our strategy

The project adopts a three-pronged strategy towards watershed development. These three stages interlink and overlap each other.

Capacity Building. The project concentrates on building sustainable community institutions, providing them with the necessary competences and skills to initiate, pilot and sustain the natural resource development process. This includes awareness building, mobilisation of communities, facilitating establishment of community-based organisations, village level self-help groups and their skill development. Emphasis is given to on-field training and skill-oriented learning events, building the capacities of village institutions and local resource persons (promoters, para-professionals) in technical, managerial, financial and social issues.

Watershed Rehabilitation. This entails the planning and implementation of watershed rehabilitation work towards soil and water conservation as well as biomass generation. The project facilitates processes and village level systems to ensure sustainable maintenance of the created assets and judicious use of water resources. It works towards developing guidelines for Common Property Resource (CPR) management and arriving at clarity on ownership and usufruct rights. The watershed rehabilitation provides opportunities for wage employment to marginal farmers and landless agricultural labour families in the watershed.

Intensification and Diversification. Intensification of agricultural production is achieved through changed practices that make optimal use of available soil moisture and soil fertility. Diversification in the context of natural resource management comprises biodiversity conservation, combining horticulture and crop production, support for livestock promotion, fodder development and supporting post-harvest and farm-related enterprises. Diversification beyond Natural Resource Management with regard to non land-based activities (notably facilitating thrift and credit groups) aims at improving the income potential of the poor, especially landless families, in the region.