fishery, irrigation/water services, and rural development nationwide. It is also the ministry’s role to deliver public service in accordance with legal documents. Several departments related to crop production, animal health, plant protection, legislation etc. function under MARD. In relation to the project implementation MARD will not be directly involved. MARD will be invited to relevant seminars and workshops when their expertise and view is needed. Furthermore, as MARD is shifting their development strategy from a supply-driven to a demand-driven approach this project has an important role in presenting working methods and results for inspiration for the new development strategy (MARD, 2012). Prior contact between FU, ADDA and MARD has been positive. DARD - Department of Agriculture and Rural Development - DARD is a department under MARD with 64 regional departments spread out in all 8 regions of Vietnam. IPSARD - Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development The institute was established in 2006 as a response to the changing development strategy of MARD. The role of IPSARD is to improve quality of research and information activities. This is done by communication with various agencies and leaders domestically as well as the international organizations. IPSARD should preferably function as a think-tank for MARD, providing the analysis and results supporting strategy and policy formulation process in agriculture and rural development (IPSARD, 2012). CEMA - Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs

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CEMA is a government body under MARD and has representative agencies at district level in areas with an ethnic minority population of 5000 or above. CEMA is concerned with legislation related to ethnic minorities and other functions also include inspection of programs and policies on socio-economic development in areas inhabited by ethnic minorities (CEMA, 2012). On provincial level CEMA is divided in two parts; Provincial Ethnic Minorities Committee and Provincial Committee on Religion, who will both be invited for the stakeholder workshop. (The Vietnam) Fatherland Front - The association is an umbrella for political and socio-political organizations and all mass organizations. Youth Union - The union is a mass organization and is a member of the Fatherland Front. Women’s Union - The union is a mass organization with approximately 13 million members across Vietnam. The organizational structure of the union is divided into four levels: central, provincial, district and commune level. The organization is working on women’s legitimate rights and gender equality (VWU, 2012).

C. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

C.1 Target group and participants The main target group is 220 Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) with approximately 25 members each, equalling about 5,500 persons. These 220 FIGs are distributed in 2 provinces in Northern Vietnam; Nghe An and Hoa Binh. Furthermore, previous ADDA projects have shown great spill-over effect of knowledge to the families, neighbors and friends of the target group, and it is estimated that approximately 27,000 people will have increased their knowledge on agricultural production, group formation or community development after the project period. Since the project is using a target group that has already been involved in a previous ADDA/VNFU project, the participating FIGs will be selected according to how long they have been working and how well they are operating. Since the CDEM project is still running and establishing new FIGs, only FIGs that are at least 1 year old will be considered for this project, as it is very important to let them learn how to work as a group before providing them with more training. Around half of the FIGs will be 5 years old and the other half will be 1.5 years old. This means that approx. 50 % of the FIGs will have been established during phase one of CDEM. The other 110 FIGs will come from the current CDEM project, and therefore the new project includes only a small part of the target group involved in the CDEM project; less than 20 %. By using both mature FIGs as well as more recently established FIGs, the project will benefit from this synergy and the newer FIGs will be able to use the older FIGs as inspiratory/mentors during the project. Furthermore, HBFU and NAFU will be able to investigate the most fruitful timing for starting to work more intensively with already established farmer groups. Considerations for choosing the target group:

• The FIGs are already established and functioning as organizations in the civil society

• The economic inputs of the project will be low due to working with already established CSOs

• Sustainability of the groups after the project

• The FIGs represent the community with both male and female members

• Good prospect for advocacy due to prior organizational training

• Further strengthening of the FIGs will give them opportunities for more influence on a political level

which can result in better living standards in the local communities

The partner organizations HBFU and NAFU are very legitimate for development actors of the target group. HBFU and NAFU have branches at all levels, right from the province, commune to village level. Furthermore the FU facilitators in charge on the daily contact with the FIGs will live nearby and are very much aware of the local conditions for the FIGs.

C.2 The project’s objectives and success criteria (indicators) The logics of the project can be viewed in the Logical Framework Approach matrix in Annex G.

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The Development objective for the project is: The development objective is not expected to be achieved within the project period, but the effort of the project must contribute significantly to this development. The following indicators will serve as success criteria for the development objective:

• By 2015, members of Farmer Interest Groups among Ethnic minorities in 8 districts within 2 provinces are actively improving their personal income

• By 2015, at least 35 % of the ethnic minorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh spend a larger proportion of their income on school, health care and non-food items compared to project initialization

• By 2015, inhabitants in 200 villages in Nghe An district and 300 villages in Hoa Binh district have gained acquaintance with advantages of group organisation and enhanced production techniques

Immediate objective 1 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• By 2015, 60 % of the FIGs report on increased production and sale of their products

• By 2015, 50 % of the FIG members have increased their personal income with at least 35 % compared to project initialization

• By 2015, 50 % of the FIGs have increased their group income from income generating activities with at least 35 % compared to project initialization

The above mentioned indicators will be measured by means of a baseline study conducted as the first project activity and compared to findings from an impact assessment that will be the last project activity. The same questions and geographical areas will be used for the baseline study and impact assessment. Immediate objective 2 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• 80 FIGs are able to make detailed plans for community development in cooperation with fellow villagers

• 80 FIGs assisted by grassroots level FU have approached their Commune Peoples Committee (CPC) with a plan for a small-scale community development project

Immediate objective 3 is stated as: The following indicators are meant to be used for designing the baseline study, and to be used for measuring the impact after the project period:

• 60 of the 80 FIGs that received management training have approached CPC with plans for a new small-scale community development project

By 2020, ethnic minorities in the rural areas in Northern Vietnam have increased their livelihood due to better organization in the local communities

By 2015, 50 % of the 220 Farmer Interest Groups in Nghe An and Hoa Binh have increased their income by 35 %

By 2015, FU and the 220 FIGs are increasingly influencing local and national decision making regarding rural development and ethnic minorities

By 2015, 80 of the 220 Farmer Interest Groups in Nghe An and Hoa Binh are better organised and are able to facilitate community development activities

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• By 2015, FU and CPC have advocated for community development in rural areas inhabited by ethnic minorities to relevant authorities

Means of verification for the project outputs can be viewed in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex G.

