Final Workshop on Preparation of Institutional Agroforestry Business Plan for Cooperatives in Chitwan, Nepal

Background

Under the technical assistance of UN-REDD/FAO, ICIMOD has been working towards implementing the District REDD+ Action Plan (DRAP) for Chitwan, Nepal, which was developed and endorsed in 2016. As part of this arrangement, one of the objectives is to propose a detailed work plan for an agroforestry cooperative network in Chitwan. ICIMOD intends to support selected cooperatives from Chitwan district to develop their own agro-forestry implementation plans. Eight hot spots have been identified and selected for this work: Korak, Padampur, Piple, and Shaktikhaur.

To identify and prepare these four cooperatives, ICIMOD conducted a baseline study and orientation programme in Chitwan earlier this year. The baseline study helped to identify the cooperatives while the orientation programme was used to discuss strategies to incorporate agroforestry activities into the actions plans of the selected cooperatives.

To sensitize and train members of the cooperatives to prepare their own agroforestry business plans, ICIMOD held a faciliators workshop in Piple to assist in preparation of individual agroforestry strategies for each of the cooperatives. At the end of the workshop, the cooperative participants were charged with gathering information from their respective groups as to what would be the objectives, budget, strategies, and resources needed to make a final agroforestry business plan.

The final workshop in this series will be held Chitwan from 2-4 April 2017. The core members of the cooperatives will present their individual business plans for feedback and revision. During the workshop, the four cooperatives will complete their agroforestry plans according to their capabilities and resources, and receive further guidance on translating this plan into action in the field.

Objectives

To guide and assist the cooperatives in completing their final agroforestry business plans for their respective cooperatives.

Participants

Eight or nine core members of each cooperative will participate in the workshop. Altogether 32-35 participants are expected.

Expected Outcomes

1. Individual agroforestry five-year business plans for all four cooperatives, respectively.
2. Raised capacity of all cooperative core members to translate and execute their plans into action regarding agroforestry activities.