Reflection of the year 2012

View of Annapurna Range from Nepal's site, Pokhara

A click from DHAN's field trial

At the end of 2012, the year 2013 is already knocking the door to enter into the life. This is a good occasion to sit down and reflect on the year 2012. My 2012 remained busy with significant field visits in South Asia, attending workshops, conferences, meetings and student seminars in Canada and South Asia. Most of my time in 2012 was spent travelling to Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Jharkhand and to different field sites in Nepal and I had small amount of time to spend in my offices in Winnipeg.

Project half yearly meeting at Coimbatore, India

The exciting part started from my engagement with the big IDRC/CIDA funded small millets revalorization project in South Asia through an initiative called Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF). My involvement with this mega project was later supplemented with the individual funding I secured from Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada. 

Project team members and my supervisors after the meeting reception held at Guelph

At this juncture, I would like to thank my host universities (University of Manitoba and Canadian Mennonite University) in Winnipeg, donors (IDRC, CIDA and SSHRC) in Canada and the local partner organizations (LIBIRD in Nepal, DHAN Foundation in India and Arthacharya Foundation in Sri Lanka). Special thanks go to my supervisors Dr. Kirit Patel and Dr. Derek Johnson, the team members led by Dr. Kirit Patel, Canadian Mennonite, University, Winnipeg, Canada and Mr. M. Karthikeyan, DHAN Foundation, Madurai, India and Mr. Kamal Khadka, LIBIRD, Pokhara, Nepal.

Invited speaker at GCWA, New Delhi

Apart from being a member of the large project of revolarizing small millets in South Asia, in 2012, I conducted a survey among 210 households (140 in India and 70 in Nepal), 11 focus group discussions and some 25 individual in-depth interviews in the three project site. Data entry and data organization are underway, but at this point I can share the field observations on food security and wellbeing of smallholder farmers in South Asia in the context of labour out-migration. It will also enable me to guide myself for the year 2013, which I will be spending on data analysis, preparing research briefs, giving seminars and writing papers on the issues that I have observed in the field.

Meeting with DHAN colleagues at Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu

Based on my field visit in 2012, the preliminary observations or the outline of my work are mainly under the three themes: 1) public policy and food security of small holders, 2) Pathways of transmission of indigenous knowledge and its consequence in sustainable agricultural development, and 3) Gender roles and relations in the contemporary societal changes in rural South Asia. In all the three themes, wellbeing will be used as lens to look at the situation. As research is an evolving process, other themes and issues will be accommodated as and when discovered.

An interview session, Anchetty, Tamil Nadu

Research assistant at work: Survey interview session 

Some highlighted issues are that labour out-migration is one of the major livelihood strategies adopted by rural people; agricultural sector is becoming a neglected sector; youth’s orientation away from agriculture; decreasing livestock population leading to soil degradation; high objective wellbeing, but low subjective wellbeing among the people left behind by migrant workers; and changing women’s position due to migration of their husbands causes differences in gender roles and relations.

A click from LIBIRD's field trial

Finally, I would like to thank you, as a reader of my blog. I will keep updating with the new insights evolved during the process of data analysis. I wish you a new year full of new and interesting adventures in the year 2013!

Changes in livelihood capital assets before and after conflict: A case of female-headed households in Nepal

Article published in "The Development Review"


In Nepal, conflict has affected different social groups at different levels and scales. Taking an example from Bardiya District, Western Nepal, the paper aims to assess economic activities and safety nets of conflict-affected female-headed households using capital assets in the sustainable livelihood framework. Open-ended interviews with 30 conflict-affected female-headed households were conducted, in addition to an extensive visit of the study area, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions. The study confirms that in post-conflict situations, livelihood opportunities are limited in case of female-headed households. However, due to proliferation of development initiatives targeting conflict-affected families, their social capital increases at greater extent and economic capital at lesser extent. Realizing the limitation of the pentagon of capital assets within sustainable livelihood framework in post-conflict situation, the paper recommends political capital and psychosocial trauma as additional capitals and a
heptagon of capital assets, for household level livelihoods in post-conflict situation.

Authors: Chiranjibi Rijal and Hom Gartaula

Can be accessed through:
http://thedevelopmentreview.org/Papers/TDR_Volume1Issue1.pdf#page=25

This is a copyright protected material, published open access.

Indigenous Knowledge in the Crossroad

The wealth of knowledge prevailed in the rural and tribal areas are sandwiched between modernization and indigeneity. The younger generation is reluctant about practicing agriculture as well as eating the traditional food that entails a gradual loss of indigenous knowledge and traditional practices. The challenge is how to revive such knowledge and practices for a healthy food habit, conservation agriculture and sustainable development.

Recipes from finger millet brought by a contestant during recipe contest organized by DHAN Foundation, India
Photo: Hom Gartaula, 4 March 2012, Semiliguda, Odisha, India

An old woman is preparing finger millet - rice mix for the preparation of ragi gruel, a highly nutritious breakfast drink

Photo: Hom Gartaula, 2 April 2012, Semiliguda, Odisha, India

Shifting perceptions of food security and land in the context of labour out-migration in rural Nepal

Article published in "Food Security"

This paper presents the results of a survey of the livelihoods of people living in the eastern part of the subtropical plains of Nepal, known as the terai. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used in the survey and further data were obtained through focus group discussions, in-depth interviews with key informants and participant observations. Changes were recorded both in the perception of agricultural and residential land for a secure living and the meaning given to food security. The principal drivers causing these changes were voluntary out-migration for remunerative employment, urbanization and the reluctance of members of the younger generation to farm, which they regard as a “dirty job”. In consequence, people’s livelihood practices and access to food are gradually shifting from an agriculture-based economy to an economy that is based on other sources of income, including remittances from out-migrants. This development threatens not only the role of agriculture in rural livelihoods but also the food security of the country.

Authors: Hom Gartaula, Anke Niehof and Leontine Visser

It can be access through: http://www.springerlink.com/content/l0707251713j0353/ 

This is copyright protected material.