C.3 Outputs and activities The scheme below presents the outputs and the activities connected to the three immediate objectives described above. A further overview can be seen in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex G and the time perspective can be seen in Annex L – the project implementation plan.

Regarding objectives

Expected outputs Activities

In pursuit of objective 1

1.1. By 2015, Farmer Union (FU) staff in Nghe An and Hoa Binh have supported 220 FIGs in implementing enhanced production techniques

1.1.1 Conduct baseline study of farmers socio-economic factors 1.1.2 Conduct baseline study of FIGs and their production 1.1.3 Market surveys for the selected products is made 1.1.4 Arrange training of FIG members in enhanced production techniques 1.1.5 Follow-up visits by the extension service

1.2 By 2015, 220 FIGs are able to analyse the market and adapt their production according to market demand as well as selling produce to local markets and wholesale traders

1.2.1 Training for the facilitators and the FIGs in conducting market analysis and business plans 1.2.2 Follow-up seminar for FIGs organised by FU on issues related to their new business plan 1.2.3 Follow-up seminar for FIGs organised by FU on issues related to their market analysis 1.2.4 FU facilitators assists the groups to initiate the market analysis and business planning 1.2.5 FU staff assists the FIGs in marketing of their products

1.3 By 2015, 220 FIGs are aware of the possibilities of getting loans for production from either FU managed funding or any other local credit agencies

1.3.1 Training for facilitators on farmer credit schemes 1.3.2 Distribution of information to the FIGs by FU facilitators about opportunities and limitations of the loans available for groups 1.3.3 Assisting selected FIGs in getting loans 1.3.4 Assistance for FIGs with approved loans on management of the loan

In pursuit of objective 2

2.1 By 2015, staff from the Hoa Binh Farmer Union (HBFU) and Nghe An Farmer Union (NAFU) have been trained in strategic methods for active member involvement

2.1.1 Identification and planning of training by ADDA and HBFU and NAFU 2.1.2 Training for grassroots level FU staff in member involvement (incl. communication styles,

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participatory rural appraisals, leadership styles, conflict resolution) 2.1.3 Workshop with FIG members on ideas for future communication between grassroots level FU and its members 2.1.4 Write guideline for strategic methods for active member involvement

2.2 By 2015, 80 of the 220 FIGs have been supported by grassroots level FU with organisational management skills

2.2.1 Selection of 80 FIGs to pursue a Community Development Project (CDP) and planning of training activities 2.2.2 Training of FU facilitators in organizational management 2.2.3 Training for the FIGs in organisational management (e.g. fundraising, economy, project planning, group dynamics, action plans, M&E, conflict resolution) 2.2.4 Supervision on action plans by FU facilitators

2.3 By 2015, 80 villages have improved their local community with a development project

2.3.1 FU staff assess action plans 2.3.2 FU staff communicate projects to CPC 2.3.3 FU staff obtain approval from CPC 2.3.4 FU staff supervise project implementation 2.3.5 FIGs and FU facilitators mobilise local resources for project implementation 2.3.6 FIGs and FU facilitators design a system for user payment for project maintenance 2.3.7 FIGs and FU facilitators design an operation and maintenance plan 2.3.8 1 CDP is facilitated and implemented by each of the 80 FIGs

In pursuit of objective 3

3.1 By 2015, 220 FIGs have strengthened their knowledge about the Cooperative Law and the Decree 151 on organisation and operation of groups

3.1.1 Training of FU staff by VCA and VLA in assisting FIGs with legal rights of co-operations among farmers 3.1.2 Training for facilitators in opportunities and limitations of operation within Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law 3.1.3 Training for FIGs in opportunities and limitations of operation within Decree 151 and the Cooperative Law

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3.2 By 2015, the 220 FIGs operate as legal entities within either the cooperative law or the degree 151

3.2.1 FU meetings with FIGs 3.2.2 Contact and follow-up with relevant authority 3.2.3 Follow-up meetings with the FIGs by FU facilitators

3.3 By 2015, 100 FIGs have approached the CPC with suggestions on future community development activities

3.3.1 Meetings between the FIGs and FU in each commune 3.3.2 Meetings between the CPC and FU

3.4 By 2015, local authorities in Nghe An and Hoa Binh are aware of the positive results of the FIG activities

3.4.1 Invite CPC to visit CDPs 3.4.2 Invite the press to publish the results of the training and/or from completed CDPs

3.5 By 2015, the results of the community development work conducted by the FIGs have been communicated out to a wider range of Vietnamese organizations.

3.5.1 Planning of workshop 3.5.2 Conduct a stakeholder workshop with Vietnamese Mass Organizations (Fatherland Front, Women’s Union, VNFU, Youth Union etc.) and State institutions (MARD, DARD, IPSARD, CEMA, Provincial Ethnic Minorities Committee, Provincial Committee on Religion etc.) and VCA to discuss opportunities for farmers within the decree 151 with focus on ethnic minorities 3.5.3 Follow-up meeting on possible joint initiatives 3.5.4 Make a documentary film on the effects of farmer groups and launch it in National and local television program 3.5.5 Document successful stories of farmer groups for replication

C.4 Strategy 1 Methods

The first project outputs are to increase the income of the FIGs. In the still running CDEM project, each FIG has chosen a product to produce and sell but very few of the FIGs have received agricultural training in the production of the specific product, because they often choose a different product than the one they learnt about during the initial Farmer Field Schools (FFS). The FFS product is often a staple crop like maize or vegetables, which is mainly used for household consumption. The products of the FIGs are supplementing the member’s personal production. The FIGs will receive training in enhancement and optimization of the product which is being produced, and this will and help them increase their production and income.. When initializing this project, 220 FIGs will be selected to participate, complying with the requirements made in the description of the target group. Additionally, only FIGs producing a product not included in the FFS curriculum will be chosen. Furthermore, a limit of 10 different products will be chosen, since otherwise it will be too much to administrate. Before the FIGs can receive training in enhanced agricultural production techniques in their specific product, a market analysis of each of the products will be made. Should some of the products, against the expectations, have a very poor business potential, the product will be replaced with another product with more fruitful business potential, and some other FIGs will be chosen to participate. The FIGs will be trained in the new techniques during a 5 days intensive course when the extension service is the service provider.

