This study employed a purely qualitative approach to understanding the situation of cardamom farmers in Ilam district, performing a political economy analysis to explore three issues: The impact of crop disease on cardamom farmers’ livelihoods; Farmers’ strategies for coping with disease and shocks; and. It also reveals distressed farmers’ unwillingness to take the lead due to loss of cardamom. A VDC is the lower administrative unit and a decentralized body run by the VDC Secretary, appointed and governed by the central government. After maturing, these cash crops bear fruit for 10 to 15 years. In Jirmale, where households adopted cardamom farming only a decade ago, some are already witnessing production decline. In Nepal, cardamom, coffee, tea, pulses, and some fruits are high-value crops in high demand in national and international markets (Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, 2012). It also calls into question claims in previous studies that the current agricultural alliance and collaboration engages farmers and local and grass-roots bodies to participate in creating objectives, making decisions, and sharing knowledge on issues related to agriculture (Chhetri et al., 2011). In-depth interviews also revealed that poorer households with smaller landholdings were especially distressed by and vulnerable to cardamom disease. Feminization of Agriculture in the Eastern Hills of Nepal: A study of Women in Cardamom and Ginger Farming Bishnu Raj Upreti, Yamuna Ghale, Sharmila Shivakoti, and Sushant Acharya SAGE Open 2018 8 : 4 ٙ��4γL�ht�����!R�"�B7@�A�! The main causes of this decline are climate change and disease, in particular chirke (mosaic streak), furkey (bushy dwarf), and a fungus (rhizome rot; see Chapagain et al., 2014; Khadka, 2011; Maharjan, 2014; Singh & Pothula, 2013; SNV, 2008; Stoep et al., 2010). Overall, efforts to address the issues of cardamom disease remain incomplete. (2009) assert that there is a need for sound policies and institutions to protect the cardamom crop. Modern Farm Equipment in Agriculture. The information obtained was categorized in terms of problem identification, situational diagnosis, and institutional diagnosis, based on the political economy analysis framework. But they also shared their dissatisfaction with poor targeting in providing seedlings. Her guidance during this period was great motivation to push through this work. In Nepal, cardamom accounts for 7% of total agricultural exports, ranking second after lentils (29.6%; Ministry of Agriculture and Development [MoAD], 2014b). The mismatch between demand and supply for agricultural support suggests the need for reconsideration of the types of support offered and the channels through which it is offered. Tag: Cardamom Farming In Nepal. Finally, six key informant interviews were conducted with officials from the cardamom sector, to understand the supply side of institutional assistance for farmers affected by the crop disease outbreak. Respondents also reported either diversifying crops or performing nonfarm activities (including labor and sale of nonfarm products). From the demand side, farmers expressed concern about lack of proper targeting in the distribution of cardamom seedlings. . It can be inferred that cardamom cultivators are still waiting for institutions to emerge with effective programs. Reasons for the decline include land degradation causing reduction in manure production, improper use of chemical fertilizers, use of old and nonviable seeds, and lack of irrigation facilities, especially in the hills with their difficult topography (Govind et al., 2015). The Challenges of Empowering Women: The Experience of Pulse Innovation Project in Southern Ethiopia, Post-disaster agricultural transitions in Nepal, Achterbosch, T. J., van Berkum, S., Meijerink, G. W. (, Babu, S. C., Glendenning, C. J., Asenso-Okyere, K., Govindarajan, S. K. (, Barrett, C. B., Bachke, M. E., Bellemare, M. F., Michelson, H. C., Narayanan, S., Walker, T. F. (, Bhattarai, N. K., Deka, T. N., Chhetri, P., Harsha, K. N., Gupta, U. In the VDCs affected by disease, the process of decline took 10 to 15 years. Ilam district remains foggy and misty all year round. We invited stakeholders from various disciplines, including officials from the Agriculture Development Office, Cardamom Development Center, Women’s Empowerment Association, and Ilam Chamber of Commerce, as well as other cardamom researchers, journalists, traders, and farmers. The secretaries of Chamaita and Naya Bazar VDCs were unavailable during the fieldwork. For example, crop insurance can help farmers stabilize their income, invest in agriculture, and decrease their vulnerability and need for outside assistance when a crop fails (Swain, 2014). This raises the issue of how institutions can best support farmers who have already taken some steps of their own to address the problem. Nepal’s agriculture in general and cash crops in particular is in the process of transition from self-employed subsistence farming to wage-labor based high-value agriculture like cardamom and ginger. Kathmandu, Nepal: International Centre for … This coincides with reports on recent studies of cardamom farming in Sikkim, which emphasize climate change as the major cause of production decline (see Bhattarai et al., 2013; Partap et al., 2014). Some society journals require you to create a personal profile, then activate your society account, You are adding the following journals to your email alerts, Did you struggle to get access to this article? Despite constraints, farmers—particularly educated men who were also known as local cardamom traders—traveled