Project Detail

Reduce the Land Degradation in Muththattupola Galpaya, Babaragala by Ekbadda Praja Sanwardana Kantha Maha Sangamaya

The objective of the project is to reduce land degradation in 100 acres of agricultural lands in Muththattupola, Galpaya and Babaragala areas in the Weligapola DS Division. The grantee organization will assist the community in creating rainwater harvesting tanks and earthen water retention tanks. Gliricidia live fences, which slows down land degradation, will be planted. They also intend to promote indigenous seed conservation, identifying and storying 10 seed types at Weligapola. Additionally, the organization will focused on manufacturing liquid fertilizer and starting a plant nursery.

By adopting this multifaceted approach, Ekbadda Praja Sanwardana Kantha Maha Sangamaya hopes to combat land degradation and promote sustainable agriculture in this area. This will secure the livelihoods of all those that depend on the land for sustenance.

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Project Snapshot

Grantee:

Ekabadda Praja Sanwardana Kantha Maha Sangamaya

Country:

Sri lanka

Area Of Work:

Land Degradation

Operational Phase:

Phase 3

Grant Amount:

US$ 25,360.00

Co-Financing Cash:

Co-Financing in-Kind:

US$ 5,306.00

Project Number:

SRL/06/07

Start Date:

2/2007

End Date:

11/2008

Status:

Satisfactorily Completed

Project Characteristics and Results

Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods

200 farmer families developed improved home gardens comprising traditional vegetables grown organically .Some of them developed them into model farms and seed nurseries . The produce were consumed and thereby significantly reduced the household expenditure on vegetables approximately by Rs 800 a month .

Notable Community Participation

A total of 200 families actively participated in the project and the major decisions were taken and carried out by them . Thus they constructed seven wells in the village for household use and 20 rainwater tanks each with a capacity of 5,500 litres. They also revived the traditional water retaining method of trapping rain water in the lowest part of their land, known as ?pathaha? wherein a place is enclosed by a mud bund to retain water. The water is used for irrigation for a few months while the seepage helps in ground water recharge.

Gender Focus

Ekabadde Praja Sanwardhana Kantha Maha Sangamaya (EPSKMS), the organization which initiated this project is an exclusively woman?s organization dedicated to alleviating poverty in rural societies through knowledge and skills and community mobilization.Majority of the members and direct beneficiaries of home gardening and organic farming , seed banks, are women . They also have a successful revolving loan scheme where credit from Rs. 3000 ? Rs. 25000 is given to women members, on a low interest rate. Male members i.e. a son can access credit via his mother and a husband via his spouse

Significant Participation of Indigenous Peoples

Not Applicable.

Policy Impact

Not Applicable.

Promoting Public Awareness of Global Environment

Not Applicable.

Replication of project activities

Other farmers in the area are also adopting the techniques to arrest soil erosion and improve soil fertility. by observation and guidance.

Capacity - Building Component

Ten households were selected to demonstrate a model kitchen and its management with fuel savings stoves. The intention was to acquaint the farmers on reducing emissions within the kitchen leading to the improvement of womens? health By promoting seed banking among the farmers there is self sufficiency and no scarcity and no dependency on hybrid varieties available for sale

Inovative Financial Mechanisms

They were able to save money spent on vegetable seeds by obtaining seeds form the seed banks which operated on the basis that a farmer was expected to return 1 ½ of the seed amount received from the bank

Project sustainability

Villagers who were not aware of techniques to minimize land degradation and its consequences are now knowledgeable and are able to adopt methods to arrest soil erosion and improve soil fertility. Other farmers in the area are also adopting the techniques by observation and guidance. By promoting seed banking among the farmers there is self sufficiency and no scarcity and no dependency on hybrid varieties available for sale. They have become sustainable in seeds with their seed banks

Project Results

The number of households implementing the technique increased as other farmers joined in after seeing the tangible results. The organic produce of the home garden were mainly consumed by the households while the commercial crops were sold for profit. The women were able to save around Rs.800 per month (US$7.50), which they would have otherwise spent on vegetables, from their home garden produce The member farmer community is now self sufficient in vegetable seeds for home gardens and for the commercial crops.

The model kitchen with the introduction of energy saving stoves has reduced the time women spend in cooking while saving fuel wood i.e. compare 8 kilos of fuel wood to cook a single meal, with 5 kilos to cook three meals.

The revolving fund scheme which started with a credit amount of Rs. 3000 increased up to Rs 25,000.. At present credit issued in some cases is as high as Rs 150,000The live

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