Laos organization COPE makes strides in disability healthcare

Commemorating 50 Years of diplomatic relations between Laos and Canada. From left to right: Metta Thipphawong (COPE Program Manager and Executive Director), Manisone Sengdala (COPE Office Manager), Ou-ee Kittikhoun (Catalyste+ Laos Country Representative), and Phalida Nelakhom (former Project Officer of Catalyste+ Laos).

The population of Vientiane, Laos’ bustling capital, is starting their work week while the small town of Nelson, B.C., 10 hours behind, is wrapping up their weekend. As Angus Graeme, Catalyste+ Advisor (CA), sits down in his home office on Sunday at 8 p.m. PST, the team at the Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE) are getting ready for their first Catalyste+ assignment meeting at 10 a.m. ICT the following day.

Over the course of multiple virtual training sessions, Angus offered a wide range of skills and expertise, including how to strengthen project proposals, seize future funding opportunities, and develop a fundraising strategy.

“You really want to have that exciting and inspiring voice to come forward. And that’s made it a lot easier when you’ve spent some time talking about the vision of the organization,” says Angus about frequent virtual meetings that focus on the partner’s goals. “It gets people re-energized with the work that they’re trying to do.”

Since its creation in 1996, COPE’s work has helped thousands of people with everyday functioning—including survivors of unexploded ordnances (UXOs), an ongoing impact of the Vietnam War—to access prosthetic, orthotic and other related assistive devices, allowing them to regain mobility and mental well-being. COPE has a cooperative partnership with the Centre of Medical Rehabilitation with the Ministry of Health in Laos to support the sustainable development of physical rehabilitation services for people with temporary or permanent disabilities or ailments. 

Metta Thippawong, COPE Program Manager and Executive Director, was thrilled to train their primarily female leadership team. “Angus has brought different thoughts on fundraising that will really create a strong impact on our team to reconsider and step forward to what we can do best and what we need to improve for future proposal writing,” she said.

The COPE team met with Catalyste+ on Zoom several times during the assignment. From left to right, top to bottom: Kim Kunthea (COPE Prosthetic and Orthotic Manager), Angus Graeme (Catalyste+ Advisor), Manisone Sengdala (COPE Office Manager) and Metta Thippawong (COPE Program Manager & Executive Director), Ou-ee Kittikhoun (Catalyste+ Laos Country Representative), and Phalida Nelakhom (former Catalyste+ Laos Project Officer).

On their third Zoom meeting, Metta joined the call and took a moment to bring her wheelchair around the office to her desk. This was when Angus learned that Metta was a woman living with a disability herself, using her lived experiences to make a difference in her community. Later on in the assignment, she needed to reschedule a meeting because she was participating in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) in New York, further demonstrating her deep passion for the work that she does.

Metta Thippawong participated in the 17th session of the Conference of State Parties to UNCRPD, held from June 11-13, 2024, at the UN Headquarters in New York. She met with Saowalak Thongkuay (right), a member of the CRPD Committee from Thailand.

“She was a woman who had overcome a number of barriers to become the Executive Director of a successful NGO that is poised for success,” said Angus. “They’re having this amazing impact in [their] country…This is all done on people’s hard work, commitment, and devotion to the cause.”

COPE was also trained on how to offer psycho-social support to people who have received the rehabilitation services, and to support their clients in accessing education, vocational training, and job placement opportunities. The virtual format allowed Angus to build a deeper relationship with the team at COPE since he was able to have a consistent line of communication, and provide efficient and timely training that might’ve otherwise taken longer in person. Laos has a very complicated visa application process and virtual meetings give CAs and partners the opportunity to meet under challenging circumstances.

Outside of the virtual meetings, Angus worked alongside Ou-Eee Kittikhoun, Catalyste+ Laos Country Representative, to explore and evaluate fund development opportunities, in regular communication via WhatsApp. Through multiple stages of writing and editing, Angus supported COPE in applying for the Canadian Fund for Local Initiative’s call for proposals, and they were shortlisted for a full proposal.

COPE’s leadership team shared that the writing process alone was extremely beneficial for all of their future grant applications. In the end, they were awarded $40,000 from Global Affairs Canada to expand into one of their goal provinces in Laos.

“It was a really rewarding experience for me, sitting here in my little town in B.C., reminding myself that there are some incredibly inspiring people out there,” Angus reflects on his experience. “This is what’s so great about Catalyste+, it’s pulling us together.”