The director of Rimisp’s Chile office travelled to Thailand to participate in two important events. The first stop was Bangkok to participate in the 9th Expert Group Meeting on Alternative Development, held from 28-30 November, which had as its slogan ‘Moving Towards the UN Guiding Principles on Alternative Development update: Roadmap for the Next Steps’.

On the second day of the meeting, Rodrigo Yáñez presented on the panel ‘Territorial Approaches to Address Illicit Drug Economies’. The Rimisp senior researcher gave the presentation: ‘Alternative Development in Illicit Crop Areas from A Territorial Perspective. Reflections from the Analysis of the Andean Region’.

Rodrigo Yáñez noted that “it was a very valuable international meeting and a good opportunity to learn about the experiences of other countries, especially about what is being done in Asia. When talking about illicit crops, from an alternative development perspective, what we are ultimately talking about is rural development”.

ROYAL PROJECT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

After the first meeting, the director of Rimisp’s Chile office travelled to Chiang Mai, Thailand, to participate in the Royal Project International Conference: From Alternative Development (AD) to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), held from 1-4 December, with the slogan ‘Empowering Alternative Development to Address Global Challenges’.

During the conference, Rodrigo Yáñez was able to learn about different initiatives and visited the Pa Pae Pae Highland Development Project in Chiang Mai province, Thailand.

Rimisp’s senior researcher was able to see on the ground how alternative development programmes are operating. “I was able to visit territories linked to a programme that celebrated its 55th anniversary in 2024, in an area close to the border with Myanmar. And you can see the effects of policies with  short, medium and long term objectives. As we walked and talked with farmers, I wondered what political and social conditions are needed to be able to establish this type of agreement over time”, Yáñez reflected.

Related material:

• Working Document: Análisis de entrevistas realizadas a jóvenes cultivadores de coca y amapola en Colombia, Ecuador, México y Perú. Rodrigo Yáñez, Carlos Córdoba y Daniel Niño.
• Opinion column: Cultivos ilícitos y un desarrollo alternativo. Por Rodrigo Yáñez
• Proyect Jóvenes cultivadores de coca y amapola. Experiencias biográficas, de la actividad productiva y expectativas de futuro