The Population and Community Development Association (PDA)
Background:
The Population and Community Development Association (PDA) was founded in 1974 as a non-governmental organization with the initial aim to complement the efforts of the Royal Thai Government in promoting family planning in Thailand, especially in areas where knowledge and access to services were scarce. Utilizing a participatory, community-based approach, PDA recruited and trained residents of villages and urban neighborhoods to provide information on family planning, including the supervised, non-medical distribution of oral contraceptives. PDA has 18 regional development centers and branch offices located in 15 provinces in rural Thailand.
Programs:
PDA’s programs are based on the belief that local people are best suited to be an equal partner in shaping and sustaining their own development. Thirty-one years of PDA’s involvement has created significant change in the following eleven areas:
• Health, AIDS & Family Planning
• Income Generation & Poverty Reduction
• Rural Microcredit
• Water & Environmental
• Youth as Agents of Change Today and Leaders of Tomorrow
• Education & Nutrition
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Emergency Relief Services (CBERS)
• Asian Center for Population and Community Development (ACPD)
• NGO Sustainability
Tourism related programs:
Apart from the above program areas, PDA, through its office based in Chiang Rai, also contributes to sustainable tourism, which is underlined by the following activities:
• PDA Tour Service Center
The PDA Tour Service Center is an organization under the All North Ltd., a legally registered corporation under Thai Law. The link between All North Co., Ltd and PDA is necessary as a strategy for sustainability of its many different rural development projects and activities. PDA Tour provides a low-impact but highly educational trekking program, which is one of the best ways to learn more about hilltribe people. PDA’s hilltribe guides are sensitive to their culture and are always respectful of their traditions. For further details, go to http://www.pda.or.th/chiangrai/pda_tour.htm
• Hilltribe Museum and Education Center: The Hilltribe Museum is a public-benefit organization which aims to help educate local and foreign tourists about Hilltribes' fast disappearing culture. The Museum aims to preserve artifacts and to provide information to tourists and tour operators so that responsible tourism can occur. When people are informed about Hilltribe culture, it is hope that negative impact of tourism on Hilltribe life will be minimized. The Hilltribe Museum is under the supervision of the Population and Community Development Association. For further details, go to http://www.pda.or.th/chiangrai/hilltribe_museum.htm
• Alternative tourism: The Hilltribe Museum along with the PDA Tour Office is pioneering in a project on alternative tourism wherein Hilltribe Village receives move benefit from the tourism activity. This project called the Lorcha Project will be a community-based tourism project which is being supported by the Association of Thai Tourist Agencies (ATTA) and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA). For further details, go to http://www.pda.or.th/chiangrai/hilltribe_museum.htm
Contact
PDA Office-Bangkok
Population and Community Development Association (PDA)
6 Sukhumvit 12, Klongtoey, Bangkok 10110
Tel : 662-229-4611-28 Fax : 662-229-4632
E-Mail : pda(at)pda.or.th
PDA Office-Chiang Rai
Population and Community Development Association-Chiang Rai
620/35 Thanalai Rd., A.Muang, Chiang Rai Province 57000
Beside Achiva Sueksa (Vocation School)
Tel: (+6653) 719 167
Fax.: (+6653) 718 869
E-mail: crpda(at)hotmail.com
PDA Tour Office & Hilltribe Museum and Education Center-Chiang Rai
3rd. Flr., PDA Building
620/25 Thanalai RD., A. Muang
Chiang Rai 57000
Tel/Fax: (+6653) 740088
Email: crpdatour(at)hotmail.com, crpdatour(at)yahoo.com