Home Garden

Project completed

Small and marginal farmers in Nepal, especially women and children, are regularly exposed to malnutrition and are vulnerable to external shocks such as health risks and natural hazards. Home garden aims to improve family nutrition and reduce vulnerability of such individuals and households. Objectives are to diversify dietary sources of disadvantaged groups in homestead for family consumption and increase capacity for adaptation to natural hazards and climate change. The project strengthens the safety net and the coping strategy of the most vulnerable in Nepal.
 

Country/region Topic Period Budget
Nepal
Climate change and environment
Agriculture & food security
Biodiversity
Household food security
Agricultural policy
16.01.2014 - 31.12.2021
CHF  3’100’000
Background

One quarter of the Nepali population is still below poverty line. More than half of the agricultural population operate on less than 0.5 ha land and the majority suffers food deficiency. The Nepali society is characterized by multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and patriarchal social structures and caste system that disadvantage several groups, especially women and Dalits. Poor marginal land holders are regularly exposed to lack of adequate food for family consumption. Unequal gender relations make girls and women suffer more than males from lack of nutritional food within a household. In addition, climate change such as changed patterns of draught and monsoon have started hitting the poor and women most as they are highly dependent on natural resources and subsistence agriculture for their livelihood. Despite good progress in addressing the vulnerability situation in Swiss Cluster Districts, the majority of the Home Garden project working districts has the lowest Human Development Indicators (HDI) and suffers from similar situations of food insecurity, malnutrition and external shocks indicating an urgent need for remedial action in the areas of food and nutrition security sustainably. The Home Garden project fits particularly in this environment.

Objectives

Contribute to improved nutrition and reduced vulnerability of smallholders and disadvantaged groups, especially women, by scaling up home garden practices in Nepal.

Target groups

The project’s direct beneficiaries are smallholders and disadvantaged groups, especially women. The project area comprises 20 districts which have lowest Human Development Index (HDI). The project identifies 10 Village Development Committees (VDCs) with high concentration of disadvantaged groups in each selected district. This also includes VDCs located in the road corridor of Swiss supported cluster districts. An inclusive targeting approach will be applied while selecting and working with target group. i.e. all women in the target communities of home garden working districts will benefit through access to home garden technology, inputs and related awareness building, but targeted support in the form of subsidized materials and capacity building will be provided exclusively for the women belonging to the poorest and most discriminated households and for those most vulnerable to external

Medium-term outcomes

1.1 Smallholders, especially disadvantaged groups, are aware of importance of home garden for family nutrition as well as of nutrition value of home garden products; 1.2 Smallholders, especially disadvantaged groups increase consumption of nutrition rich home garden products 1.3 Women, especially of discriminated caste and ethnic groups, participate in executive committees of Home garden groups 1.4 Home garden groups are aware of inputs and services available at DADOs and local government for home garden promotion and ways of accessing them 1.5 Local cooperatives and community seed banks are functional with capacity to provide technical and material support to its members 1.6 Home Garden groups implement pro-poor and inclusive provisions to benefit DAG members 2.1 Dept of Agriculture develops and disseminates policy framework and operational guideline for home garden integration into Agriculture Extension programme 2.2 District Agriculture Development Offices (DADOs), NGOs and Experienced Leader Farmers increase skills and resources to provide technical services to home garden groups 2.3 DADOs. Local government and NGOs of working districts include Home Garden as budgeted regular activities under Agriculture Extension 2.4 Research institutions, through research and validation, identify and develop new species that are rich in nutrition and resilient to shocks 2.5 Resource home gardens developed and functional in each village 2.6 Government and strategic partners initiate home garden beyond project districts through their regular programme.

Results

Results from previous phases:  

Previous phases have confirmed the effectiveness of the project in reaching and benefiting smallholders and disadvantaged groups with improved nutrition through diversifying dietary sources and reducing vulnerability. In its 3rd phase alone, the project organized and benefited 9128 households comprising 85% women and nearly 75% discriminated caste and ethnic groups of remote rural communities. However, the current geographical coverage of the project is too thin to provide a demonstrable impact to a level, which would permit integration of the Home Garden project into the GoN agriculture extension system and into other broader livelihood strategies.


Directorate/federal office responsible SDC
Credit area Development cooperation
Project partners Contract partner
International or foreign NGO
Private sector
  • Foreign private sector South/East
  • The Government of Nepal, the Ministry of Agriculture Development/ Vegetable Development Division (VDD) is the main partner.


Budget Current phase Swiss budget CHF    3’100’000 Swiss disbursement to date CHF    2’574’285
Project phases

Phase 4 16.01.2014 - 31.12.2021   (Completed)