The Peoples and Mountains of the Mekong association is an international solidarity association, recognized as being of general interest. It was created in June 2011 by people wishing to help the peoples and ethnic groups living on the banks of the Mekong and in the surrounding mountains of northern Laos.
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After carrying out multiple medical interventions in isolated villages, the association turned to new objectives:
1 • Favor medium and long-term training actions, as the only guarantee of sustainable development.
2 • Take into account the environment in which health personnel work by participating in the implementation of water supply sites in order to provide them with an environment t of healthy work.
3 • Exercising our mission as close as possible to the population, in particular through local support for health personnel in dispensaries and district hospitals.
Historical
The fact that our actions have turned towards Laos is due as much to an understanding of its history as to chance meetings with different ethnic minorities. We were challenged by the poverty and precariousness of some of these minorities and we were seduced by the beauty of this country, by the richness of its culture and by the kindness of its inhabitants.
We have not stopped returning to Laos every year where we have established strong bonds of friendship and solidarity with many people. These have been valuable and indispensable aids in understanding Laos, its context and its culture. They have greatly facilitated our efforts and today form a solidarity network on which the association can rely.
We visited many LAO, HMONG, KHAMU and AKHA villages outside the tourist circuits and in conditions that were not always easy, especially in terms of travel. We have always been welcomed with great friendship by the inhabitants of these villages with whom we have shared daily life and measured the health and economic situation in which they can live.
These meetings allowed us during village meetings to identify and assess needs ranging from the simplest to the most complex. We found that for both historical and cultural reasons, many people in these villages make little use of health services.
This reality has led us to define priorities around health and hygiene issues: we offer medical training to Lao doctors with awareness campaigns and to support water supply sites.
The Peoples and Mountains of the Mekong Association has signed a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with the Ministry of Health. This contract expresses the common will of both parties to work and improve the health policy of the Lao government. The position of the association is to integrate us without interference in the most absolute legality with respect to the laws and regulations in force. We are present in this country to provide aid and assistance to the most deprived people, without distinction of ethnicity or gender. Thus, the partnership agreement that we signed with the OUDOMXAY hospital goes in this direction.
Laos
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The People's Democratic Republic of Laos is made up of 70% mountains and plateaus. The population of Laos amounts to approximately 7,200,000 inhabitants, 60% of whom still live in rural or mountainous areas.
We count up to 68 different ethnic groups. Laos, because of its history, its geographical particularities and the variety of its ethnic groups, remains one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia.