The project seeks to: 1. Enhance community organization involving all stakeholders so as to create a new perception on the role of youth (women and men) in livelihoods improvement and community development through improved IVS rice production and other income generating activities. 2. Provide support and encouragement to the youth groups in undertaking savings and credit activities. 3. Activate self-help activities of youth through promoting social gatherings and joint management opportunities, so as to enhance trust and reciprocal relations among members. 4. Facilitate youth in identifying their problem and alternative solutions through group discussions - using participatory action approach (learning by doing). 5. Facilitate youth to identify alternative opportunities for income generation using local resources and products available in the village community, such as fruits and vegetables, cassava, groundnuts, bananas, etc. The processing of these food crops may bring about high added values and the improvement of other cottage industries such as handicrafts, chicken and goat/sheep restocking, fish capture and/or culture.

This project seeks to target 12 communities with Community Management Committees established in each of them. The committees will be made up largely by women (about 60%). The beneficiaries will be taken through various skills training programmes particularly in food growing and processing, leadership, SMEs, food safety and more besides.

This project seeks to use improved IVS cultivation techniques and varieties. This will certainly require local, site-specific knowledge that will tapped through community forums, meetings etc. communities will also be engaged in study exchange visits to network and learn from each other for improved management. The project will establish a demonstration site where a farmer field school for training farmers (growers and processors alike) in improved organic farming techniques and food quality management will be established.

With continued commitment and will of the people, the success and sustainability of this project is guaranteed. This will be primarily strengthened through technology transfer, skills and knowledge transfer, information exchange, job creation and income generation activities. There could be challenges in one way or the other, but definitely, no major risk or barrier is envisaged that will disrupt the smooth execution of the project. In terms of financial sustainability, after external funding expires, the project will continue funding its activities through revenues generated from the rice harvests. From the income locally generated, the project will be able to replicate the project in many other areas in the district.