WFP Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific - 2016 SPRs RBB 2016 SPRs by project type | Page 137

Standard Project Report 2016
under 6 months of age are exclusively breastfed.
Lao PDR ranks 52 out of 145 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index 2015, and the adult literacy rate is 77.4
percent for men and 68.7 percent for women, reflecting widespread gender inequalities.
Response of the Government and Strategic Coordination
The country programme (CP) 2012-2016 is aligned with the 7th and 8th National Socio-economic Development
Plans, with various sectoral strategies, as well as with the United Nations Development Assistance Framework
(UNDAF) 2012-2016. The new United Nations Partnership Framework for 2017-2021 was finalised in 2016, and
represents the collective response of the United Nations system to national development priorities. 2016 saw the
implementation of the Vientiane Declaration on Partnerships for Effective Development (2016-2025), confirming a
joint commitment to support the Government's efforts to graduate from least developed country status.
There is a strong commitment from the Government to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) by 2030.
The National Nutrition Strategy to 2025 and Plan of Action 2016-2020 use a multi-sectoral and convergence
approach, bringing together health, agriculture and education to achieve SDG2—end hunger, achieve food security
and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture. This approach includes 22 priority interventions across
the three sectors, of which WFP contributes to 19 national priorities. One of the primary focuses is the reduction of
stunting rate to 25 percent by 2025.
WFP has supported South-South cooperation between the Government and the Brazil Centre of Excellence against
Hunger in order to provide technical expertise and promote a multi-dimensional approach to zero hunger, which
links school meals, nutrition, and smallholder agriculture.
Under the overall leadership of the Ministry of Planning and Investment and led by an independent team of experts,
the National Strategic Review of Food Security and Nutrition identified gaps and opportunities to achieve SDG2.
The review involved consultations with stakeholders at the national level and in 17 provinces, including the
Government, United Nations agencies, financial institutions, civil society, the private sector, academia and
communities. The recommendations and process of the strategic review have been critical in formulating the
Country Strategic Plan (CSP) 2017-2021.
WFP works in partnership with United Nations agencies, including the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Population Fund
(UNFPA) and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), as well as non-governmental organizations
such as Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Agrisud, Association for Aid and Relief Japan, Plan
International, Catholic Relief Services and Population Services International. Partnerships have also been
developed with the National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute, Big Brother Mouse and Lao Women's
Union.
WFP takes part in the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) movement, and together with the Government, the European
Union and other partners, launched the SUN Business Network. WFP co-chairs, with FAO, the UNDAF working
group for food and nutrition security, and plays an active role in other sectoral groups.
Summary of WFP Operational Objectives
The primary objective of WFP activities in Lao PDR was to reduce undernutrition and its impacts on individual
well-being and national development, through a life-cycle approach. WFP supported the most vulnerable and rural
populations, in particular young children and pregnant and lactating women (PLW). WFP targeted the most remote
and the least food-secure areas of the country.
Country programme: CP 200242 (2012-2016), approved budget USD 102 million, focused on: 1) preventing and
reducing wasting; 2) reducing stunting; and 3) addressing micronutrient deficiencies. Activities included increasing
school enrolment levels, and building long-term food and nutrition security through rural development activities.
An integrated approach was adopted to address these issues across the five components of the operation, with
interventions at central and local levels: 1) emergency preparedness and response (EPR); 2) mother and child
health and nutrition (MCHN); 3) school meals; 4) livelihood initiatives for nutrition (LIN); and 5) food fortification and
marketing (FFM).
Lao People's Democratic Republic (LA)
4
Country Programme - 200242