The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas

What The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas does

The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas (AsiaDHRRA) is a regional non-governmental network founded in 1974, headquartered in Quezon City, Philippines. It functions as a coalition of 11 country-level DHRRA member organizations across 10 Asian nations: Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. The organization's mandate is to advance rural development, poverty eradication, and smallholder empowerment across Asia through capacity building for farmers' organizations, policy advocacy at ASEAN, FAO, and UN ECOSOC platforms, and multi-country program implementation.

The organization delivers a portfolio of grant-funded programs rather than a unified software product. Core programs include Farmers Fighting Poverty (FFP, AgriCord/FO4A lineage), the SEEDS digital agriculture initiative (IFAD and Korean MAFRA funded, targeting 12,000 households in Cambodia, Philippines, and Vietnam), RISE-UP (EU-funded, child-labour elimination in Mindanao), ACRE (policy framework for family farming and SDGs), the Digital Village Initiative (with FAO), Rural-Urban Market Link / RUML (USAID-funded, USD 1M, with Mastercard and Deliver-E as digital partners), ReCoERDO (EU Framework Partnership), Responsible Agricultural Investment (RAI), and GAIIPP (GIZ-funded climate-smart investment in Mindanao). Advocacy campaigns focus on agroecology, the UN Decade of Family Farming, and SDG localization through APFSD.

Revenue is grant-based and not publicly disclosed, sourced from institutional development partners including the European Union, FAO, IFAD, USAID, GIZ, the Korean Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and Fondation de France. The regional secretariat in Quezon City employs 11-50 staff and operates under a biennial General Assembly with an Executive Committee; the Secretary General (Marlene Ramirez, since 1999) leads day-to-day operations. AsiaDHRRA catalyzed the creation of the Asian Farmers' Association (AFA), now an autonomous body serving millions of farmers, and holds Special Consultative Status with UN ECOSOC alongside formal affiliate status with ASEAN.

Name

The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas

Legal name

The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas

Website

https://asiadhrra.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AsiaDHRRA is a 50-year-old regional network of 11 country-level social development organizations across 10 Asian nations, headquartered in the Philippines. It delivers grant-funded programs that build the capacity of farmers' organizations, advocate for rural development policy at ASEAN and UN platforms, and implement multi-country initiatives on digital agriculture, market linkages, and rural poverty reduction.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Development Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry (115), Support Activities for Crop Production (11511), Support Activities for Animal Production (11521)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Agriculture & Food Security Development (BPAGABAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Agriculture, Food Security & Nutrition Technical Assistance (BPADAEAG), Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus & Resilience Programming (BPADAEAK)

Keywords

• Rural development network
• Agricultural capacity building
• Policy advocacy services
• Farmer organization support
• Development cooperation programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Quezon City

HQ country

Philippines

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding and Development Cooperation: AsiaDHRRA operates as a non-profit regional network funded primarily through grants and development cooperation agreements with international organizations including EU, FAO, IFAD, and bilateral donors. Revenue supports capacity building programs, policy advocacy, and network operations across member countries.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

AsiaDHRRA is a regional partnership network that delivers capacity building, policy advocacy, knowledge management, and multi-country program implementation for rural development across Asia. It links 11 country DHRRA networks across 10 Asian nations and works with farmer organizations, civil society, and governments to address rural development, agricultural sustainability, and food security. Programs are delivered through themed initiatives such as FFP, SEEDS, RISE-UP, ACRE, DVI, RUML, ReCoERDO, RAI, FO4A, GAIIPP, and GASFP.