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Additionally to this, the FIGs will be trained in conducting market analysis and in making business plans, so they can adapt their production to current market needs continually. The FIGs have different ways to divide the earnings from their production; some have a shared pool of earnings and some have the earnings clearly divided. The type of division of the money chosen by the FIG will also be supported by this project. When the FIGs have been trained in enhanced production techniques, they will also be assisted with obtaining a legal certificate either under the Cooperative Law or Decree 151. This will strengthen the FIGs in their business´ as well as it legitimates support from various stakeholders, e.g. the CPC can provide legal advice to the farmer cooperatives and FU can assist the FIGs in obtaining very advantageous loans for production and marketing of their products. These loans can help the FIGs with investments in inputs, equipment, market stalls etc. An important factor regarding the certifications and loans is that the involved FIGs will get assistance and training in the subjects relevant for them. Furthermore the FIGs will receive organizational management training in fundraising, economy, project planning, group dynamics, M&E and conflict resolution. In order to increase the organisation of the FIGs special attention will be given to training in organizational skills. As a part of the organizational management training, the FIGs will receive training in designing action plans. To put the training into action, the training will conclude in community development, as the FIGs with their newly required skills, will be able to facilitate a community development project (CDP). For this part of the project a total of 80 FIGs will be selected to participate. This choice is made due to the costs regarding the activities. The 80 FIGs that have shown great interest in community development as well as personal energy to handle both their bushiness and activities for community development will be chosen to participate. If possible 40 FIGs from each of the two provinces will be chosen. The training will include how to make a detailed plan for a CDP for each FIG. Furthermore, a small number of FIGs have already successfully conducted a community development project, with the support from ADDA’s own funds, and these FIGs will not be chosen for this part of the project. After the training sessions a curriculum for organizational management as well as a monitoring and evaluation guideline will be made in co-operation with the FIG members, and will be available for FU in their future work with farmer groups. In general, the methods used for the project activities are either the FU staff will receive training in a topic in which they subsequently will conduct training sessions for the FIGs, or that an external service provider will provide the training directly to the FIGs. After each training session there will be a follow-up session for the FIGs with the FU facilitators. Since not all FIG members can participate in the trainings, there is time for them to disseminate their newly gained knowledge to the rest of the FIGs and start implementing it. After some time the facilitator will visit the entire FIG making sure that they are on the right track. Furthermore if the FIGs require additional assistance they can contact the DFU for free advice. This will also be possible after the project period has finished. 2 Gender

The FIGs are comprised of an equal number of male and female participants, as this was one of the requirements made when the FIG members originally received training during an FFS. The equal distribution of gender is also present in the composition of the FIGs and will be the basis for all trainings for FIG members. The training sessions will be available for 4 persons from each FIG, and the project management will request the FIGs to send 2 male and 2 female participants whenever possible. Often the FIGs have a higher number of female members, but the number of female group leaders is not reaching 50 %. This is because in a Vietnamese context it is very new for women to take charge of these positions. The project management is very aware of this, and as such it is being worked on. The project will prioritize women in the same way as men, and encourage their participation whenever possible. All trainings and training venues will be suitable for both male and female participants. 3 Connection to the Change Triangle

In the methods section above, the main connection between most of the activities are explained. This section will elaborate on how these activities are connected to the framework of the Change Triangle. Capacity building

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NAFU and HBFU will receive capacity building in several ways during the project. PFU staff will be the target for several training activities and both FU district level, commune level and branch leader level will participate in the training. These trainings will strengthen the capacity of the PFU to further work with farmer groups. The FU staff will receive training in communication styles, participatory rural appraisals, leadership styles and conflict resolution. The FU will also receive training and hands on experience in active member involvement. All these trainings will, first of all, be beneficial for PFU in one of its prime tasks; i.e. communicating with its members. The training in active member involvement is essential, since it is the goal of the project to make sure the FIGs are organised better in order to have their voice heard. And in order to do so, their member organisation needs to be so as well. A strategic guide for bottom-up member involvement will be made after training of the FU staff and after they have tested the new techniques, and it will be available for the entire VNFU. Furthermore the FU staff will receive training in legal rights of cooperatives. In the future this will strengthen their work with farmer cooperatives and prepare FU to assist even more FIGs and other farmer groups to obtain certificates of legal cooperatives. The above-mentioned capacity building will also make FU staff capable of providing the FIGs with trainings and competent assistance during the project. Strategic services The training for the FIGs in enhanced agricultural production techniques is a strategic service chosen for the project. Agriculture is the main income activity for the majority of the poor farmers of ethnic origin, and because the main part of the FIGs have chosen a new product for their group activities, not previously trained, increased knowledge on production techniques have been demanded by the FIGs. There is a great potential for improvement in the agricultural sector, and providing the FIGs with this knowledge will create better life conditions for the target group. By improving the knowledge and skills of the FIGs, they get a better opportunity for higher yields of their products and hence a better potential for increasing their income. The CDP is also a strategic service, helping the FIGs transfer the knowledge gained regarding organizational management on a real project, where they can actually help their own communities. The CDPs are meant to be of benefit for the whole community where the FIGs live, and whole communities are anticipated to participate in the planning and implementation of the CDPs. Before attending the training, the FIGs will have to discuss the need(s) of the village at a village meeting and by consensus decide on an issue to work with. As the target group, mainly the FIGs is in direct contact with the project management, it is also a goal of the project to inspire the friends, families and neighbours of the FIGs to engage in community development activities. The CDP approach is chosen as many of the FIGs have wished to work with community development, too. As they work well together in their groups, they realize that they have abilities to do good things for their surroundings. The need is big in the remote, isolated areas where the FIGs live, and include e.g. communal water tanks, wells, dams to protect flooded village roads and communal small-scale irrigation systems. Each CDP is expected to benefit approximately 500 people. By making the FIGs use their knowledge on a concrete community development project, they learn how to plan, implement and evaluate a project. Furthermore they will learn how to cooperate not only with each other, but with their entire village, since everyone will contribute with labour and mostly only building materials will be bought. In addition to this, the FIGs are required to set up, first and foremost, a method to collect communal funds for the CDP. Each CDP is allocated 1.200 $ from the project budget, but it is expected that a CDP will cost the at least 2000 $. A user payment system will be established for maintenance of the CDP as well as the villagers will have to contribute with the rest of the funds. This method is used for the villagers and the FIGs members to have ownership of the CDP and to make sure that maintenance will be present after the construction phase. Advocacy The two areas of strategic services; agricultural training and community development projects, are the cores of the advocacy work in the project. After providing agricultural training to the FIGs and helping them operate as legal cooperatives, the project will have shown a very cost efficient way to work with ethnic minorities and in a sustainable way assisting them in reducing poverty for themselves. It is the goal of the project to encourage the Vietnamese authorities to strengthen their work with ethnic minorities and show them a fruitful and sustainable method for doing so. During the project period there will be continuous contact and dialog with the authorities. A stakeholder workshop will be hosted at the end of the project period when ministry bodies and mass organisations will be invited. The results from training the

