This document summarizes key discussions from Day 2 of an inception and planning workshop for an AIT-EU-SRI LMB project. It outlines the following key points: 1) The project will involve 10 provinces across 4 countries - Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Training of trainers will involve 1 participant per province, including farmers, district trainers, and researchers. 2) Definitions of terms like CFPAR and ToT were discussed. The differences between CFPAR and FPAR were also outlined. 3) The project's objectives, purpose, location, expected results, structure, activities, and timeframe were reviewed. Implementation will involve national IPM programs supported by FAO.

1. Reflection on Key Points from
Day 2
Inception and Planning Workshop
AIT-EU-SRI LMB Project
11 April 2013

2. # provinces: Cambodia (3), Laos PDR (3), Thailand
(2), and Vietnam (2); 3 districts/province
ToT participants – 1/province including farmers
(24), district trainers (3), and researchers who will
carry out CFPAR
Definition of terms – e.g., CFPAR, ToT, Mini-ToT
How is CFPAR different from the FPAR that will be
done in FFS setting?
Objectives, purpose, geographic location,
expected results, organizational structure,
major activities and timeframe

3. Programme development and administrative support by
PMU (hosted by FAO-IPM office) and FAO Country
Representations, in support of LMUs established at PDA
Offices
Implementation by network of existing Natl IPM
Programmes supported by the FAO Asia IPM/PRR
Programme – Cambodia, Laos PDR and Vietnam
FAO Regional tasks and responsibilities
Project activities for 3 Annual (wet season) cycles
Implications for cropping/farming systems approach
FAO IPM’s project coordination and
governance structure plan at country level
in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam

4. Feeding decisions:
• Revising the content of FFS and its research
• Community deliberations e.g. field days
• Policy deliberations national, regional, global
FFS curriculum to address/modules on CC
awareness raising and recording specific local
weather, biotic stresses (e.g. FFS Diary to collect
on climate)
Interface between training related baseline
surveys/ M&E and IDS’ MEI
IDS’ MEI work plan for the project

5. Circulate copies of workplans - underscore themes
for policy - based on what each country needs
Marginalizing food security???
Leveraging government investments in farmer
education (raised in relation to country
presentations)
O-A Policy-related work plan for the project

6. Location-specific issues (e.g., nematodes in Chiang
Mai) that will impact results of field studies
Increasing competition from other countries and
the need to make rice production beneficial
Building on Thailand’s SRI experiences and
information available - farmers trained under other
projects
Capacity and confidence building in selected
provinces (Surin and Pitsanulok) to carry out FPAR
and participatory farmer training in FFS context
Thailand

7. Beyond numbers of farmers in the continuum -
from partial to full SRI utilization – is how far
they can be more productive
Related to MEI, definition of number of farmers
and area covered under SRI
Field studies/experiments addressing technical
and policy-related SRI-issues, e.g., weed mgt in
rainfed areas
Cambodia

8. Building confidence in and acceptance of a
positive perspective of SRI
SRI beyond borders – exchange of experience
between countries (“A Little Help from My
Friends” like Phu)
Lao PDR

9. Where there’s a will, there’s a way - problems
solved - low temperatures, golden snail, weeds
Challenge: changing mind set of other government
departments
Evidence needed on difference between partial and
full SRI utilization
Different countries at different stages in the “SRI
journey” - e.g., Lao DPR at acceptance stage while
Vietnam is at institutionalization stage
Vietnam

10. Translating scientific and technical concepts into
practical exercises for farmer training – carbon
content, soil water holding capacity, soil
biodiversity, visual soil assessment,
High level exchange visit to build political and policy
support for SRI (SRI-based cropping systems??)
Data on key abiotic factors (temperature and
rainfall) to be collected in FFS
From rice to SRI-based cropping/farming systems
approach
And more …

11. CAMBODIA
Pursat
Kampong Chhnang
Kampong Speu
LAO PDR
Sayabouly
Luang Prabang
Sekong
THAILAND
Pitsanulok
Surin
THAILAND
Lang Son
Ha Tinh