On 8th July 2024, the Socio-Economic Policy Research Institute and the Development Research Institute, as part of the National Information Platforms for Nutrition (NIPN) initiative, held a research validation workshop at the Lao Plaza Hotel. Mr. Ousavanh Thiengthepvongsa, Director-General of the Socio-Economic Policy Research Institute, Lao Academy of Social and Economic Sciences and Dr. Sitthiroth Rasphone, Director-General of the Development Research Institute, Ministry of Planning and Investment, chaired the meeting.
The purpose of the validation workshop was to allow stakeholders to assess and validate proposed research topics as part of the 2024 NIPN research agenda. This workshop was a useful forum that brought academia, national and international experts, and focal points of relevant line ministries together so that they could make a final contribution to the research protocols before the analysis was undertaken. This process is central to how research is conducted because it pools expertise from multiple perspectives and backgrounds that improve a research project’s technical and practical aspects.
Topics presented at the validation workshop included 1) the impact of exclusive breastfeeding cessation time on childhood morbidity and adverse nutritional outcomes, 2) the influence of parental migration on infant and young child feeding practices, 3) the determinants of vitamin-A supplementation in children 6-59 months in Lao PDR, and 4) the impact of child marriage on childhood stunting in Lao PDR.
Meetings like this, with other researchers and experts from different institutions in Lao PDR, listening to them and providing concrete feedback, are crucial to improving the quality of research produced. They also provide an avenue for future collaboration.