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FIGs in agricultural techniques and assisting them with getting legal certificates will be presented. Furthermore, it will be discussed how the participating stakeholders themselves can work with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. A joint note sheet for further initiatives will be written at a follow-up meeting on these joint efforts. The results from the activities regarding the CDPs will be used for advocating towards local and national authorities, showing them that the FIGs are very useful for serving as community development actors, and with very few funds they can implement great positive changes in and with their communities. This approach is very much in line with the strategy of the government program previously described bringing development to the rural areas and letting people take an active part themselves. After providing the FIGs with organizational management skills and after completing their CDPs, the FIGs will have gained experience and sufficient self-confidence to address their local authorities. They will know which procedures to follow. Different strategies will be used to get the attention of the authorities. On completing the CDPs the CPC will be invited to the opening ceremony of each of the 80 FIGs.The FIGs, FU staff and village heads will present the results of their work. The local press will also be invited for documenting and publishing the effects of some of the CDPs. After completing a CDP the FIGs will evaluate the project with their villages, and together make a new project proposal for a community development activity. With this proposal they will address their local authorities, the CPC, assisted by FU staff, and suggest that funds are allocated for their proposal as well as inform the CPC of their capabilities to implement such projects. Furthermore a video film will be produced about how the FIGs work as civil society organizations as a business potential and as community development actors. The film will be distributed to relevant players working with ethnic minorities and poverty reduction, including the participants at the stakeholder workshop. Additionally the film will be used for information work in Denmark. 4 Strengthening civil society

The FIGs, as the main target group, are already now small civil society organisations (CSOs). After completing this project, the FIGs will be able to function more independently as CSOs. Firstly the FIGs will receive training in enhanced agricultural production techniques helping them raise their production and income. Furthermore they will be certified as legal cooperatives. It is planned that by the end of the project all the 220 FIGs will be operating under the decree 151 and it is estimated that 15% of these groups will have the size and skills to be certified under the Law of Cooperation. It will be the aim of ADDA and PFU to assist the FIGs in obtaining the certification most suitable for the individual groups. When able to operate as legal cooperatives, the FIGs will also gain status in their local villages. They may be an inspiration to others on how to start up group activities as well as provide agricultural knowledge to those interested. Secondly the FIGs will receive training in organisational management contributing to their internal strengthening. Furthermore the FIGs will take part in a CDP where they will be in charge of coordination with their village regarding planning and implementing the CDP. From this activity the FIGs will gain direct experience in carrying out community development activities as well as be in contact with the authorities (FU and CPC). This will enable the FIGs to participate further in community development activities as well as provide confidence in dialog with local authorities. By strengthening the FIGs consisting of both male and female members, the project will also help strengthen the role of women in society. The female FIG members will be viewed as positive role models for other women to take active part in formation of civil society. Finally,the project will strengthen the abilities of NAFU and HBFU to work on behalf of the farmers and thereby strengthening civil society. By using a bottom-up approach where NAFU and HBFU are very much present in the local communities, their knowledge of the local contexts will expand. Combined with training for NAFU and HBFU staff in member involvement methods, there is a great potential for raising the voice of the farmers. 5 Stakeholders

In the previous DANIDA supported project: Community Development among Ethnic Minorities Phase I and II ADDA has partnered with the national level of Farmer Union (VNFU). After establishing a good working relationship with VNFU, it is now possible to partner up with more local levels of Farmer Union, namely Provincial Farmer Union (PFU), District Farmer Union (DFU), Commune Farmer Union (CFU) and local Farmer Union branch leaders in the communities. In the current project, ADDA and VNFU will take the

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partnership to a more local level of organisation, which will increase the benefits for the target group, since the Farmer Union staff at province, district and commune levels is much closer to the villages than the national staff can be. Support is definitely present from all levels of FU. VNFU have been the main partner of ADDA and there has been a good relationship between the partners. CPC is a very important stakeholder in regards of the community development that will be initialised by the CDPs and carried out by the FIGs. In order to create a good working relationship with CPC, NAFU and HBFU will be in close contact to ensure that the project activities are in line with the goals of CPC. CPC will also be a target for advocacy both from the FU and from the FIGs. Here it is important to make statements heard and at the same time maintain a good relationship. This will also be coordinated by NAFU, HBFU and the ADDA staff if any problems occur. VLA, VCA and the extension service are all stakeholders that will be used during implementation of activities. These stakeholders will be paid when used as service providers. 6 Special inputs

The project will hire an expatriate project coordinator for a total of 7 months fulltime complying to approximately 1,5 day per week during the entire project. As primary partners NAFU and HBFU are new to ADDA. Previously ADDA has partnered with the nationally based organisation VNFU. Both PFUs have been involved in ADDA’s previous projects, but as the partners have not been the primary partner before, it is necessary for the expatriate project coordinator to be in very close contact with NAFU and HBFU during the project. This contact will involve guidance on administration and budgeting, coordination on implementing the activities and any other project related management issues. Furthermore the coordinator will be in charge of all communication and report writing to PATC and ADDA. Additionally there will be specific activity tasks that the expatriate project coordinator will be in charge of and conduct with the PFU staff, e.g. the baseline studies, assistance to PFU in writing a strategic manual for active member involvement, facilitate a stakeholder workshop and the impact assessment etc. The project will hire an expatriate project counselor for a total of 2 months fulltime. The counselor is already stationed in Hanoi at the ADDA office and is the overall responsible of ADDA’s other activities in Vietnam. The tasks will be divided as follows, a) a total of 1 month is used for participation in the 2 monitoring seminars when all implementing parts will discuss the progress and further work of the project, b) a total of 1 month will be used whenever needed for coordinating with ADDA’s other project activities and counseling on daily operation issues. Job descriptions can be viewed in Annex J.

