In the severely disadvantaged community of Bhee in Mugu, a remote mountainous district in the Karnali region in northwestern Nepal, an agricultural project is intended to improve the nutritional situation of the residents in the long term.
In the region, which is affected by drought and repeated drought catastrophes, malnutrition and malnutrition are a massive problem. Due to the poor nutritional situation, child mortality due to simple illnesses such as diarrhea or pneumonia is significantly higher than the national average.
The project adds the agriculture and nutrition component to an existing health project focusing on nutrition/education and access to maternal and child health services, and teaches the region’s farmers better farming techniques to diversify food production and improve family nutrition . In the long term, the project should also improve the income situation of the families through the possibility of selling surplus.
The plan is to introduce non-seasonal vegetable cultivation in greenhouses, edible mushroom cultivation, ginger and turmeric cultivation, beekeeping training and the training of 2 people as seed traders (state certificate) and start-up support for setting up a business. The creation of Farmers’ Groups and their networking with local government enable government funding and advocacy to be mobilized.
The project is accompanied with the support of a local social mobilizer by a trained agricultural technician who lives on site and conducts the training as well as supporting and supervising the implementation.
Project sponsor: Phase Austria
Project partner: Phase Nepal
Funding year: since 2021
Project No.: 127-21 A