LURAS (Laos Upland Rural Advisory Service)
The LURAS project builds on previous SDC experience supporting agricultural extension services in Lao PDR spanning in total over 22 years. Over this time, agriculture in the uplands of Lao PDR has changed radically from largely subsistence to far more commercially oriented production. In the process, agrochemicals have become widely used, forest permanently cleared, water supplies altered, and biodiversity threatened. Accordingly, the focus has shifted from food production alone to sustainable resource management. One example is coffee production under natural forest; another is a campaign against excessive herbicide use in maize production. The project has been successful in facilitating farmer groups, allowing them to share agricultural information (ranging from pest control to market prices) and to have a voice up to national level. Recognising the likely major impacts of climate change in the Lao uplands, in its final years of operation LURAS has introduced climate resilient extension development (CRED).

How to apply SLM in food system interventions?