GGK

"It is crucial to aim towards the sustainability of the peoples institution, where the community can take up its development agenda, including the management of its Natural Resources in its own hands, leading to improvements in the livelihoods of the watershed community in a sustainable manner. In this context, it is felt necessary to build a Village Development Society (VDS) that has a long term, decentralised and integrated development perspective."

The ISPWDK project in Phase 2 (1999-2005) seeks to achieve the objectives of streamlining and stabilising agricultural productivity in the semi-arid regions of northern Karnataka. This objective is to be achieved with the cooperation of the local community by developing a suitable mix of indigenous and modern methods that are low-cost and easily manageable.

In pursuit of this objective, the Project Support and Management Unit (PSMU) is creating many opportunities for the NGO partners to build their capacities. Training of Sustainable Agriculture Team (SAT) of each NGO in collaboration with Agriculture Man Ecology (AME) is one such major attempt by PSMU which has already lead to many landmark achievements in the field of promoting sustainable agriculture in the watersheds.

PRAWARDA has carved a niche for itself in promoting sustainable agricultural practices in the district through its own experiences, expertise and through its long association with AME. PRAWARDA has deputed five field functionaries to the SAT who in turn are training the local community.

However, PRAWARDA believes that it is the local people who need to take a leading role in the development process. In this context, it seeks to promote an informal community based organisation called Gram Gnana Kendra (GGK), which is a village level informal institution comprising of local resource persons striving for integrated village development.

These resource persons develop and practice innovative ITKs in various fields like agriculture, animal husbandry, home management etc. These are low cost, rely on local resources and are within the managerial capacity of local people and, hence, sustainable. PRAWARDA seeks to nurture this group of local resource persons to form an institution at the village level in the next three years with the help of its own experienced staff, PSMU and AME.

Vision
By 2005, two villages in Phase 1 and four villages in Phase 2 of ISPWDK project area will have an informal local people's institution that is competent to cater to and look after the integrated development needs of the village on its own.

Objectives
The Gram Gnana Kendra is envisaged to function under the Village Development Society of the concerned village and develop competency to:

• Cater to the counselling needs of the villagers with respect to the sustainable agricultural development needs of the community
• Extend services on crop and animal management practices
• Document and validate indigenous knowledge systems (IKS/ITK) in agriculture, animal husbandry, medicinal and healing practices and any other areas
• Develop databases on indigenous knowledge through networking with like-minded institutions

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