Decades of intensive maize monocropping have left soils degraded in parts of Xiengkhouang Province, northern Lao PDR, creating challenges for farmers seeking to diversify production. Focusing on Kham district, this 2025 research brief examines an agroecological transition from maize-dominated systems towards multi-species cropping through the integration of perennial crops such as coffee and banana. It identifies opportunities for introducing new practices while recognizing soil fertility restoration as a prerequisite for successful diversification.

The initiative explores how greater agrobiodiversity can combine income generation with ecosystem services. Integrating perennial crops into existing farming systems may provide smallholder farmers with additional sources of income while contributing to more diversified agricultural landscapes. However, the findings emphasize that these potential benefits depend on addressing the legacy of soil degradation associated with intensive maize cultivation. Rebuilding soil fertility is therefore presented as an urgent component of establishing productive and sustainable multi-species systems.

Prepared by researchers and practitioners from CIRAD, PAFO Xieng Khouang, Green Cup and the ASSET project, with contributions from MAE-Laos, the brief links agroforestry, soil restoration and livelihood considerations. By identifying specific windows of opportunity for farmers to adopt alternative practices, it provides locally grounded evidence on the conditions needed to support agroecological transitions in degraded upland landscapes.