The productivity of livestock in Asia is found to be far below the global benchmark. The milk production per cattle in Bangladesh and Nepal, for instance, is only 305 kg and 459 kg per animal per year, respectively, compared to 7500 kg/animal/year in the USA and Europe (SAARC 2015). Improved...

Shanta Neupane had a vision. From Panauti Municipality, in central Nepal, she could see how hard women in the rural forest and farming communities around her worked in their family smallholdings, helping to feed their households. But although, like Shanta herself, they were members of community forest user groups, these same...

Strong water users' associations are instrumental in sustaining reforms and improvement in the country's water sector. To address the interrelated challenges of agriculture, water, food insecurity, and poverty in Tajikistan, the Public Employment for Sustainable Agriculture and Water Resources Management Project (PAMP II) was implemented from 2013 to 2020 with...

Besides the severe health crisis, the COVID-19 epidemic also caused the global economy to contract at a rate not seen since the Second World War and led to a severe increase of poor and food insecure people as well as a sharp projected decrease of production of agricultural goods in...

Strong water users' associations are instrumental in sustaining reforms and improvement in the country's water sector. To address the interrelated challenges of agriculture, water, food insecurity, and poverty in Tajikistan, the Public Employment for Sustainable Agriculture and Water Resources Management Project (PAMP II) was implemented from 2013 to 2020 with...

The Sinja Valley in northwest Nepal is a breathtaking place with a rich history. Plunging mountainsides and rocky caves hide ruins of grand palaces and temples: remains of the capital city of the influential Western Malla kingdom that ruled the area between the 12th and 14th century. Nowadays, however, that city...

In 2019, the Agriculture for Nutrition Project (AFN) provided funding support to the Lao Farmer Network (LFN) to pilot the production and processing of soybean in two villages of Nonghet district, Xiengkhouang province, Laos. The small project, “Piloting soybean production and processing to improve nutrition in Nonghet district”, was implemented...

With its distinctive green colour and sharp, spicy flavour, wasabi (Eutrema japonicum) has been highly prized in Japan for centuries. There is evidence from written works that Buddhist monks ate “cold wasabi soup” from as early as the 12th century. By the 14th century, they began to eat sashimi topped with wasabi...

In her opening remarks, AFA Secretary General Esther Penunia highlighted the important role of farmer organizations and cooperatives in reducing food loss and waste as well as their initiatives including employing methods or techniques such as dehydration and drying techniques, etc. to prolong the shelf life or add value to...

As the eldest daughter of a farmer, Ti Chia Pan grew up helping her parents grow bananas and vegetables in the village of Nanphalong, Temu, at the border between Myanmar and India. Her experience in the field gave her first-hand insight into the plight of farmers. ‘Ever since I was young,...

Biogas production in small-scale plants is considered to be an appropriate technology for energy supply to rural households. It is being beneficial to the environment through replacement of traditionally used cooking fuels (fuelwood and liquified petroleum gas) and so possibly resulting in the reduction of global warming potential. The problem...

Women farmers in the hill State of Himachal Pradesh are gradually turning to non-chemical, low cost “natural farming”, which has not only provided them with a sustainable livelihood but also empowered them better. Launched in 2018, the State’s Prakritik Kheti Khushhal Yojana is promoting the climate resilient Subhash Palekar Natural Farming...

A collective vision of scaling Natural Farming in India and beyond that emerged from the workshop organized by RySS and ATECF. The workshop was attended by leaders from multiple organizations keen to scale up Natural Farming in India and beyond. The process enabled a rich evocation of the imaginations and...

El sistema integrado de producción avícola y compost es un método que combina el compostaje, la cría de aves de corral, y la producción de huevos. Es un método de bajo costo para criar pollos, mientras se produce compost de buena calidad. Los costos de alimentación son casi eliminados debido...

This report presents the results of IFAD’s stock-take on agroecology. It assesses to what degree IFAD is supporting agroecology throughout its in-country portfolio across the five IFAD regions to the benefit of small-scale producers and sustainable food systems. It also identifies gaps and opportunities for scaling up and scaling out...

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) invites you to the launch of IFAD’s first comprehensive report on a holistic approach to sustainable production and food systems. Based on a stock-take of recent IFAD-supported projects assessing their promotion of agroecology, this learning session will discuss key findings and recommendations for more...

On April 1, 2020, two weeks after the lockdown, residents of Sitio San Roque in Quezon City took to the streets to demand aid from the local government. They were violently dispersed and many were arrested for mass gatherings. Meanwhile, the small farmers and fisherfolk that make up the majority...

This most recent report on the state of food security and nutrition in Asia and the Pacific tells a grim story. An estimated 375.8 million people in the region faced hunger in 2020, which is nearly 54 million more people than in 2019. In this region alone, more than 1.1...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is convening a virtual forum of world leaders from Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in a major push forward to help its Members regain their momentum toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), badly affected by the global pandemic, ongoing...

The COVID-19 pandemic made citizens realize again the value of farmers producing local and healthy food, and governments the value of becoming more and more self-reliant by boosting local agricultural production. It has confirmed our advocacy for shorter and inclusive agri-food supply chains, with strong participation of farmers in the...