The government should demonstrate in country’s rebuilding

Dr. Hom Gartaula

Postdoctoral Researcher, International Development Studies program

Menno Simons College, Canadian Mennonite University

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Nepal, which has been struggling with the political turmoil and economic stagnation for decades, was hit by a deadly 7.3 Richter scale earthquake, affecting more than half of the country’s landmass. In addition to human casualties and injuries, the earthquake destroyed more than half million houses, 8000 schools and ruined almost of the physical infrastructure in the country. The earthquake has triggered psychological distress to the point that children are afraid to go to school and migrant workers are yet to return their workplaces. The psychosocial trauma that people are undergoing may leave the country with long-time effects in terms of economic productivity and sociocultural normalcy. It is important to provide post-traumatic counselling to survivors and restore their hope for their lives. In a country with only 122 mental health experts, it will be herculean challenge to restore the wellbeing of 26 million people.

The Government of Nepal organized an International Conference on Nepal's Reconstruction (ICNR) in Kathmandu on June 25, 2015 in order to better organize relief efforts and streamline funds for rebuilding. One of the main objectives of this conference was to seek technical and financial support for reconstruction and rally the support and solidarity of all friends and partners for a resilient recovery of Nepal and its citizens. Over 250 international representatives participated in the conference, including major bilateral and multilateral agencies such as the European Union, the United Nations Development Programme, and the World Bank.

The government’s Post Disaster Needs Assessment Report 2015 estimated about NPR 670 billion (US$ 6.7 billion) will be needed to complete post-earthquake reconstruction. While the government had expected to receive only about 40% of the estimated cost, the international community pledged almost NPR 440 billion (US$ 4.4 billion). India alone has offered NPR 100 billion and China NPR 77 billion. Most of these funds are under soft loan or grants. The international community is showing tremendous support and a willingness to help Nepal and overcome this crisis. In fact, the leaders of Nepal can take this as an opportunity to rebuild the country and realize the long-time slogan of ‘New Nepal’ that has been a dream for generations. In order to realize this dream, the leaders of Nepal should set aside their political differences and work together for the public good. The formation of the independent and autonomous Authority for Reconstruction of Structures Damaged by Earthquake chaired by the current Prime Minister is first positive step in the right direction.

Key to the reconstruction process is to rebuild damaged infrastructure, which at this point has been assured. Nepal should, however, consider ‘beyond the funding’ management issues. Indeed, funding has never been a significant problem for Nepal. Both the international community and over the more than a million non-resident Nepali (NRN) are reliable and generous in their support. The next step now is how to effectively manage those funds available for reconstruction so that every dollar of the raised amount is spent for the genuine cause.

However, the relationships between Nepalese citizens and its politico-bureaucratic environment are not always easy, which raises doubts about whether the reconstruction process will go smoothly and achieve desired results. Nepalese political leaders and bureaucrats are known for nepotism, favouritism, corruption and misconduct. The media is rife with stories about corruption and the vested interests of ministers, other influential political leaders, and the staff associated with fund mobilization, and project execution. This not only happens in their regular activities, but also in special cases such as earthquake or flooding and other disasters. It is disappointing to say that many of them take these disasters as an opportunity to make money. For example, we have heard about hiding donated tents, tarps, bags of rice and other grains, etc. and selling them in the market. One of such cases resulted into the resignation of one of the assistants to a minister in the process of distributing relief materials recently.

Nevertheless, there is no alternative to a country’s government to rebuild a nation. It is the government that needs to be strengthened and held responsible and accountable for the process. NGOs, local or international, do not have a full mandate or resources to work in the whole country. They often work in accessible areas and serve to particular interest groups, based on profession, gender, economic class or religion. They often compete to provide handouts that are visible and result into measurable impacts. We have to learn from Haiti where the government failed to provide strong leadership and thus NGOs led the rebuilding process. The result is that even after five years of earthquake millions of people still live in the tents despite over 50 billion US dollars spent under Overseas Development Assistance provided by the international community.

