Monthly Archives: December 2014

Development between Production and Protection: International Summer School Addresses Land Policy Issues

Speech Volker12-13 November 2014

PHNOM PENH - The 6th International Summer School, Comprehensive Land Policy – Fundamental for Sustainable Urban and Rural Development was held by the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction (MLMUPC), jointly organized with the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA), and the Technical University Munich (TUM), in partnership with GIZ.

The summer school reached an unprecedented scale, attracting about 360 participants with representatives from Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Germany, Lao PDR, Nepal, the Philippines, Serbia, Thailand and Vietnam. Aiming for balanced perspectives, speakers included local and international NGOs, Cambodian and German academe, government representatives of Cambodia and the region, and bilateral and multilateral development organisations.

After a well-received welcome speech by the German Ambassador to Cambodia, H.E. Baron Marschall von Bieberstein on the land reform, senior minister H.E. Im Chhun Lim, opened the summer school, pointing out, among many other aspects, the comprehensive character of the national land policy.

The summer school was structured into different themes:

  • Relevance of Land Policy in the Global and International Context: Addressed inputs on sustainable development goals (SDGs), Global Land Indicator Initiative, Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure (VGGT) and on land policy efforts in other countries in the region. While land policy has to address the needs of all, marginalized or vulnerable groups require explicit and targeted consideration.
  • Land Policy and Marginalized Groups: Discussed housing rights of the urban poor, indigenous land rights as well as gender-sensitive land policy, with inputs of representatives from UN Women, the Cambodia Indigenous Youth Association (CIYA), the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR) and government.
  • Cross-Cutting Topics of Land Policy: Presented concepts of ecosystem services and impacts of economic corridor development. Different perspectives on the Cambodian White Paper on Land Policy and its implementation complemented the themes addressed.

H.E. Dr. Holger Magel summarized key messages from the summer school in his closing speech, including an acknowledgment of the comprehensiveness of the White Paper on Land Policy, its quality in an international context and the political signals of commitment to its objectives. Likewise, he emphasized the need to focus on implementation and its review and evaluation, on participation, information, capacity development and cooperation – all key means for achieving an implementation that lives up to the spirit of the policy: a sustainable rural-urban development between production and protection.

For further information, all presentations is available: http://giz-cambodia.com/6th International Summer School 2014

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The 5th Project Partner Meeting of the:

“ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems The 6th Meeting of the ASEAN BCA Expert Groups on Application and Regulation The 1st Meeting of the ASEAN Soil and Nutrient Management Expert Group The Dialogue on ASEAN Integrated Food Security (AIFS) Framework”

Cambodian Delegation in Nay Pyi Taw Myanmar.

Cambodian Delegation in Nay Pyi Taw Myanmar.

02 – 04 December 2014

 PRESS RELEASE

Nay Pyi Taw, 02 December 2014: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the German International Cooperation (GIZ) together with the Department of Agriculture of Myanmar’s Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation organized the 5th Project Partner Meeting of the “ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems” and related meetings on 2-4 December 2004 at Shwe Pyi Taw Hotel, Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.

H.E. U Ohn Than, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation presided over and opened the Meeting.

The agrifood sector is of critical importance in Southeast Asia and beyond. The demand for food products of higher quality and quantity to supply both domestic and international markets, along with the need to manage scarce natural resources, has driven agricultural development policies towards the concept of “sustainable agrifood systems”.

Sustainable Agrifood Systems’ project, an ASEAN – German cooperation to develop regionally coordinated policies and strategies for sustainable agrifood systems is one of the two modules under the ASEAN-German Programme on Response to Climate Change: Agriculture, Forestry and Related Sectors (GAP-CC) commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) from 2011 to 2017. Towards realization of ASEAN Community by 2015 and beyond and in the light of the planned ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), the Project also promotes sustainable cross-border value chains jointly with public decision-makers, agricultural enterprises as well as farmers’ and private associations. Furthermore, farmers are supported with the implementation of sustainable production technologies and practices.

The Project builds upon experiences gained during the first phase (ASEAN Biocontrol, 2011-2013) and broadens its scope by expanding the focus on biological control agents (BCA) to soil and nutrient management and farm economics. To ensure long-term food security in ASEAN, the Project supports the Member States to implement the ASEAN Integrated Food Security (AIFS) Framework and its Strategic Plan of Action on Food Security in the ASEAN Region (SPA-FS) at national level.

Three prioritised crop sectors will be implemented by ASEAN Member States, namely rice, fruits and vegetables. The topics where areas of intervention are applied include: Integrated Pest Management and Biological Control, Integrated Soil and Nutrient Management, and Farm Economics.

The Project is important for the Government authorities, private sector, farmers as well as consumers in ASEAN Member States (AMS). The activities of the project will be implemented both at the regional and national levels to meet its objectives. Considering the importance of the Project, the 5th Project Partner Meeting and related meetings are very important as it will discuss and agreed on project activities implementation during 2015-2017.