C.5 Phase-out and sustainability Phase-out The local partner organisation will be the overall responsible for carrying out the project activities, and staff from the partner organization will also be the target group for some of the training. NAFU and HBFU will not benefit economically from this project and will therefore not be economically dependent, since they have their own funds both during and after the project. The partners will gain strengthened organizational capacity which will be of benefit to them long after the project period. The FIGs will gain a lot of training and will benefit from this long after the project has finished. The local partner organisations NAFU and HBFU will be available for the FIGs, since they are members of FU, and will be able to keep guiding the FIGs when questions arise after the project period. The FIGs have learned a constructive way to approach local authorities and will be able to use these channels after the project period has come to an end. Sustainability The positive results coming from this project are:

• 220 FIGs are increasing their income due to enhanced agricultural techniques and better organisation.

• 80 FIGs are operating as civil society organisations and encouraging others to do the same

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• NAFU and HBFU are able to facilitate cooperative approvals and loan approvals for farmer groups. • NAFU and HBFU are able to facilitate large-scale development projects with the INGOs. • Local and national Vietnamese authorities are aware of the positive results of working with ethnic

minorities and farmer groups. • Local and national Vietnamese authorities are aware of the benefits of collaborating with ethnic

minority groups for local community development projects. Sustainability of the project will be centred on three aspects found important for current project: Organisational: FU staff will receive training during the project both to help raise the organizational capacity and also to raise the member involvement in the organisation. The training will ensure FU improve their capability of facilitating large development projects alone or with counterparts, as well as being an MO closer to its members. 80 FIGs will receive organizational management as well, and will be able to function as legal cooperatives after the project. If they should encounter problems, FU staff will always be available to help them solve these. Economically: The 220 FIGs trained during the project will benefit from enhanced production techniques adapted to the local conditions. This will ensure that an increased income will benefit the FIGs during and after the project. The fact that the FIGs will be certified as legal entities and their increased contact with FU staff will contribute to a fruitful economic perspective. The trainings provide sustainable knowledge for the FIGs and this will be part of their working habits long after the project has ended. Socially and culturally: During the project, democratic processes will be employed internally in the FIGs and on village level. When implementing the CDPs, the FIGs will need to involve the entire village to choose a project and design a joint plan of operation. These processes will create ballast for future democratic processes even after the project ends. The partners in the current project are very much aware of the advantages and the challenges of working with ethnic minorities. The goal is to help reduce poverty and strengthen opportunities for ethnic minorities in Northern Vietnam. Furthermore it is important to help the minority groups maintain their identity and the integrity of their own culture. Whenever training or communication are targeted the ethnic minorities, this will be done in their own language. This is to involve the target groups better and also to state the importance of maintaining culture. The project design implements a bottom-up approach, and the training in agricultural techniques will be chosen by of the FIGs themselves, since they are the ones originally to have chosen the production focus. This project will not determine a certain topic of agriculture to be taught on but ask the FIGs to pronounce the knowledge they need. Systematisation and dissemination of experiences will be done systematically during the project period. At the end of the project a final report will be made documenting positive and negative experiences of the project. Furthermore an impact assessment will be made in the end, and these findings will be available for the final report. The final report will be available to ADDA, FU and other interested stakeholders. The experiences will definitely be used by ADDA in any future project in Vietnam and the findings will be used by FU on several levels when deciding on working with ethnic minorities and farmer groups. A workshop will be conducted as one of the final activities, when several Vietnamese stakeholders will be invited for the purpose of sharing the results of the project. It is hoped that by seeing the positive results, it will engage them to work with the same issues. The ADDA expatriate project coordinator will be the overall responsible for systematising the experiences. In practise this will be executed in cooperation with the partner organisation. ADDAs previous experiences show that political decisions in VNFU can be affected by positive project results. It is the fruitful outputs of the project that make sure that the methods will be used in the future. Previous successful cooperation between ADDA and VNFU has shown great results which have concluded

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in VNFU allocating budget funds for expanding the use of the methods. It is the responsibility of VNFU to strengthen farmer/producer groups through, among other initiatives, decree 151 and the Cooperative Law. By having this project, implemented in 2 out of 64 of the Vietnamese provinces, VNFU will get results from a tested model on how to do this, and this will open the prospects that this model or parts of the model will be implemented by VNFU in the remaining provinces. The partners in the project will make sure that the results from the model are made public. Furthermore meetings with national level of VNFU as well as MARD will be held during the project period, where the model set-up and results can be discussed. It is also the tendency that more funds are available from the Vietnamese state, and therefore is very likely that the state will be able to fund the spreading of a model. Therefore is also important for VNFU to be a part of this process.

C.6 Assumptions and risks To reach the project results successfully there are a few assumptions made in the project design. These can be viewed in the logical framework approach matrix in Annex I. No major risks have been identified. Below, the main assumptions are analysed. Below the assumptions for immediate objective 1 as well as for the means of coping with these are stated:

• A market for the products is continuously present

o When dealing with market prices, there is always some uncertainty regarding market demands. Before any training for the FIGs, a comprehensive market analysis of the products will be made to make sure there is a market for the products of the FIGs.

• The FIGs will continue to work as a group o Since the FIG members express great satisfaction with working as groups, no problems are

expected to occur with groups wanting to leave the project or stop being a group. However, when working with human beings there is always a risk of personal issues hindering voluntary work in a group/cooperative. If any problems should occur, the project has very skilled facilitators knowing the group and its members personally and they will be able to help the group.. Furthermore the facilitators will be training skills in conflict resolutions, and this may become convenient if personal disputes should happen in any of the groups.