Another important aspect is the human resources required for the recovery process. The government should make a human resource plan for short-term (repairing damage) and long-term development initiatives in the country. Every day over 2000 youths depart from Tribhuvan International Airport to look for employment opportunities abroad. Many of them work in construction sector in the Gulf and western countries. Could this workforce be enticed to stay in Nepal, even if it meant working for a lower wage? Are those hands used to build FIFA stadium in Qatar ready to build their own stadiums and roads back home? How would those Gorkhas and NRNs be best involved in building the land they still call home?

This is the right time to make a plan and attract this important labour force to work for the country and contribute to the nation’s rebuilding process. A simple example: rather than providing direct cash support, in grant or loan form, to those victims whose houses are destroyed, these projects can be contracted through local builders and craft-persons. This not only helps reduce under- or misuse of funds, but also creates employment opportunities for those skilled workers. It helps revitalize the local economy. For this, the government should think about promoting local artisans and make building materials locally. As our leaders are always influenced by Indian politics, why can’t they learn from the ‘Made in India’ movement that aims to foster innovation, enhance skill development, protect intellectual property and build the best manufacturing infrastructure in the country? The government can promote a ‘Made in Nepal’ initiative and open up an avenue to strengthen Nepali craftsmanship so that we do not have to rely on the materials that are dumped by international suppliers, which are not always reliable and trustworthy, as evident from the quality of rice supplied by the World Food Programme recently. Let us create momentum for country’s long-term growth and sustainable development. This is indeed an opportunity to build the nation and, if we do it right, a fresh start for Nepal.

Entitlement vs. Food Sovereignty

Entitlement vs. Food Sovereignty Approaches: Challenges for sustainable food and nutrition security in the changing agrarian landscape in Tamil Nadu, India.

ABSTRACT

The present day reality is that the laudable economic growth has not able to conquer the alarming rate of poverty, hunger and malnutrition in the world. The support-led and growth-mediated intervention measures provide grounds for farmers to opt for different livelihood options, determining their access and rights to food. Based on the fieldwork carried out in Anchetty panchayat in the northwest corner of Tamil Nadu, India, the paper examines how the entitlement and food sovereignty approaches to food security interact with the aspirations and rights of small farmers to seek diverse livelihoods in the changing landscape of agrarian economy and livelihood opportunities. It demonstrates that while entitlement approach lacks recognition of local actors and remains silent about ecological resources and biodiversity, food sovereignty approach seems too ideological to the rights of local actors and fails to capture the limitation of their freedom of choice and creating strategies to benefit from the contemporary knowledge economy. The paper suggests that any intervention for promoting food and nutrition security must understand the process of changes in the agrarian landscape, as they are based on the context specific ecology of practice.

Keywords: Food security, Entitlement, Food sovereignty, Wellbeing, Tamil Nadu, India

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Migration to and from the Nepal terai: shifting movements and motives

In Nepal, the historical evidence shows that migration to the terai increased after the eradication of malaria in the late 1950s and has been increasing ever since. More recently, however, out-migration from the terai is rapidly increasing. By applying both qualitative and quantitative research methods, in-depth qualitative interviews, focus group discussions and household survey were used for data collection, with considerable inputs from ethnographical fieldwork for about 21 months. The paper presents three types of population flows in the historical pattern. First, the history of Nepal as an arena of population movement; second, the gradual opening up of the terai, leading to the hills-terai movement; and the third, the current outward flow as an individual migration for work. The paper exemplifies that poverty and lack of arable land are not the only push factors, but that pursuing a better quality of life is gaining importance as a migration motive. We conclude that like movements of people, their motives for moving are also not static and cannot be taken for granted.

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http://www.southasianist.ed.ac.uk/article/view/65

Can it be promoted to improve smallholders' income?

Kodo (finger millet) is traditionally grown in the hills and mountain areas of Nepal. It is one of such neglected grains that is superior than rice, wheat and maize in terms of its nutritional and medicinal qualities. It has been in the Nepali kitchen, especially in the hills and mountains for centuries. The foods prepared from kodo is also considered a relief food for diabetics and arthritis. However, it is considered a neglected crop and food of the poor and dalits. In the recent years, though due to sociocultural changes, rakshi is becoming one of the main drinks among so called high caste brahmins and kshetris. 

