Forty-four participants from ten Asian countries participated in the 6th Farmers’ Exchange Visit (FEV), conducted by AFA and AsiaDHRRA and hosted by SorKorPor (SKP) Thailand last February 28 to March 9, 2005.
The first part of the FEV was the first celebration of AFA Day, held February 28, at a village in Sattahip, Chonburi, Thailand. During the celebration, AFA members shared one kilo of organic rice variety brought from their country; these were mixed and then cooked for lunch. This activity symbolized the coming together of farmers’ organizations for solidarity, support, and nourishment to each organization’s avowed causes and concerns.
The second part of the FEV was a civil society consultation and dialogue with government negotiators, held March 1-2 ( see related article above).
The third part of the FEV was a visit to sustainable agricultural technologies being practiced by members of NFAD (North Farmers Federation for Development) Sor Kor Por’s member in Chiang Mai province. Participants stayed with host families for two days, and visited areas with integrated farming, diversified farming, production of organic bio-gas fertilizers, and organic vegetable farming. A village university and two Kings’ projects on integrated farming located in Chiang Mai and Chiang Dao were also visited.
The fourth part of the FEV was a refresher course on the basics of WTO, held March 7. Participants played games to check how far they understood some basic jargons and concepts on WTO. They also had a debate on whether agriculture should be excluded from WTO or not.
The fifth part of the FEV was a sharing session on the various sustainable agricultural practices being employed by their organizations and/or by themselves as farmers in the area.
A monograph on the Thailand FEV will be published soon.