From January 14 to 16, 2025, stakeholders from diverse groups and backgrounds gathered in Hanoi, Vietnam, to foster collaboration, share insights, and create policies at the DeSIRA CONNECT Days Asia & the Pacific. The event served as a venue to unite various actors to strengthen agricultural innovation systems and promote sustainable practices in the region.
AsiaDHRRA’s Program Manager, Ms. Luz Blanco, participated on Panel 2 on regional dynamics in farmer-led and community-led innovations. The discussion presented various innovation aspects led by farmer organizations and discussed funding mechanisms supporting scaling in Asia. Ms. Blanco presented and discussed AsiaDHRRA’s work in Southeast Asia, rooted in community-based farmer organizations advocating organic agriculture and sustainable practices through multi-stakeholder partnerships.
She underscored the role of DHRRA network members and presence in different countries in the region, the Strategic Action Plan 2020-2025, the key role in the development of ASEAN’s Rural Development Master Plan (RDMP) supporting the ASEAN Guidelines for Agroecology Transition, and the institutional partnership in regional and global level with the FAO, AgriCord and World Rural Forum. She added that AsiaDHRRA’s advocacy efforts contributed to policy development and strengthening local capacities to sustain and transform agri-food systems and achieve the Strategic Action Plan focused on agroecology, rural women and youth, digital agriculture, and territorial rural development.
The CONNECT Days aimed to learn lessons, mainly the role of research and the possible emerging theories from the implementation of the DeSIRA projects related. The event also discussed the outcomes and prospects of scaling up at the community levels, value chain, and policies. Moreover, the occasion included a project fair showcasing booths, thematic workshops, and stakeholder roundtables.
