Funded by Global Environment Facility (GEF), FAO is implementing a five-year project on “Sustainable cropland and forest management in priority agro-ecosystems of Myanmar” aiming to  build the capacity of farming and forestry stakeholders to mitigate climate change and improve land condition, by adopting Climate-Smart Agriculture and Sustainable Forest Management policies and practices. The project is being implemented in coordination with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation (MoNREC) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MoALI).

The project promotes relevant Climate-Smart Agricultural (CSA) techniques and practices through Farmer Field Schools (FFS) models in five pilot townships in Chin State (Upland/Hill Zone), Ayeyawady Region (Coastal/Delta Zone) and Mandalay Region (Central Dry Zone).  The FFS, one of the core activities of the project, is a learning process whereby a group of farmers come together and engage in a hands-on field-based learning process over a season/production cycle. FFS is a time-bound learning-by-doing activity and aims to solve problems related to cultivating crops. At the end of each FFS i.e. before the harvesting, a Farmer Field Day is organized. There, the FFS farmers share the activities and achievements with local community members, government's agricultural workers and concerned stakeholders.

On the 21th of November, FAO team co-organized the Farmer Field Day with the Department of Agriculture (DoA) and AVSI Foundation in Sit Kwe Village, Labutta Township where a demonstration plot on System of Rice Intensification (SRI) together with other CSA techniques was established. More than a hundred community members and representatives from Government departments, Centre for People and Forests (RECOFTC) and AVSI Foundation attended the event. During the celebration, practical demonstrations were presented by FFS Committee and Department of Agriculture (DoA) staff. Farmers were very impressed by the demonstration of CSA techniques and showed great interest and commitment to replicate in wider areas in the coming monsoon season. At the end of the successful FFD distribution of green gram seeds, rhizobium packets and air-tight bags for seed storage took place.

FAO has already established 71 FFS sites in the five pilot townships mentioned above, formed FFS Committees, distributed inputs, and organized four batches of trainings of trainers (TOT) on “CSA and FFS Establishment and Operationalization”.