Enhancing Rural Livelihoods - India

The project's objective is to enhance rural livelihoods and socio-economic conditions of poor communities living in the Eastern Ghats region of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam and East Godavari Districts in Andhra Pradesh, India. The objective is achieved through the establishment of commercial forests on degraded/uncultivated lands that are either not being utilized for any agricultural purposes or other productive uses. Those lands are identified through Geographical Information Services systems and marginal farmers who own those lands are mobilized to undertake agro-forestry activities to bring those degraded lands into appropriate land use. The seedlings/saplings are provided to the farmers through ongoing government antipoverty programs.

Fast facts:

A total of 2,160 small and marginal farmers are participating in the project;
The total land area under the project at present is 1,444 hectares with a mix of species including cashew, mango, teak, etc.
The ex-ante carbon sequestration potential of the project is calculated to be 190,000 tonnes of CO2e over a period of 30 years;
The trees being planted have long gestation periods of over 30 years.

The problem

Small farmers do not have access to finance from banks and non-banking finance corporations.

The solution

Farmers are being encouraged to take advantage of the free distribution of seedlings under the ongoing government anti-poverty programs and the prospect of regular additional revenue from carbon credits encourage the farmers to take proper care of the plantations till their maturity. The cost of seedlings is offset by the government and the small and marginal farmers are able to derive the benefits of additional income from the sale of carbon credits that are being generated on their farmlands. The project also enables the farmers to generate additional revenue through non-timber forest products. This activity empowers farmers to make informed decisions and provide them pathways to earn a livelihood rather than provide direct financial support in the short term which would not be sustainable in the long run.

Helping the planet

The project is integrating existing governmental programmes that are also working with farmers. This approach effectively utilizes resources and the engagement of the farmers would increase due to measuring, reporting and verification practices. This leads to proper nurturing of the free seedlings, which before were inundated by rains as the farmers would look for alternative sources of revenue. The proper nurturing of the seedlings enables farmers to bear fruits in the medium term and create a revenue source.

Helping people

The project has focused primarily on engaging with small and marginal farmers. The project has a total of 2,160 small and marginal farmers, out of which 38.5% are women. The total land area of the project is 1,435 hectares out of which the women ownership of land is close to 510.7 hectares.

Scaling Up

The project has been designed to bring together small and marginal farmers who are willing to undertake plantations on their degraded/subsistence agricultural lands. As the distribution of seedlings is undertaken on a large scale in different regions, the replication potential of the project is immense. This activity is working to develop networks that can be utilized to drive engagement at the grassroots level. The replication and uptake would pick up as more and more farmers realize the benefits that can be derived and through word of mouth publicity and awareness created through the successful implementation of this project.