The “Rural Development Program” (RDP) was launched in 2016, in which the objectives widened to
include more economic infrastructure to improve socio-economic development in the road
corridors. Interventions include small-scale infrastructure such as local water supply, sanitation,
water storage and fishponds, repairs to schools, health facilities, village foot paths, access roads,
etc. Capacity building and sustainability are given a prime importance, through capacity building at
MPWT, DPWT and OPWT levels for road design and works supervision, as well as (off pavement)
maintenance through “Village Maintenance Committees (VMC)”.
The Fact-Finding Mission aims to identify interventions that improve connectivity and mobility to
support economic development in Phongsaly province and seeking enhancement in selecting road
corridors that support the Trade Investment and Connectivity in the Agriculture and Forestry
(TICAF) initiatives. The result of the factfinding is a project outline, identifying areas with the
possible highest benefits in terms of economic and social development linked to improved
connectivity, with an assessment of costs and benefits and recommendations for project
implementation.
