The 3-year (2014 – 2017) Women Organised for Rural development (WORD) project ensures benefits to remote ethnic women (REW) and their communities through strengthening community-led farmers and women’s groups (community based organisations - CBOs) in order to strengthen REW livelihoods and foster demand driven service delivery that will sustain beyond the project duration. The project also aims to promote the role of Non-Profit Associations (NPAs) in Lao PDR’s rural development and influence Government of Lao PDR (GoL) policy by documenting and sharing learning about this way of working with NPAs and ethnic minority communities. The project’s overall goal is that: Women’s livelihoods are improved and their interests voiced through strengthened community-based civil society organisations. Key approaches to implementation of the project will be (i) using income-generation activities and small development grants as an ‘entry point’ to women’s empowerment, (ii) gender transformative CBO and NPA strengthening, (iii) working in partnership, and (iv) research and advocacy. [72 pages]