Knowledge Sharing Workshop in Vietnam: Field officers given hands-on tools in KM Hanoi, 26 28 September 2011.

. A training workshop titled Tools and Methodologies for Effective Knowledge Management, was co-organised by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Rural Development Centre (RUDEC) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Vietnam. Facilitated by Mr. Pham Vu Bang, a IFAD KM Officer from Mekong Deltas Tra Vinh province, the workshop gathered Knowledge Management Officers from most of the IFAD-financed projects throughout Vietnam. A purposefully hands-on format encouraged learning though exchange among its participants. In 2010 Bang attended and was empowered by a similar IFAD workshop in Bangkok, Thailand. From the beginning it was made clear that workshop participants were the KM practioners at field level, and harnessing their perspectives would be one of its most valuable outcomes. Participants addressed knowledge management systems challenges and opportunities with some excellent ideas. Discussions focused on how to strengthen relationships and networks, how to capture and disseminate lessons learned, case studies, best practices and stories of change. Participants formed teams and answered treasure hunt questions that led to them using the workshop blog, wiki and digital cameras to capture and disseminate photos and videos. How do we design and facilitate better meetings, event and workshops? This question/section of the workshop generated vigorous participation; everyone was invited into a role play where each was given hands-on facilitation experience. The exercise was followed by a debrief which included a discussion about the skills and challenges of facilitation. People openly shared with each other, leading to the creation of new ideas and approaches. Participants were introduced to the workshop blog and wiki as the spaces to capture and document the workshop and so bring their training experiences to a wider audience. Reviewing the end-of-workshop participant feedback forms, the overall response was positive. Everyone seemed to appreciate its participatory, practical and open discussions. Most felt the training provided useful knowledge sharing tools which they could apply in their work. IFAD KM Officer, Pham Huu Tri from Central Highlands Gia Lai province assessed the workshop as very good. Most of my expectations were met. I may not be an excellent KMO but Im sure I wont be too bad after attending this workshop. Nguyen Thi Viet Ha from IFAD-MTCP project at Vietnam Farmers Union believed the workshop was timely and fantastic. She would definitely revisit workshop material later. Similarly, Nguyen Van Minh from Bac Kan in the Northern Upland said: Many useful tools such as Blog, Flickr and YouTube were shared in very interesting and participatory ways while

Nguyen Duc Khanh from Ha Tinh in Central of Vietnam, said he would be very keen to apply peer assist and world caf to his project environment. Apart from a 5 year KM strategy (2013 2018), participants also recommended an action plan be rolled out and evaluated annually. The plan is to build sustainable knowledge sharing mechanisms within projects, across projects and across other stakeholders and partners. A group email will be created so that participants are able to exchange information and knowledge on a regular basis. Most participants felt that a similar workshop should be provided for their Project Director to encourage incorporation of KM into their project planning and execution. Finally, a small KM seed fund is recommended to achieve the following: stimulate healthy competition among projects, sustain a you learn best by sharing environment and help incentivize the most innovative ideas, best success stories and best change photos. Vu Bang smiled and closed the workshop saying, I have a great sense of fulfillment. Weve formed a network of very committed KM officers and created such an enabling and learning environment that I believe our network will be maintained and strengthened in the future. I hope that IFAD projects will be able to address poverty in more innovative ways in Vietnam.