The COVID-19 pandemic caused problems for smallholder farmers including lower demand from domestic markets since 2020, no markets during the lockdown, lack of public transportation, and in some cases, increased transport costs, and higher cost of production inputs. Many farmers had to let their fresh produce be fed to animals to simply let it go to waste. Many farmers reduced their production and some have stopped due to a lack of capital. The ARISE-Farmers project provided a revolving fund for smallholder farmers to recover from losses. The Lao Farmer Network provided funds as working capital to 13 farmers’ organizations producing coffee, poultry, livestock, vegetables, and rice.
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