• No major pests/diseases will affect the products of the FIGs o When dealing with natural resources there is always a risk of some unpredictability. As a way of

risk reduction, the agricultural products of the FIGs will not be the same. This means that if e.g. a major pest will affect the entire maize production, only a minor number of the FIGs will be affected by it.

Below the assumptions for immediate objective 2 as well as the t means of coping with these are stated: • CPC are open towards ideas and suggestions from FU and the FIGs towards community development

o The CPC is the first authority to be convinced of the advantages of involving the local population and distributing funds for community development in rural areas. Both ADDA and PFU will be in close contact and frequent dialog with CPC to ensure the CPC are well informed and pleased with the project activities and outputs.

Below the assumptions for immediate objective 3 as well as for the means of coping with these are stated: • The Vietnamese authorities are willing to have dialog on proposals for development

o A fruitful contact to the Vietnamese authorities is important for the FIGs and FU to influence the legislation. As an INGO, ADDA has the advantage of being an “outsider” and can, for this reason, help facilitate the process. As an MO, FU also has a certain status and is therefore able to help the FIGs in their advocacy.

• Formal procedures are functioning as planned

o For all of the 220 FIGs to be certified under either the Cooperative Law or the Decree 151 there is only a few formal procedures and little paperwork that needs to be done. FU staff has been

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allocated sufficient time during the project to facilitate and assist this process. Should all the certifications, contrary to expectations, not be finished during the project period, FU staff will facilitate the rest after the project period.

• The Vietnamese authorities are willing to actively participate in the debate and take action

o By inviting Vietnamese authorities and legal stakeholders to the workshop regarding ethnic minorities, farmer groups and community development, it is anticipated that the positive results will encourage these stakeholders to start working with the same issues. However, whether this will suit the organizations cannot be predicted beforehand. To minimize this risk,,a joint note sheet on further actions on the subjects as well as a follow-up meeting when progress will be discussed, will be made. Hopefully, these initiatives will also encourage and remind the stakeholders about the issues.

D. PROJECT ORGANISATION AND FOLLOW-UP

D.1 Division of roles in project implementation 1 Project management

NAFU, HBFU, and ADDA will organise and implement the project jointly. NAFU and HBFU are the implementing organs, and ADDA will be providing assistance to NAFU and HBFU. ADDA applies for the financial support for the project funds from PATC, and ADDA is responsible for the project results and the outcome in accordance with the project document, and with respect for PATC´s requirements in terms of policy, reliability and efficiency. NAFU and HBFU are responsible for implementing the project efficiently for the benefit of the rural population in Northern Vietnam. NAFU and HBFU are further responsible to the Vietnamese government and will ensure the project activities are in accordance with Vietnamese policies and laws.

ADDA will employ a Vietnamese project manager (full time) and a Vietnamese project assistant (part time), to be the responsible person for the daily management of the project. ADDA Denmark is employing an expatriate project coordinator (approx.1,5 day per week) to be responsible for the overall direction and methodology of the project, as well as an expatriate project counsellor consultant (2 months) to be responsible for the coordination with ADDA’s other projects in Vietnam. The Vietnamese project manager, with the support from the ADDA expatriate project coordinator, who is responsible for the daily management. Detailed job descriptions for the ADDA staff can be read in Annex J. An Executive Managing Unit (EMU) will be established for the overall project management. The EMU will consist of the directors in NAFU and HBFU, who each will appoint and establish a management unit consisting of permanent PFU staff. The 2 PFU project directors will, with the support from the ADDA project manager, be responsible for the daily management. The project co-ordination must be in line and supervised by the PFU from the Excecutive Managing Unit (EMU) of the project and the project coordinator in Denmark. The directors in NAFU and HBFU take overall responsibilities regarding project intervention towards the Vietnamese Authorities and take the directing role of project implementation.

The EMU will be supported by the ADDA project manager, ADDA expatriate project counselor, ADDA expatriate project coordinator and ADDA administrative staff for efficient implementation. The objective and the tasks of the project EMU are: • Day to day operations of the project under the leadership and guidance of the assigned PFU leaders for

all project activities on the basis of the project document • All major decisions on implementation are taken by the EMU with reference to the project document. • Assignment of PFU staff to be working in the project. • Co-ordinate the project activities with all relevant national institutions • Ensure project activities are implemented according to Vietnamese regulations, policies and desires. • Project EMU will meet every month, but may call for extraordinary meetings if required.

Provincial Project Management Units (PPMUs) will be established in both provinces and they will also involve the total 8 districts of the project area for local implementation. The Chairman of the PFU will be head

25

of the PPMU and all other supporting staff to be involved in the project activities will be assigned by the head of PPMU. The FU facilitators will report to the PPMUs. Please, see Annex H for the organizational chart. 2 Facilitators

The project will hire 37 FU facilitators to be in charge of most of the contact with the FIGs. The facilitators are FU- members having shown excellent farming skills, and in the CDEM project have been trained as FFS trainers at a Training of Trainers (ToT) course. After conducting an FFS, they have also helped the FIGs in starting up their group activities. The facilitators are living closely to the FIGs, and can easily reach the FIGs whenever needed. The fact that the facilitators have a good relationship to the FIGs and know them very well, strengthens their ability to help the FIGs prosper, since the facilitators already know the production strategy, and strengths and weaknesses of the FIGs. In Hoa Binh there are 19 facilitators, of which 8 are women. The facilitators are of Mường and Kinh origin. In Nghe An there are 18 facilitators, of which 8 are women. The facilitators belong to the following ethnic

groups; Thổ, Kinh and Thái.

Each FIG will be connected to 1 facilitator. ADDA encourages an equal number of male and female facilitators because this also motivates and encourages, e.g. when the female members of the FIGs in their work, meet a woman in an agricultural leader position. The female facilitators in the CDEM project have shown to be great role models for the female farmers.