Product overview

AsiaDHRRA is a regional partnership network operating as a coalition of 11 social development organizations across 10 Asian nations. Rather than a unified technology product, AsiaDHRRA offers a portfolio of interconnected development programs and advocacy initiatives focused on rural development, poverty eradication, and farmer empowerment. Core programs include Farmers Fighting Poverty (FFP), SEEDS (digital agriculture), RISE-UP (child labour elimination), ACRE (policy framework), Digital Village Initiative (DVI), RUML (market access), ReCoERDO (capacity development), RAI (responsible investment), FO4A (farmer organization support), and various advocacy campaigns on agroecology, SDGs, and family farming. These programs are implemented through partnerships with DHRRA member organizations, international donors (EU, FAO, IFAD, USAID, GIZ), and regional bodies (ASEAN).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FFP (Farmers' Fighting Poverty) A thematic program under AsiaDHRRA focused on enabling farmer organizations to combat poverty through capacity building, enterprise development, and policy engagement. Targets smallholder farmers and rural communities across Asia.
• SEEDS (Strengthening Enabling Environment for Development of SMEs in Rural Asia) A program supporting rural SMEs and agricultural enterprises through business development services, access to finance facilitation, and policy advocacy, implemented across AsiaDHRRA's country networks.
• RISE-UP (Rural Inclusion through Sustainable and Empowered …) A regional program advancing rural inclusion and sustainable development, implemented through AsiaDHRRA's country networks in partnership with donor agencies.
• ACRE (Asian Center for Rural Empowerment) An AsiaDHRRA-affiliated initiative delivering capacity-building, training, and empowerment services for rural communities and farmer organizations.
• DVI (Development Volunteers Inc.) A volunteer-deployment program mobilizing skilled professionals to support rural development projects and knowledge transfer across AsiaDHRRA's country networks.
• RUML (Rural Microenterprise Leveraging) A program supporting rural microenterprises through capacity building, market linkage, and access to financial services in AsiaDHRRA's member countries.
• ReCoERDO (Regional Conference on Entrepreneurial Restoration of DHRRA Organizations) A regional convening and learning platform strengthening AsiaDHRRA's country organizations through peer learning, strategy review, and joint planning.
• RAI (Rural Asia Initiative) A regional initiative through AsiaDHRRA coordinating advocacy, research, and policy engagement on rural development issues across Asia.
• FO4A (Farmer Organizations for Asia) A program supporting farmer organizations across Asia through institutional strengthening, capacity building, and policy engagement, delivered via AsiaDHRRA's regional network.
• GAIIPP (Global Agrarian and Industrial Investment Policy Program) A policy and investment program within AsiaDHRRA's portfolio focused on agrarian and industrial investment policy issues affecting rural communities.
• GASFP (Global Alliance for Stewarding Food Production) A program convened by AsiaDHRRA supporting sustainable stewardship of food production through partnerships, advocacy, and capacity building across Asia.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 years of regional network operation since 1974
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey strategic partner for responsible agricultural investment (RAI), digital village initiatives, and child labor in agriculture programs. FAO provides both funding and technical guidance for AsiaDHRRA's regional initiatives.
• ASEANcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAsiaDHRRA holds affiliate status with ASEAN and participates in official processes including SOMRDPE meetings and ASCC engagements. Active contributor to ASEAN rural development and poverty eradication frameworks.
• AgriCordcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal alliance of agri-agencies providing direct financing and advisory services to farmers' organizations. AsiaDHRRA serves as member agri-agency and participates in joint programming under the Farmers Fighting Poverty (FFP) program.
• World Rural Forum (WRF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember organization collaborating on UN Decade of Family Farming (UNDFF) advocacy and CSO capacity building for rural development at regional and global levels.
• GrowAsiasecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-implementation partner for SEEDS digital agriculture project. Provides platform coordination and stakeholder engagement support for digital transformation initiatives.
• ASEAN FoundationsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional partner for ASEAN-related activities and stakeholder engagement initiatives.
• Asian Farmers' Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAutonomous regional farmers' alliance resulting from AsiaDHRRA's催化 efforts, now serving millions of farmers in Asia. Close collaboration on advocacy and farmer representation at regional/international levels.
• Bina SwadayasecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndonesian partner organization contributing to network activities and resource mobilization.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AgriCord: AgriCord is a global alliance of agri-agencies that channels funding and advisory services to farmers' organizations; AsiaDHRRA is a member agri-agency. It operates a similar grant-funded model connecting institutional donors to farmer organizations, with comparable scale and program architecture.
• Asian Farmers' Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA): AFA is an autonomous regional farmers' alliance that was catalyzed by AsiaDHRRA and now operates independently across Asia. It shares the same pan-Asian farmer-representation mission, partner base, and donor ecosystem (AgriCord, IFAD), making it the most directly comparable peer.
• World Rural Forum (WRF): WRF is an international network advocating for family farming and the UN Decade of Family Farming, of which AsiaDHRRA is a member. It shares AsiaDHRRA's civil-society-led approach to rural development policy advocacy at UN and regional levels.
• La Via Campesina: La Via Campesina is the global movement of peasants, smallholders, and rural workers coordinating across more than 80 countries. While global in scope, its regional chapters in Asia pursue the same farmer-organization capacity-building and food sovereignty agenda as AsiaDHRRA.
• Grow Asia: Grow Asia is a World Economic Forum-initiated multi-stakeholder partnership platform for sustainable agriculture across Southeast Asia. It is a direct co-implementation partner of AsiaDHRRA on the SEEDS project and operates in overlapping Southeast Asian markets with similar donor backing.

Emerging players

• Farm Africa: Farm Africa is a UK-based NGO implementing smallholder agriculture and rural development programs, primarily in East Africa. It is comparable in operating model (donor-funded programs supporting farmer organizations) but operates in a different geography.
• Self-Help Africa: Self-Help Africa is an international NGO focused on smallholder agriculture and rural livelihoods in sub-Saharan Africa, with selective Asia programs. It shares AsiaDHRRA's grant-funded, smallholder-capacity-building model but lacks AsiaDHRRA's ASEAN-level policy footprint.

Broad incumbents

• ActionAid International: ActionAid is a large international federation working on poverty and rights across more than 40 countries, including Asia. It leads the GASFP project in partnership with AsiaDHRRA and operates overlapping smallholder agriculture and rural development programs at greater scale.

Others

• Asian Partnership on Climate Change and Sustainable Development: Comparable regional Asia-focused civil society network engaging on climate, food security, and sustainable development policy. It shares AsiaDHRRA's UN/regional policy engagement model but focuses more on climate than agricultural value chains.

Regional players

• ASEAN Foundation: The ASEAN Foundation is the ASEAN body's vehicle for civil society and community engagement across Southeast Asia, headquartered in Jakarta. It operates in overlapping ASEAN-wide development themes and shares AsiaDHRRA's ASEAN-engagement access but with a different mandate and funding source.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AsiaDHRRA
• Facebookfacebook.com/asiadhrra.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/asiadhrra

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas