Resilient Mountain Village (RMV)

The Resilient Mountain Village (RMV) is an integrated approach to development in mountain areas that combines economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development with climate change adaptation, resilience, and preparedness for future risks. We’ve evolved our approach from elements of the climate smart agriculture, and climate smart villages concepts of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research (CGIAR).

The Resilient Mountain Village Model (previously referred to as Climate Smart Village).

The approach was initially implemented on the basis of the climate smart village concept in collaboration with the Centre for Environmental and Agricultural Policy Research, Extension and Development (CEAPRED) in Kavre. Experience from the initial implementation led to the understanding that the aspirations of people in the mountain areas of the HKH can only be realized by adopting a much broader approach that integrates climatic, socioeconomic, and future resilience and considers challenges and opportunities specific to the mountain context. Accordingly, RMV is a comprehensive approach customized for mountain areas that equips communities with tools to improve their resilience to change, and fosters sustainable development.

Based on the success of the model, other ICIMOD initiatives are exploring the potential of implementing it in other areas, including as a model for a pilot on earthquake reconstruction in Nuwakot, Nepal. Elements of the approach have been adopted by the Government of Pakistan’s Benazir Income Support Program (BISP), and discussions are ongoing with the Government of Nepal. We’re also engaging other governments and policy makers to scale up the RMV model.

The RMV model focuses on three goals: climate resilience, socioeconomic resilience, and future resilience. Each of these goals includes a number of sub activities that are implemented in an integrated manner.