In addition, H.E. U Ohn Than, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation has launched and handed over of the translation of the ASEAN Integrated Food Security (AIFS) Framework and the ASEAN Guidelines on the Regulation, Use and Trade of Biological Control Agent (BCA) for further implementation by the ASEAN Member States at the national level.

The Khmer translation of the ASEAN policies was received by a Cambodian Delegation coming from the Department of Agricultural Legislation and General Directorate of Agriculture under the Ministriy of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery.

Contact Information

The Project primarily works at a regional level and has established six offices in the ASEAN region (Cambodia, Indonesia Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam)

ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (SAS)

 Project Office – Cambodia

#80c, North Bridge Street, Khan Sen Sok

Phnom Penh

www.asean-agrifood.org

Mr. Claudius Bredehöft, National Project Coordinator

E-mail: [email protected]

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‘Our Health Center Midwife’ – Safer deliveries and improved quality of care at the Chey Health Centre

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“I am happy that I have been increasingly recognized for my work as a midwife at Chey health center” (Ms.Sun Phany)

08 December 2014

The situation in 2009 / 2010

Chey Health Center
Location: Kon Thnot village, Chey commune, Kampong Thom
(rural Cambodia)
Population: 9,803 persons (15 villages)
Poverty rate (date): 25%
Staff in 2010: 5
Founded in: 1990

When Ms Sun Phany, a 24 year-old and newly graduated primary midwife started working at Chey Health Centre in 2009, she experienced challenges like many other midwifes all around rural Cambodia.

Gaining the trust and acceptance of the community and particularly pregnant women is a long process that takes time, effort and commitment. They have to compete with Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) and people’s deep-rooted distrust in the health system, due its low quality and unreliability. Chey Health Centre was quite typical for rural Cambodia; it was poor and remote, the infrastructure and hygiene inadequate, services and equipment were of low quality. Accessing public basic health services was a challenge for most villagers, due to poverty or the long distance to travel to reach the facility. Moreover, if they sought services, there was often no staff to attend to their needs. Hence, utilization of health services was low in the community.

At Chey Health Centre, the roof was damaged, the rooms needed renovation and the road leading to the village was of poor condition. In 2010, there were only 5 people working at the health centre, 1 midwife, 3 primary nurses and 1 worker (non-technical); hence, deliveries in the community were mainly attended by TBAs. Most patients at the health centre were pregnant or suffered of diarrhoea, acute respiratory infections, and malaria.

Social Health Protection Programme Intervention

In 2010, the provincial health advisor of Social Health Protection Programme (SHPP) passed by Chey health centre and met Ms Sun Phany. It was about 7.30 am and she was helping a woman through delivery since 4 am. The baby girl was delivered safely and the mother’s relatives were grateful and relieved. However, Phany’s shift continued as she had to clean the delivery room, washing it with a small bucket of water and prepare it for the next delivery. The room had no light; it was dirty and lacked basic equipment.

After a meeting of GIZ staff with the health centre chief and Phany, it was jointly decided to improve the quality of the health centre by implementing Quality Improvement (QI) tools. The quality assessment base-line score was 44% in 2010. Based on the assessment, a QI plan was developed with the health centre team and the Provincial Health Department. Resources were mobilized, not only from the SHPP, but also from CARITAS, to improve the health centre’s infrastructure. The roof and rooms were renovated, a water supply system and sanitary facilities were set up and solar panels and batteries were installed. Staff was trained to use the Health Center Quality Assessment Tool and other QI measures. The SHPP focused mainly on supporting the delivery services through on the job training by a development advisor as well as renovating the delivery room and purchasing better equipment.

Results

In 2014, the QI assessment score was 93%, a clear improvement compared to initially 44% in 2010. Phany has contributed a lot to this development. She became a very active member of the health centre team and clearly made a difference in the maternal and child health service. She is well known and respected by the community she serves. One village chief said, “Ms. Sun Phany is our Community Midwife. We always ensure her security even she has to travel by night for a delivery.” The chief of the health centre is also very proud of Phany and the team, which now works together more closely and is committed to improving the quality in the centre even further.

New staff has been hired; two newly graduated secondary nurses and one secondary midwife. They were teamed up with Phany to learn from her experience. “I am working to transfer my skills to other midwife colleagues so that we can serve the community better”, Phany proudly states. Now, the health centre is also staffed during night and the utilization of basic health services has increased. For example, the number of deliveries increased from 12% in 2011 to 40% in 2013.

Additionally, CARITAS is facilitating access to the health centre by supporting the community to organise transport to the health centre, using Tuk Tuks financed through community resources.

All in all, Chey health centre proves that a midwife like Phany can make a difference. She is an inspiration for the health centre team and the community. The story shows, that commitment from the chief of the health centre and the whole team is an important factor for improving health care services.
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