Visit to Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative (MoLMAC), Province 1 Nepal

In a meeting with the Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperative (MoLMAC) in Province 1 on August 17, key pressures in the local system were discussed. This includes include high levels of emigration, which results in decreased interest and engagement in agriculture as well as labor shortages. Other priorities related to Rupantar include increasing the production of lentils and maintaining soil quality. As a result, one of the priorities of the Provincial Government is the need for sustainable agricultural mechanization in Province 1. Several local custom hiring centers have been established and now have necessary machinery. The next stage is focused on ensuring the operators have all the necessary skills and can be supported to operate effectively. The wider partner network can contribute to this support as a basis for diversification.

Tamara Jackson, the project leader for Rupantar, briefed on the project and described how it is looking for tools, systems, and processes to enable scaling or trying to fill in the gaps needed to achieve the ultimate result. The domestic agri-market and the challenges such as high input costs required for agricultural production without good market facilities were also emphasized during this meeting with Pashupati Pokharel, Director of the Planning Division at the MoLMAC, Prakash Kumar Dangi, Directorate of Agriculture Development  Chief, Dr Deepa Diwali, Director of Livestock Division and Food Security and Agribusiness Promotion Division at the MoLMAC, and Abhimanyu Adhikari, Extension Officer for agriculture at the MoLMAC. We look forward to continued collaboration with our colleagues at MoLMAC throughout the project.