Reducing vulnerability in Lao PDR: Advancing social protection and labour rights and entitlements in the coffee, tea and forestry sectors Phase II (SOLAR II)

Workers and households engaged in the coffee, tea, and forestry sectors in Lao PDR are mostly found in informal and vulnerable employment. It is often unpaid (in the form of contributing family work) and seasonal (to fill up vacant times and earn extra incomes). Workers are usually without proper employment contracts and social security coverage. They can be subject to labour rights violations, work in unhealthy and unsafe environments, including violence and harassment against women. The project “Reducing vulnerability in Lao PDR: Advancing social protection and labour rights and entitlements in the coffee, tea and forestry sectors – Phase II” (SOLAR II) aims to ensure that such workers, especially informal workers and women in the coffee, tea, and forestry sectors across 7 provinces and 16 districts of Lao PDR, have better access to social protection and OSH measures. It seeks to replicate the SOLAR I interventions and maximise impact in more regions of Lao PDR. SOLAR II supports and empowers workers and their representative individuals and organisations, civil society, and local authorities through training, dialogue, and technical assistance on labour rights issues, and provides opportunities for engagement in rights-based actions. The project aims to strengthen collective mechanisms for workers to share their problems and concerns, especially female workers, and equip them to better realise their labour rights. It applies the Gender Action Learning System (GALS) in villages to promote behavioural and thought shifts towards gender equality. SOLAR II is the third outcome of the “Team Europe Partnership with Lao PDR to increase sustainable and inclusive Trade, Investment and Connectivity in the Agriculture and Forestry sectors” (TICAF), which aims to contribute to green, sustainable, and inclusive growth through increased domestic production, processing, exports, and decent work in the coffee, tea, and wood value chains. A participatory, multi-stakeholder approach is at the core of the project’s activities. SOLAR II works with tripartite constituents: government (Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare), worker representatives (Lao Federation of Trade Unions, cooperatives, informal worker groups, civil society organisations), and employer representatives (Lao National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Lao Coffee Association, sectoral associations, enterprises). The project is jointly implemented by ILO and Oxfam together with local authorities and civil society organisations.

Project symbol

LAO/25/01/EUR

Admin unit

CO-Bangkok

Start date

24/02/2026

End date

23/04/2030

Total allocation

1122209

Total expenditure

Status

Active

76338

Development Partners

European Commission, DG for International Partnerships

Country/Countries

Lao People's Democratic Republic

Outcomes

Outcome 7: Universal social protection