Rakshi is the distilled alcoholic drink in Nepal. It is commonly made from finger millet, locally called kodo in Nepali language. Rakshi can be prepared using other materials too such as rice, wheat, maize, fruits, barley etc. Other food items such as dhindo (dough), puwa, khole are also popular in those areas; however, rakshi, can be promoted for important cash income for the smallholder farmers. Instead of banning on the production, a regulation and value addition to the production and technology development for improved production rakshi for national and international market would be more profitable for the farmers as well.

Marginalization of millets

The following presentation was made as part of the panel presented at CASID Conference 2013 at the University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 3-6 June 2013.

http://www.casid-acedi.ca/conferences/annual_conference/2013_call_for_papers

Marginalization of millets: Impacts of labour out-migration on food security and wellbeing of smallholder farmers in rural India

Hom Gartaula, Kirit Patel, Derek Johnson and Dinesh Moghariya

It is evident that green revolution has proved a technological advancement in agriculture and contributed to global food security. However, the way it has impacted the semi-arid tribal rural areas is different than the areas where there is high potential for high-input commercial agriculture. One of the resulting effects of green revolution in such semi-arid rainfed areas is the increasing trend of labour out-migration. The paper aims to contribute to our understanding of contemporary rural India by exploring wellbeing of the smallholder farmers in fulfilling their role in the ecology of practice. The paper uses both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Primarily drawing from a household survey conducted among the 138 households from two sites in India (68 from Anchetty, Tamil Nadu and 70 from Semiliguda, Odisha), the study shows that wellbeing is correlated with location, migration status and millet growing status of the respondent households with varied degrees of association. It is revealed that small millets are one of the major crops grown in the semi-arid rainfed farming systems in India, but due to farmers’ increasing engagement with other non-farm and off-farm activities the incentive to grow this traditional and culturally important crop is decreasing. The increasing importance of diverse livelihood activities does not only change the existing ways of living, but it also gives rise to new pathways that does not necessarily embrace the traditional value systems, beliefs and mores. However, one has to be aware that it is a part of the wider process of sociocultural transformation and a means to the ecology of practice, which can go along with or without the aid of labour out-migration.

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Magic with Millet: Towards enhancing India’s Food security

http://farmersforum.in/policy/magic-with-millet-towards-enhancing-indias-food-security/

The National Food Security Act (NFSA) and the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) have provided a major shift in alleviating poverty strategy. Nevertheless, the poverty status of the country is alarming. Even with the growth rate at 8.5 per cent, poverty and consequent malnutrition makes for 37 per cent (some data states 41.0 per cent) of Indians living below the poverty level. A staggering 43.5 per cent of Indian children under five remain malnourished.  Higher agricultural growth with sufficient food production can undoubtedly be useful in combating poverty and malnutrition. To implement the NFSA, the country needs is to expand its allegedly leaky public distribution system (PDS). There have been pre-Budget suggestions for Conditional Cash Transfer (CCF) and food coupon system but there is little media focus on the neglected but highly potential bio-resource of coarse grains or millets in India.

India has a rich resource base both in terms of farmers’ varieties and laboratory produced cultivators of millets in India. While, admittedly it may not be much of a panacea in the Indo-Gangetic plains, millions of poor Indians in the hostile arid and semi-arid zones of India would stand to benefit. The Constitution invests every Indian with the Right to Life, irrespective of cast, creed, religion and geographical locations. Proper management of coarse grains resource can ensure that such right along with other supplementing measure is actually being ensured. This is easier said than done because India with a population of 1.21 billion in 2.4 per cent of global space is besieged with problems related to management of natural resources with which the country is richly endowed.

With eight per cent of the global biodiversity, India has a rich genetic resource base that, if appropriately managed and used, could be a great asset. The agro-biodiversity in India offers enormous opportunity to adopt a strategy for ensuring food security for one of the fastest growing human population. Regrettably, an analysis of post-Independence agricultural policy, including the PDS, proves that the momentous strategy adopted during the era of Green Revolution and beyond had failed to respect India’s agro-bio-resources: one such area of utter neglect is millets.

