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Introduction:
South Asia comprises eight countries; India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Afghanistan and the Maldives. Together they belong to an area rich in ancient culture and sustainable civilization that lasted for thousands of years. Forming the basis of civilization past, present and future, the agro-cultural heritage of the region runs parallel with general history and used many highly effective means and methods of ensuring plentiful and diverse supplies of food. Due to diverse climate conditions, social systems and ecological systems, the area enjoyed a rich diversity of biological phenomena. According to the classification s system of the botanist Vavilov, the region is one of the eight richest in grown crops. The region has the soil and climate conditions that enable many medicinal and eatable plants to grow in abundance. These biological resources were the base on which hundreds of thousands of people living in the region enjoyed stable livelihoods and security of food. Ss such this is a crucial region for biodiversity.
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Over the last two decades, the region turned gradually towards industrialization as a basis for economic development. As a result the focus on agriculture gradually diminished and was replaced by industrial activity and this has led to changes in labor usage and methodology in the agricultural sector as well. Additionally, the system changed from low input mixed crop agriculture to high input single crop methods. As a result there was highly exploitative overuse of natural resources coupled with a dramatic reduction in the agro-biodiversity of the region as well.
Due to the influence of the rapidly urbanized west and its attendant lifestyles, agricultural systems, choice of crops and consumption patterns changed. While this caused a slow degeneration of the socio-cultural framework of the region it also resulted in agriculture changing from a lifestyle activity into a commercial one. Due to these changes, those who depend on agriculture for a livelihood also decreased with equal rapidity. A reciprocal depletion could be seen in the agro-biodiversity and the prevalence of traditional crops of the region. Many traditional rice varieties have become scarce and due to lack of cultivation, many other highly nutritious crops and plants are on their way to being either endangered or extinct. Recognizing this grave threat, many organizations have embarked on awareness programs at country level within the region. They have worked tirelessly with small pockets of people and communities to help in preserving the rich agrarian heritage of individual countries and the region. While policy level changes and nationalization of conservation and propagation action are also being planned by these groups, Regional Corporation and information and knowledge interchange has been marginal and this has affected the impact of these national exercises. Since many of the bio-resources of the region are common it is crucially important that a regional level effort is implemented for the preservation and sharing of the same.
The climatic conditions that exist in South-Asia are diverse and range from dry, hot climates in the south to cold, mountainous regions in the north. Through experiment and innovation over a period of many generations, the farming communities of the region have grown a wide variety of plants. Additionally, they have maintained livestock suitable for each region. With climate stability in question, it is vital now that farmers are aware of an increasing number of crops that can be planted to suit any set of climatic conditions. Currently, there is massive erosion of soils in the mountainous regions and regular flooding of the plains. Every year, thousands of farming communities loose land, crops and domesticated animals causing much hardship and food scarcity. Therefore, it is also important that farmers are aware of crops that can be grown and harvested quickly.
About 22% of the world’s population lives in South Asia. Many of these people live in rural communities and the commonest livelihood is agriculture Poverty is rampant and 34% of the population lives on less than one US dollar a day (SAARC 2005). However, the large agro-biodiversity and the rich climatic conditions that exist can be used for building the strength and resilience of these communities and would directly result in the reduction of poverty, increase of jobs and increase of health and nutrition. It will require that there are policies, plans, strategies and activities set in place that will leverage this advantage for the people of the region. Towards this end, the Green Movement, along with its partner organization LI-BARD of Nepal will be actively campaigning over the next few years on grass-roots community centric action, media leveraging, linkage creation and lobbying for policy change at the government level.
Main goals:
- Encouraging communities to make use of their own knowledge to engage in sustainable conservation of agro-biodiversity.
- Sustainable use of bio-resources by farmers, farming communities, national institutes and other groups.
- Establishing institutional mechanisms for the conservation, management and use of bio-resources and honoring the rights of farmers.
- Resolution of the problems existing in legislature and policy with respect to conservation and propagation of bio-resources.
- Increase knowledge and experience interchange amongst farming communities and civil organization
Outcomes:
- Empower communities and organizations to conserve and use bio-resources.
- Increase the capacity of farmers, farming communities and national institutions with respect to conservation and utilization of bio-resources.
- Strengthen institutional capacity in conservation and preservation, organization and mobilization of farming communities and establishing farmer rights.
- Agree on legislative and policy changes to strengthen conservation and propagation of bio-resources.
- Establish mechanisms for information and knowledge interchange between farmers and farming communities.
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