Towards a Just and Lasting Change
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TOWARDS A JUST AND LASTING CHANGE STORIES OF PEOPLE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN RURAL NORTHEAST INDIA Edited by K. Moses Chalai Vincent Darlong Adrian Marbaniang Published by North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project for Upland Areas (IFAD & Govt of India) Shillong March 2008 2 Preface North Eastern Regional Community Resource Management Project for Upland Areas (NERCORMP1) is one of the two pioneering development projects working with communities in the North East. Thus, many of its experiences in dealing with issues of poverty reduction and community resource management are a rich learning resource. To improve project delivery and impact, NERCORMP has also been keen to document its experiences on a continual basis. And to do so notably through its own operational teams without total dependence on documentation experts outside the project. It is in this context that ENRAP and NERCORMP collaborated on customizing and applying an evaluative and participatory technique of documentation promoted as Systematization2 by FIDAMERICA, IFAD’s network in Latin America. Apart from documenting project lessons, the methodology also helped build project and partner capacity for regular and systematic documentation. Starting in October 2005 three such exercises were conducted in the widely spread out project area of Meghalaya, Manipur and Assam with participation of project team; government and NGO partners; and community members. Participants evaluated the process of change engineered through project interventions and documented this thematically, choosing about four to five areas of interventions in each of the three exercises, ranging from issues of natural resource management to an assessment of women’s empowerment through income generation activites . The effort was led by the vision of project leaders and operationalised by the senior project staff. The intensive seven day exercise comprising of preparatory desk research, participatory research in the field and subsequent analysis and writing allowed teams to work together and learn from each other. They were able to tell the untold stories, come to realize the unexpected results of their project interventions through this systematization technique. Subsequent electronic discussions on this process also offered a platform for continued learning. The result is the set of comprehensive reports put together in this collection, which have been used to disseminate findings to both grass-roots organizations and to policy makers while providing the necessary evidence-based feedback to the project management. These exercises also demonstrated how project staff and stakeholders could document their experiences in a systematic and participatory manner. It gave them an opportunity to focus on evaluating their own work and reflecting on the project successes and challenges, which they often did not get a chance to do. In the process, they also 1 NERCORMP is a joint initiative of the International Fund for Agricultural Development and Government of India. 2 For more on Systematization visit www.enrap.org. ENRAP is a joint collaboration between IFAD and International Development Research Centre of Canada. It is a platform for knowledge sharing and networking between IFAD projects and their stakeholders. 3 benefited from improving their own documentation skills and recognized what needs to be done to comprehensively document their learning experiences. Through this publication and other such efforts I hope that NERCORMP’s rich experience can benefit similar future endeavours and enable a more fruitful policy dialogue on issues affecting communities of the North-East of India. Shalini Kala, Knowledge Networking for Rural Development in Asia Pacific ( ENRAP) New Delhi March 2008 4 Acknowledgements We would like to thank the ENRAP-IDRC, New Delhi for supporting the ‘systematization of documentation’ processes in three project districts of NERCORMP-IFAD, viz. West Garo Hills in Meghalaya, Ukhrul in Manipur and Karbi Anglong in Assam between 2005 to 2007. In particular we would like to express our profound gratitude to Ms Shalini Kala (former Programme Coordinator) and Ms Apoorva Mishra of ENRAP, without whose keen interest, active participation and professional guidance the processes of ‘systmatization of documentation’ at NERCORMP could not have been completed. Both of them have been part of the processes of documentation by visiting difficult project villages, enduring challenges of unfamiliar terrains and physical discomforts. Numerous ‘facilitators’ were involved in the processes of ‘documentation’, from whose experiences and guidance the NERCORMP staff benefited much. Thank you to Pushkin Phartiyal (Nainital), Bashu Babu Aryal (Kathmandu, Nepal), Yolando