Millets are grown in arid, semi-arid or rather marginal conditions of soil fertility and moisture. Nevertheless, they are considered as rain fed crops and could be of great help to large localised population as staples or even reserve crops in marginal areas. They are a proven source of energy and protein for millions of human population, additionally providing fodder for cattle population. Unfortunately, a steady decline in millet growing areas in the post Green Revolution period, without any intervention of the authorities, has led to it almost disappearing from the food list.

Millets have a short growing season, a low moisture demand and can play a significant role in a mixed cropped system. Characteristic ecosystems and climatic condition conducive for growth of three major groups is given below (Table 1). Adapting to both irrigated and dry land farming, millets can be a rich source of food and fodder in the years of scarcity and serve as “suitable candidate for famine reserve food.” It is stated that adaptation of simple agronomic practices with timely sowing, right varieties, manuring and weeding and mixed cropping could even more raise the yield by 200 per cent or even 300 per cent (Ghosal & Krishna, 1995). Because of localised production, largely in backward areas, millets did never play the role of major community in the market. The geography and history of Millet has been dealt by Krishnaswamy (1938) focusing the role of Africa and India as its homeland. Incidentally, India still acts as the major producer of millets in today’s world.

Types of millets and their varietal diversity

Millet crops belong to eight major genera of plants in India, namely, Eleusine, Coix, Sorghum, Pennisetum, Setaria, Panicum, Paspalum and Echinochola but are more easily recognisable by their popular names.

The diversity of varieties provides an assemblage of genetic characters and opportunities to be used in the desired condition of stress. Seven varieties of Finger millets are known in Karnataka alone, which are drought and pest resistant. Another five varieties are known from Garhwal Himalaya, which provide higher productivity with variable duration for cultivation days ranging from 130-150. Likewise, Sorghum is known to have five varieties in Andhra Pradesh, in the same state at best four varieties of Finger millet are also known to exist. Varietal diversity is also recorded for Foxtail millet in Garhwal Himalaya, each with 150 days duration.

Unfortunately, deprived of positive policy support and emphasis on rice and wheat, there has been a decline in the number of extant varieties as well as areas under millet cultivation. Farmers in Andhra Pradesh, a Deccan Development Society Survey reveals, believe that hybrid seed of rice and wheat has led to fast decline in the traditional millet cultivation. Changed food habit of the young generation and dearth of organic manure like cow dung are believed to be the other contributing factor. It is interesting to note that in the National Conference on Agro biodiversity (February, 2006) held in Chennai under the aegis of National Biodiversity Authority not a single paper focused on millet.

Semi arid and arid zone

The arid and semi arid zones of India are recorded as 0.31 million sq. km spread over Rajasthan (61 per cent), Haryana and part of Punjab (nine per cent), Gujarat (19.6 per cent) and Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka (10.4 per cent). Extremes of temperature, severe and frequent drought, low relative humidity and high wind velocity characterise the arid and semi arid zone. The region has undergone changes in the area where canal irrigation has been introduced but, otherwise, remains under ecological stress. The area under millet in comparison to rice and wheat can be seen in Table 4.

It is believed that millets can offer the most assured food security in the zone. Table 5 provides a comparative analysis of nutrient content available in rice, wheat and millets.

Conservation and management

The apathy of the Ministry of Agriculture has been well evidenced but the increasing awareness in the Civil Society Organisations has led to some welcome change. Of these, the setting up of millet in India Network spread over 17 states in perhaps the most welcome. In February 2010, MINI focused on the urgent need to create space for India’s millet-based agriculture in the 12th Financial Plan (2010-11), as a part of celebrating the Year of Biodiversity, when strong support was rendered by 153 members of CBOs, 53 Scientists, 26 Physicians and Nutrition Experts, 22 Members of the Parliament, 16 Presidents of Panchayats.[1]It may be noted that even without proven support, India contributes 33 per cent of total millet production, others being China and eight countries from Africa. Out of 31,875,547 tonnes production, India’s contribution stands at 10,610,109 tonnes but there is scope to produce much more.

