Enhancing Livelihoods and Reducing Poverty of Mountain People by Linking High Value Products and Services to Value Chain Development

The focused commercial harnessing of high value products and services (HVPS) presents a significant opportunity for mountain communities to generate employment and income by using the natural resource endowment and comparative advantages of the Himalayan ecosystem. The project focuses on key HVPS in order to improve the economic security of vulnerable mountain communities by maximising their benefits in a socially inclusive, gender sensitive, environmentally sound, and regionally networked manner. ICIMOD and its partners will identify, analyse, and develop selected HVPS value chains to address socio-economic and institutional barriers that prevent upstream producers and service providers from benefiting equitably from HVPS; and subsequently develop sustainable and innovative pro-poor upgrading strategies. The project focuses on a limited geographic area in India and Nepal for a period of 30 months and relies on the experience of the expanded ICIMOD network, which is operational in both countries. The project also closely coordinates with concerned national partners in order to broaden the support for the project, enhance knowledge networking and management, and, eventually, develop participatory models for further learning and adaptation.

Objectives

• Analyse and create an enabling environment for upstream producers and service providers to efficiently respond to market demands and to facilitate an equitable interface with the private sector
• Analyse and develop value chains in a participatory manner to reflect the needs of the poor and disadvantaged communities and to build upon their knowledge and strengths
• Develop a dynamic and cohesive value chain framework that promotes HVPS development and private sector collaboration, as well as regional and global networking, without detrimental effects on the mountain environment
• Develop a core competence and regional knowledge base in ICIMOD and among its partners to share and enable HKH countries to use the value chain approach for equitable and sustainable socioeconomic development

Duration

July 2008 – December 2011

Geographical coverage

Nepal
India

Core financial partners/development partners/sponsors

Ford Foundation (FF)

Implementing partners

Nepal: Asia Network for Sustainable Agriculture and Bioresources (ANSAB), Nepal
India: Himalayan Action Research Centre (HARC), Uttarakhand

Contact information

Michael Kollmair
Programme Manager
Sustainable Livelihoods and Poverty Reduction
mkollmair@icimod.org