D.2 Monitoring and evaluation in project implementation 1 Monitoring

Monitoring will take place throughout the implementation on a regular basis. Monitoring will be done regularly by FU and reported to ADDA on a quarterly basis as per agreed requirements. The reporting will be based on the monitoring system consisting of: • The project logical framework • The annual workplan • The quarterly workplan • The project budget • The allocated funds Yearly, twice during the project period, a monitoring seminar will be organized with the EMU, the ADDA expatriate project counselor, the ADDA expatriate project coordinator, the ADDA project manager, the ADDA project secretary, the ADDA assistants as well as selected FU representatives at grassroots’ level. The purpose of the monitoring seminars is to seek the causes and explanations as to why activities succeed or fail to succeed, and to produce information that helps to make future activities more relevant and effective. The monitoring system is designed as a tool providing information on inputs, activities, outputs and objectives, and enables managers in ADDA and FU to see if the achievements are in accordance with the intention. This means that achievements will be compared to the plans given. Planning and monitoring are closely linked, and therefore need to be considered together. The monitoring system is based on regular and planned collection of data and results. The planning of data collecting is coordinated according to the LFA. The monitoring will consist of:

• Monthly progress report made by NAFU and HBFU • Quarterly monitoring reports made by NAFU and HBFU • Annual progress reports made by ADDA’s expatriate project coordinator and EMU

Monitoring the input will be done quarterly by comparing the funds received and available, to the needed amount for carrying out the planned activities. Indicators of the inputs are to which degree the planned amount is received and spend, and will be reported by the accounting system.

Monitoring the activities employs the progress monitoring. The project implementation plan (Annex L) will be divided into annual work-plans, and then again into quarterly work-plans. Planned activities are linked with quantifiable indicators, a source of information and a target for the quarter. These are monitored by actual achievements for the quarter. Plans will be developed by the project staff in collaboration with the project

26

management, and distributed to the relevant implementers. The project staff in the provinces will be responsible for monthly reporting on the progress to the EMU. The PFU will be responsible for collecting the information from the Means of Verification in the LFA to use for continuous monitoring. This will also be a part of the monthly progress report.

At a quarterly basis the FU project director reports on progress. Based on the quarterly monitoring a need for readjusting the activities for the remaining quarters of the year might appear. This must be reported in the quarterly progress report. The annual progress report will be submitted to ADDA for approval.

ADDA will be responsible for the output monitoring of which the main purpose is to improve the quality of the activities through increasing knowledge about the effects. Output monitoring is carried out on an annual basis, and provides the basis for planning the following year. It also aims at documenting progress at output level for the use of project management in the annual report. Further to monitoring the effect, a methodology quality assurance should be carried out whenever needed.

The objective of impact monitoring is to analyze whether the objectives of the activities of the project have been met. If this is not the case, the strategy must be reviewed. Impact and baseline studies must be based on the same indicators and relate to the same geographical area. Responsible for carrying out the baseline study and the impact assessment is both the ADDA expatriate project coordinator and the PFU. 2 Revision of the project document

The project document is signed by all stakeholders, and presented to the various ministries and departments. Therefore the project document may not be changed, but only adjusted by addenda to the project document. This does not mean that no changes to the project set-up and project design may be carried out. It is extremely important to reflect on the substance and to act on sudden changes in the context and to include in the gained experience. Therefore the project design, as presented in the project LFA, must be considered as an organic paper. The project design will constantly be scrutinized and it is expected that adjustments to the project design will be proposed. A revised LFA can be part of the annual monitoring report, and must be approved by the VNFU and the ADDA board.

As described in the monitoring procedures two output monitoring seminars resulting in possible changes of different parts of the project design, will take place. At these seminars the outputs are monitored, and the plans, the targets etc. are reconsidered. During the output monitoring, the following steps will take place as standard monitoring/ planning procedures:

• Comparing achievements to the annual targets and the overall target. • Assessment of achievements. • Ensuring the final results can still be reached. • A possible redefinition or reformulation of the outputs, depending on the actual context. • Reconsideration of needs, approaches, strategies and thus the relevance of the output. • Reconsideration of the related indicators • Reconsideration of the planned activities for the following year

This will obviously influence the project design, thus the LFA must be adjusted whenever needed. All changes of the project design will be formulated as addenda to the project document. 3 Evaluation

An evaluation will be carried out by the end of the project. No external evaluations are planned for, as they will take place only on request from the PATC or the Vietnamese government. The evaluation will be organized by ADDA and PFU and will be a total revision of the results of the project as well as of the partnership. The impact assessment will be conducted and compared to the findings of the baseline study. An evaluation seminar with all the implementing partners will also be established. An evaluation report will be made on the conclusions from both the impact assessment and the evaluation seminar.

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E. INFORMATION WORK

E.1 Has project-related information work in Denmark been planned? The information work in Denmark will take its point of departure in the ethnic minorities being the target groups of the project. The subject and the direction of the information work will be in line with the campaign: The World’s Best News, “Verdens Bedste Nyheder”, stating that development work actually does make a difference and that it works. Furthermore it is hoped that through the information work, ADDA will get more Danish members. A film about the FIGs in Vietnam will be produced as a project activity. This film will be used for advocacy in Vietnam and for the information work in Denmark. The film will be used on the ADDA webpage and furthermore will be used for presentation of ADDA’s work in Vietnam, when ADDA members in Denmark conduct small lectures for the Danish public. Additionally, a range of photographs documenting the training as well as the life of the target group will be produced and displayed at 3 public places in Denmark, e.g. in libraries. The target group for the information work in Denmark will be the members of ADDA and other people using the ADDA website and newsletter, and the public visiting the ADDA display. The information work in Denmark will be prepared and carried out by the Danish project coordinator.