It is interesting to note that 17 kharif hybrids and 15 rabi hybrids of Sorghum have been released of which seven were released at the national level. Again, at least 24 hybrids and varieties of Pearl millets are found suitable for India. Similar efforts can be seen in the development of 28 varieties of ‘Ragi’, 12 varieties of Foxtail millets, nine varieties of Kodo millets, five varieties of Proso millets, nine varieties of little millets and six varieties of Barnyard millets have been released, each with different attribute between 1986-2003 (Elangovan et. al., 2009). The question is: How much of such an impressive array of potential wealth has really been used to ensure food security and poverty alleviation. This is in spite of the money being spent on All India Coordinated Research Projects on Pearl Millets and Small Millets.

Noting steady decline in coarse cereal production, a centrally-sponsored scheme, called “Integrated Cereal Development Programme in Coarse Cereal based Cropping Systems Areas (ICDP-Coarse Cereal) has now been launched. It is expected to include frontline demonstration, assistance to farmers for improved package of practices, supply of quality seeds and resource conservation technologies. Currently, 25 millet manufactures and suppliers are known to be operative. MINI is urging the government to promote millet cultivation and provide an incentive of Rs 5,000 per acre for cultivating millets. Since millets are grown in an area of maximum 20 million acres in India, the incentive percentage will not exceed Rs 1,000 crore; compare this with fertiliser subsidy of Rs 1,40,000 crore provided by government in 2010.[2]

It is of interest that India, the host country for International Centre for Agriculture Research in the Semi-arid Tropics, has an institute under Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGAIR), ICRISAT. ICRISAT has global mandate on Pearl millet and is working for decades on the development disease resistant, yield increasing cultivars; it has significantly contributed towards combating ‘Downy Mildew’ disease, parasitic witch weeds and insect pests. A molecular map of Pearl millet has also been prepared.

With all its past history of the role it has played for centuries in offering staple food to millions of people in ecologically hostile areas, millet must be accorded the highest priority in terms of denominating it as the major cereal crop along with rice and wheat. Making millet available through proper marketing and making it a part of the PDS should also be on top of the agenda. Popularising millet-based food has been something that CSOs had engaged in but it is only serious policy support by the government that can make it a value-added product for India’s food security. Budget 2012-13 should be a good time to make a beginning.

References:

1. (www.milletindia.org/letters/letter_Financeminister_ Feb16_2010.pdf)

2. Times news network, June 24, 2011

Elangovar, m. et.al. 2009 sorghum and millet Genetic resource management. p 21-55 in agrobiodiversity hotspots:access and benefit sharing (ed. s.kannaiyan). narosa publishing house, new delhi, chennai, mumbai, kolkata.

Ghosal, anjali and onkar krishna. 1995. millets of india. navadanya. new delhi.

Gulati, ashok and Ganguly, kaveri 2010 .right to Food: Getting it right. economic times, new delhi; december 4, 2010

krishnaswamy, n. 1937. Geography and history of millets. curr. sci., 7-355

Empowerment and Public Service Delivery in Developing Asia and the Pacific

http://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/pub/2013/empowerment-public-service-delivery-asia.pdf

Foreword

I feel very privileged to be associated with this report, which will be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank in New Delhi in May 2013. The general theme of this meeting is “Development through Empowerment,” and the report makes a fine contribution toward an understanding of that path to development. The particular subject matter of this study, ably led by Shikha Jha and Anil Deolalikar, is the critical importance of essential services in helping the expansion of human well-being and the reduction of poverty and deprivation, and the part that empowerment of the people can play in facilitating this process. It also discusses the distinct ways in which empowerment of people can be advanced and the kind of results we should expect to see as a result of these constructive changes. 

The report is self-contained, with a good statement of the questions asked and the conclusions reached, and it is not necessary for me to re-state here what the authors have discussed very well in the body of the text. However, there is a case for placing the report in a wider perspective. In understanding the background to this enquiry, it is important to appreciate (i) the nature and richness of the idea of empowerment, (ii) the direct and indirect roles of essential services in promoting human empowerment, and (iii) the respective roles of the state and the market in development through empowerment.

Empowerment is integrally related to the expansion of human freedom—the freedom of people, often very disadvantaged people, to be able to do and achieve what they want (and have reason to want). Empowerment can, thus, be seen as enhancement of human capability. But it concerns particularly those capabilities that give a person an ability to catch up with others, and in particular, not be dominated by people in more privileged positions, because of wealth, social standing, or political entitlement.

