Laos builds open knowledge base on conservation agriculture

The 'Open Resource on Conservation Agriculture for Trade and Development' (ORCATAD) project aims to "build a comprehensive and open knowledge base on best practices in conservation agriculture for certain cash crops" in Laos ... that can "encourage the production of eco-friendly agro-products targeted towards niche markets in Europe."

The idea is to enhance the export capabilities of Lao farmers in eco-friendly cash crops while also promoting best practices in conservation agriculture and making use of modern Information and Communication Technologies.

The project draws on expertise of the National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute (NAFRI) - whose information and ICT activities seem to be fast developing. The ORCATAD site includes an interesting presentation on 'Creating knowledge projects: how information services contributes to the Lao Agriculture Knowledge and Information System.'