Small farmers vow to alleviate poverty by 2025 in Kathmandu Declaration

KATHMANDU, Nov 3:

Small farmers have vowed to make concerted efforts toward alleviating poverty by 2025.

Issuing a 19-point Kathmandu Declaration at the end of the Small Farmers’ Summit 2014 in the capital on Monday, they concluded that infrastructure development, gender inclusion, entrepreneurship and employment, market, among others, should be dealt as interconnected issues for poverty alleviation.

More than 850 small farmers from across the country had participated in the summit which was organized by Sana Kisan Bank Ltd in collaboration with nine other institutions that are providing micro finance services in rural areas of the country.

The organizers have also pledged to expand financial and non-financial services to more than one million poor families of 70 districts by 2025.

“Collective efforts will be made to increase access to finance for poor and marginalized communities through Sana Kisan Agricultural Cooperatives Ltd and other similar institutions to alleviate poverty and for capital formation,” the declaration read.

Among others, the declaration also emphasized the need to encourage livestock farming to increase export of dairy and meat products.  It also pledges to usher in good governance in cooperatives for their sustainability.

Likewise, local farmers have demanded that the government build agricultural road, storage houses and ensure market for their agro products.

Meanwhile, speaking at the closing ceremony of the summit, leaders of various political parties said that the government should encourage small farmers and encourage them to start commercial farming by providing them different subsidies.

“Economic development of the country is possible only through the development of agriculture. As our farm land is fragmented, the government should encourage strengthening of small farmers and cooperatives for mass production,” CPN-UML leader Bharat Mohan Adhikari said.

Similarly, UCPN (Maoist) leader Barshaman Pun said the government should make sure that small farmers get reasonable price for their products. “Small farmers are not getting good price for their products, but consumers are forced to pay high price by middlemen. This practice should be brought to an end by making sure that farmers get justifiable price for their products,” he added

Source: Republica