C. Arban (Philippines), Pankaj Gupta (Bangalore), Amba Jamir (Guwahati), Mary Beth Sanate (Churachandpur), Pikato Jimo (Kohima) and Bidhayak Das (Shillong). We would also like to thank our colleagues at DST, particularly the WGHCRMS, Tura; UDCRMS, Ukhrul; and KACRMS, Hamrem for their support and active engagements during the processes of systematization of documentation. We also acknowledge with thanks the contribution of partner NGOs and the communities who actively participated during the processes of systematization of documentation. All but one article in this compilation had been produced through ‘systematization of documentation’ processes, which continue to be a great learning opportunity for NERCORMP-IFAD. K. Moses Chalai Vincent Darlong Adrian Marbaniang 5 Acronyms Used ASEB Assam State Electricity Board BRO Bosco Reach Out CBOs Community Based Organizations CC Community Coordinator CEM Chief Executive Member CKKA Chinthong CO Community Organiser DoNER Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region DRDA District Rural Development Agency DST Development Support Team ENRAP Knowledge Networking for Rural Development in Asia Pacific Region FCC First Contact Carer FD Forest Department FGD Focus Group Discussion FPO Food Product Order GB Gaon Bura GD Group Discussion GoI Government of India GRAS Grassroot Agricultural Specialists / Grassroots Agri-Horti Specialists Ha Hectar HQ Headquarters IDRC International Development Research Centre IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development IG Income Generation IGA Income Generation Activities INR Indian Rupee JFM Jhum and Fallow Management / Joint Forest Management KACRMS Karbi Anglong Community Resource Management Society KANIM Karbi Anglong NERCORMP Institute of Micro Finance KCC Kisan Credit Card Kg Kilogram KII Key Informant Interview KINGFISHER Fishery Experts LCL Low cost latrine LIVE Livestock & Veterinary Experts MFI Micro Finance Institute MoU Memorandum of Understanding MP Member of Parliament MYRADA Mysor Resettlement Development Agency NABARD National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development 6 NaRM-G Natural Resource Management Group NBFI Non Banking Financial Institute NEC North Eastern Council NEDFi North Eastern Development Financial Institution NERCORMP North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project for Upland Areas NGO Non Governmental Organisation NMCIREMP Northern Mindanao Community Initiatives and Resource Management Project NRM Natural Resource Management NTFP Non Timber Forest Produce P3DM Participatory 3 Dimensional Model PCDS Programme Coordinator and Development Strategist PDS Public Distribution System PHE Public Health Engineering PHED Public Health Engineering Department P-NaRM-G Primary Natural Resource Management Group PRA Participatory Rural Appraisal PSU Project Support Unit PWD Public Works Department RBI Reserve Bank of India RS Regional Society SBI State Bank of India SC Shifting Cultivation SDATA Society for Development Alternative in Tribal Area SDT Systematization Documentation Team SHG Self Help Group SIDBI Small Industries Development Bank of India SLA Sustainable Livelihood Analysis SSI Semi Structured Interview SWOT Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat TBBL Tripura Bamboo Board Limited TSL Tangkhul Shanao Long UBI United Bank of India UDCRMS Ukhrul District Community Resource Management Society UN United Nations UNOPS The United Nations Office for Project Services USD US Dollar VA Village Authority VDC Village Development Council V-NaRM-G Village Natural Resource Management Group WGHCRMS West Garo Hills Community Resource Management Society WRC Wet Rice Cultivation Yr Year 7 Table of Contents PREFACE ....................................................................................................................... 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................................... 5 ACRONYMS USED ........................................................................................................ 6 LIVELIHOODS BASED BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION: LESSONS FROM WEST GARO HILLS DISTRICT OF MEGHALAYA................................................................. 10 IMPROVING ACCESS TO CREDIT FOR THE RURAL COMMUNITIES THROUGH INSTITUTIONAL FINANCIAL LINKAGES IN WEST GARO HILLS DISTRICT OF MEGHALAYA ............................................................................................................... 32 IMPACTS OF SHGS ON WOMEN’S QUALITY OF LIFE: CASE STUDY OF WEST GARO HILLS IN MEGHALAYA ................................................................................... 48 STUDY ON BUSINESS APPROACH, MARKETING PRACTICES AND PROMOTION OF MODEL ENTERPRISES: CASE STUDY ON CBOS OF KARBI ANGLONG COMMUNITY RESOURCE MANAGEMENT SOCIETY ..............................................