TAAL
Towards Action And Learning
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Livelihood

Livelihood interventions seek to promote enhancement of livelihoods by placing people, particularly poor rural communities, at the centre of interventions in skill development, accessing capital, technological solutions, establishing effective market linkages and developing collectives. Given the right enabling conditions and targeted support, these communities can transform the rural landscape and unleash a new and sustainable natural resource stewardship to a level where it provides livelihood security to households on a sustainable basis.

Experience of Working on Livelihood Issues
a) Enterprises for persons with disability and covid impacted :
TAAL recognized that the persons with disability have limited opportunities for employment in rural areas. We worked to enable them to start their own Income Generating Activity (IGA) to be able to earn for their own needs, to gain confidence and self worth. COVID impacted our lives at all levels has been unprecedented and the uncertainty it created in terms of work and life was difficult to comprehend. We were able to financially support to persons and families in Bhopal city. Seventy four enterprises were supported. See here –
CSR Report 2022 Report of CSR WPG 2020-21 Report of the CSR WPG 2019

b) Assessment of baseline situation :
TAAL has undertaken baseline surveys that cover demographic status, infrastructure and services status, land holding and land use patterns, occupational patterns, agriculture practices, availability of employment, migration patterns, savings and credit situation to enable its projects to develop livelihood strategies for village clusters. In addition, baseline of livelihoods of identified households has also been carried out to identify livelihood interventions at the household level.

c) Developing micro plans :
TAAL has prepared micro plans for 12 Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMC) in Burhanpur. These plans entailed assessment of the economic status of each household so that household wise intervention can be planned by the JFMC. TAAL has also developed micro plans for 21 villages under the MPRLP programme. These plans were developed to document Natural, Social, Financial, Human and Physical capital of the villages. Besides use of PRA tools, well being analysis was also carried out using the card sorting methodology to identify poorest households to effectively target project interventions.

d) Livelihood enhancement :
Livelihood enhancement interventions include providing capacity building inputs, handholding households in implementation of livelihood plan by accessing resources and material for income generation activity, linking households to banks and post offices for ensuring financial inclusion, and market linkages so that activities are able to access better prices and larger market coverage.
Sectorally, the livelihood based interventions include
Agro based interventions:
Working directly with small and marginal landholders to bring about increase in incomes through improvement in seeds, improved irrigation, rational use of fertilizer based on scientific assessment of soil quality, changes in crop variety and post harvest interventions for better marketing opportunities. These interventions have been for agriculture as well as horticulture crops.

Animal based interventions:

These interventions include improved care and feeding practices, improved preventive health practices and breed improvement through artificial insemination. TAAL has also linked dairy farmers to cooperatives and dairy federations so that they are able to get better and consistent prices for their produce. Interventions have directly targeted livestock and poultry. In addition, TAAL has also prepared a business plan for piggery for Forest Department of Uttar Pradesh.

Off farm interventions:
Trade and services related interventions that include Kirana, mobile repair, cycle and motor cycle repair, tailoring shops have been facilitated in rural areas. Innovative off farm activities like setting up businesses like renting solar lanterns have also been major highlights of off-farm interventions.TAAL has partnered TERI to initiate livelihood activities in Dhar district powered by Renewable Energy to establish a Rural Enterprise Zone. This zone conducts activities related to agro processing and different production activities that are managed by women’s group and committee of village residents.

Wage employment:
TAAL has linked rural youth with industrial units in Pithampura to create employment opportunities in the formal sector. This effort has led to employment of 199 youth in factories, which also included in-house skill training inputs.

(e) Forming and facilitating collectives
TAAL has formed and worked with SHGs and Livelihood Groups, especially Farmer’s Clubs. These collectives include men and women from excluded communities as members.

(f) Rights and Livelihoods
TAAL has from its own resources developed IEC and communications material on legal and livelihoods issues. It has also developed booklets like Fertilizer Act and Dangerous Machine and Equipment Act.

(g) Field and Guide books
Field handbooks on different crops - soybean, maize and cotton; field book on agriculture; training material on water user association in canal area have been developed by TAAL.

(h) Business Plan
TAAL has developed business plans for SHGs formed by Uttar Pradesh Forest Department. This entails consultations with members of SHGs, market study of potential products, resource mapping and projection of production and sales figure for estimation of profits and schedule of returning the loan.

 
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