a

REFERENCES

ADB (Asian Development Bank) 2002. Indigenous Peoples/Ethnic Minorities and Poverty Reduction in Vietnam. ADB, Manila, Philippines 2002 CEMA, 2012. Committee for Ethnicity and Mountain Affairs. Available online: (http://www.cema.gov.vn/index.php?newlang=english) cited on 1/3 2012 CIA, 2012. World Fact Book. Available online: (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/vm.html). Cited on 31/1-2012. CIVICUS, VIDS, SNV, UNDP. 2006. The Emerging Civil Society: An Initial Assessment of Civil Society in Vietnam (Hanoi, March) Decision No. 673/QD-TTg May 2011, On the Vietnam Farmers’ Union directly implement and coordinate the implementation of some cultural, social and economic development programs/projects for rural area, period 2011 – 2020 Decision No. 800/QD-TTg, Approving the National Target Program on Building a New Countryside during 2010-2020. Hanoi, 4/6 2010. Decision on the approval of the Socio-economic Development Programme for Extremely Difficult Communes in Ethnic Minorities and Mountainous Areas in the Period 2006-2010, 30/8-2006 Decree on the Organization and Operation of Cooperative Groups, No: 151/2007/ND-CP d-maps.com. 2012. Outline Map of Vietnamese Provinces. Available online: (http://d-maps.com/carte.php?lib=vietnam_map&num_car=14667&lang=en) cited on 8/3-2012. FAO, 2012. Media Centre: Cooperatives Central to Hunger Fight. Available online: (http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/120774/icode/) cited on 31/1-2012. FAO, 2011. Country briefs, Vietnam. Available online: (http://www.fao.org/countries/55528/en/vnm/) cited on 5/3-2012. GSO (General Statistics Office of Vietnam), 2012. Available online: (http://www.gso.gov.vn/default_en.aspx?tabid=491) cited on 17/2-2012. ICA, 2007. International Co-operative Alliance. Available online: (http://www.ica.coop/coop/principles.html) cited on 31/1-2012. IPSARD, 2012. Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development. Available online: (http://ipsard.gov.vn/news/DefaultE.asp) cited on 31/1-2012. Jensen, B. 2012. Personal contact and Annual Monitoring Reports. ADDA representative in Hanoi. Law on Cooperatives, No. 18/2003/QH11 of November 26, 2003 MARD, 2012. Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Available online: (www.agroviet.gov.vn/en) cited on 1/3 2012. PT (Poverty Taskforce). 2002. Localizing MDGs for Poverty Reduction in Viet Nam: Promoting Ethnic Minority Development, UNDP, June 2002 Resolution No. 26-NQ/TW August 5, 2008 of the 7th Conference of the Party Central Committee (Xth) on agriculture, farmers and rural areas

b

UN, 2012. International Year of Cooperatives 2012. Available online: (http://social.un.org/coopsyear/about-iyc.html) cited on 31/1-2012. UNDP, 2011a. Viet Nam Country Profile: Human Development Indicators. Available online: (http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/VNM.html) cited on 1/2 -2012. UNDP, 2011b. Social Services for Human Development - National Human Development Reports for Vietnam. UNDP, Hanoi UNDP, 2006. Deepening Democracy and Increase Popular Participation in Viet Nam (Hanoi, June) UNDP, no date. Vietnam at a glance – a human development overview. Available online: (http://www.undp.org.vn/undp/about-viet-nam/viet-nam-at-a-glance/?&languageId=1) cited on 29/2 2012. VCA, 2012. Vietnam Cooperative Alliance. Available online: (http://www.vca.org.vn/Default.aspx?tabid=192) cited on 1/3 2012. VUFO, 2008. Forms of Engagement between State Agencies & Civil Society Organizations in Vietnam - Study Report December 2008 VWU, 2012. Vietnams Women’s Union. Available online: (http://hoilhpn.org.vn/newsdetail.asp?CatId=66&NewsId=819&lang=EN) cited on 1/3 2012 WB (World Bank). 2007. Rural development & agriculture in Vietnam. Available online: (http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/EASTASIAPACIFICEXT/EXTEAPREGTOPRURDEV/0,,contentMDK:20534368~menuPK:3127821~pagePK:34004173~piPK:34003707~theSitePK:573964,00.html) cited on 9/3 2012

c

BUDGET SUMMARY

The budget is made in Danish Kroner, the exchange rates used for this calculation is respectively 1 Kr = 3696 Vietnamese Dong and 1 Kr = 0.18 US $.

Budget summary Currency Indicate the total cost (i.e. including contributions from the Project Fund as well as other sources)

4.994.507 DKK

Of this, the Project Fund is to contribute

4.994.507

DKK Of this, indicate the amount to be contributed by other sources of finance, including self-funding by the Danish organisation or its local partner, if any

0

Indicate total cost in local currency

18.459.808.752 Dong

Indicate exchange rate applied

1 Kr= 3696 Dong

If relevant: Indicate the extent of project-specific consultancy assistance (spreadsheet 3 of the budget format), see also ‘Guide to budget preparation’

351.953

DKK

Main budget items: Financing plan Full amount Of this, from

Project Fund Of this, from other

sources

1. Activities 2.919.192 2.919.192 0 2. Investments 50.400 50.400 0 3. Expatriate staff 266.818 266.818 0 4. Local staff 428.960 428.960 0 5. Local administration 224.280 224.280 0 6. Project monitoring 165.795 165.795 0 7. Evaluation 121.274 121.274 0 8. Information in Denmark (max 2% of 1-7) 83.032 83.032 0 9. Budget margin (min 6% and max 10% of 1-8) 340.814 340.814 0 10. Project expenses in total (1-9) 4.600.564 4.600.564 0 11. Auditing in Denmark 67.200 67.200 0 12. Subtotal (10 + 11) 4.667.764 4.667.764 0 13. Administration in Denmark (max 7% of

12) 326.743 326.743 0

14. Total 4.994.507 4.994.507 0

d

ANNEXES OBLIGATORY ANNEXES The following annexes must be submitted both in print by post and electronically by email:

A. Basic information about the Danish applicant organisation B. Fact sheet about the local organisation C. Budget format

The following annexes about the Danish organisation must be submitted in print by post:

D. The organisation’s statutes E. The latest annual report F. The latest audited annual accounts

SUPPLEMENTARY ANNEXES (max 30 pages):

Annex no. Annex title G Logical Framework Approach matrix

H Organisational management chart

I Map of the project area

J Job descriptions

K Letter of Intent from HBFU and NAFU

L Project implementation plan

M Overview of Community Development Projects (CDPs)