Consider Aneurin Bevan’s famous comment, “The purpose of getting power is to be able to give it away,” which Michael Foot separated out for special attention in his biography of Bevan. The remark may initially appear to be mysterious, but it is an eloquent articulation of the fact that the underdogs of society may seek power not so much to use it over others, but to make sure that others do not have power over them. To have power without using it is quite different from not having that power at all. This idea fits generally with the capability perspective, which points to the importance of having the freedom to do something one has reason to value (whether or not one actually chooses to do it). And yet the idea of empowerment goes beyond that. The language of power can be very effective in drawing attention to the conflicting aspects of interdependences involved in social, economic, and political relations. For example, having the power to make public authorities, or private businesses, pay  attention to the concerns of the underdogs of society is a quintessential example of significant empowerment. And on this subject (among others), the report has much insight to offer.

Empowerment has importance of its own in advancing human freedom and well-being, but it also helps in the consolidation, advancement, and improvement of essential services, which in turn expand human wellbeing and freedom. This report is much concerned with these linkages. The contribution of empowerment to the successes of development works indirectly as well as directly. An extensive expansion of the capabilities and freedoms of people (especially less privileged people), and the corresponding enhancement of their powers, are part and parcel of the development process, and there is no need to look for indirect connections in acknowledging the importance of this basic recognition. The ability of people to lead a long and fulfilling life, to be educated and numerate, to avoid suffering from disease and from uncared old age, and other such fundamentally important freedoms must, with good reason, be seen to be constitutive parts of human development. 

While those direct connections are easy to appreciate, there are also more complicated relations in understanding the different ways in which human empowerment can also contribute to expanding the delivery and use of essential services, like schooling, medical care, social amenities (such as sanitation, water supply, and, of course, environmental preservation). There is a two-way relationship here. To illustrate, just as schooling and medical care contribute to empowering people, people with clearer understanding and articulate voices, and strengthened by good social organization can demand with energy and force more—and better—public services. There can be many indirect connections in enhancing people’s power to make strong demand for more facilities, and to insist on good quality of the services offered. And empowerment may reflect itself also in arrangements for monitoring what is offered to the people.

These diverse—but interrelated—connections are particularly worth investigating, both because of their importance and because of their complexity. This report has a great deal to say on these connections: how they work, and what can be done to enhance their vigor and reach.

The third issue concerns the role of the market in providing many of these services, when they can be incorporated within a profit-seeking framework. However, sometimes this becomes difficult to do, because of barriers to successful marketization, which economists have studied for a long time, involving absence of competition, presence of “externalities,” the importance of indivisible “public goods,” and asymmetric information affecting the relations between buyers and sellers. The motivations of private firms, seeking profits in an aggressive way (e.g., the steps taken by health insurance companies to exclude patients with previous records of serious illnesses or proneness to particular ailments) can also clash fairly comprehensively with fair and just provision of services (in this case of medical services).

There are further issues of instrumental use of markets, even when the planning and support for the services come from the state. The state can deliver some services directly, and often has reason to do so, but in other cases the process of state support for these services (e.g., for schooling or medical care) can make use, to varying extents, of the market mechanism. For example, in providing nutritional support, the state can either provide food to people in kind, or provide income support to the poorer people, leaving them to buy food from the market, with the help of their enhanced cash position. Similarly, alternatives to state-run schools include selfreliant private schools, or private schools that are made to accommodate a certain proportion of non-fee-paying pupils, or a proportion of pupils who have publicly-given vouchers that they can use to go to one private school or another.

There is, thus, a large cluster of difficult choices that have to be faced and addressed in deciding on the right public–private mixture in the provision of essential services, including important issues of efficiency and equity. The report has probingly investigated many of these decisional problems. The choices link very extensively with the role of empowerment of people in making these services available and effectively usable. The terrain of development strategy studied in this report is quite central to the approach of development through empowerment. We have excellent reason to be grateful to the authors of this far-reaching and enlightening report.

Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen
Thomas W. Lamont University Professor
and Professor of Economics and Philosophy
Harvard University