to the Cardamom Development Center in Ilam and nearby cities including Kathmandu to explore possible ways to revive the cardamom crop. This shows that farmers use returns, after fulfilling their food and health needs, to invest in business. First, the Cardamom Development Center alone cannot fulfill farmers’ needs. . (, Partap, U., Sharma, G., Gurung, M. B., Chhetri, N., Sharma, E. (, Rakib, M. A., Rahman, A., Akter, M. S., Bhuiyan, M. A. H. (, Rodenburg, J., Schut, M., Demont, M., Klerkx, L., Gbèhounou, G., Oude Lansink, A., . A growing number of farmers has taken up cardamom farming in recent years due to better returns from the cash […] The price of cardamom in Nepal has doubled. A survey was conducted in November 2015 in one of the pocket area of large cardamom production in Teharthum District, eastern Nepal with aim to investigate the status of cardamom enterprises. Very few farmers have been able to produce a high quantity of cardamom. To buy a new species called Salakpurey cardamom, respondents visited Salakpur village in Jirmale. Commercial farming of Cardamom is found in the Western Ghats as this area is more suitable for its cultivation. Study Areas and Main Crops Grown. There were reports of government officials only visiting the upper belt of the village close to the roads. There are 46 village development committees (VDCs) and three municipalities in Ilam. Participants reported that, before the onset of cardamom disease, the crop had been their major source of income. Cardamom farming, which was limited to eastern Nepal till a few years ago, is becoming popular across the country. Moreover, local institutions are beneficial in extracting context-based information including challenges faced by farmers and solutions adopted to confront the challenges (Barrett et al., 2012; Ekboir, 2012; IICA, 2014). Table 7. Conducting a political economy analysis on data from Ilam district, this study investigated the impact of crop disease on farmers’ livelihoods, as well as both individual and institutional efforts to combat the disease. Nepal is the world’s largest producer of the crop while the Taplejung district contributes a 30%–40% share in Nepal’s total production. Previous studies have found that lack of human resources for marketing and of proper infrastructure hinders Nepal’s agriculture sector (Upreti, K. C., Mallett, & Babajanian, 2012; Yadav & Lian, 2009). Other studies have shown that disease in cash crops may increase hunger, decrease income, and make smallholder farmers vulnerable (FEWS NET, 2013; Klasen et al., 2013; Ogalleh et al., 2012; Oyekale & Oladele, 2012). 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Maton) using normal phase HPLC: Dissipation pattern and safe waiting period in green and cured cardamom capsules, Asia Research Centre, London School of Economics and Political Science, Econometric analysis of local level perception, adaptation and coping strategies to climate change induced shocks in North Shewa, Ethiopia, Rubber cash crop and changes in livelihoods strategies in a village in northeastern Thailand, Perceptions of risk and adaptation: Coffee producers, market shocks, and extreme weather in Central America and Mexico, Climate change mitigation for agriculture: Water quality benefits and costs, Adaptation to climate change and other stressors among commercial and small-scale South African farmers, infoDev, Finance and Private Sector Development Department, The World Bank, The management of persistent organic pollutant pesticides in Nepal. Since then, prices have been rising gradually, reaching Rs 2,250 per kg in August. Previous studies in the global context report similar coping strategies during crop failure (Ogalleh et al., 2012; Oyekale & Oladele, 2012; Shuaibu, Akpoko, & Umar, 2014). 227 0 obj <> endobj At the policy level, cardamom remains a priority crop. The largest ethnic group in Ilam is the Rai, followed by the Brahmin, Limbu, Tamang, Chhetri, and Dalit (Central Bureau of Statistics, 2011). The cardamom sector lacks technical research. Figure 3. engaged in its farming in Nepal. One of the goals of the strategy is to develop special programs and produce virus-free cardamom plants. (Eds.). Households with at least one educated member with a job in the public or private sector reported a lower impact of crop loss on their livelihoods. The in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews in Chamaita, Pyang, and Naya Bazar revealed a more than 90% decline in cardamom production. The Council aims to develop agricultural technology, prioritize indigenous farming practices, and support changes in farming to adapt to climatic conditions. search. (, Clark, N. G., Hall, A. J., Sulaiman, V. R., Naik, G. (, Codjoe, F. N. Y., Ocansey, C. K., Boateng, D. O., Ofori, J. The strategy was released in 2014 with a 20-year vision to manage the agriculture sector (MoAD, 2014a). Members of _ can log in with their society credentials below, This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (. This may call into question the objective on which cooperatives are established and the framework in which these cooperatives function. Singha Durbar, Kathmandu, Nepal: Statistic Agriculture Book. … . Subscribe to Get Post in E-mail. Ilam covers an area of 1,703 km2 with a population of 290,254. However, the innovation process as a whole, and related interactions between different stakeholders, still need closer attention. Study participants also reported, particularly in the focus group discussions, that reviving cardamom farming was difficult for poorer households because cardamom takes time to mature before bearing fruit, like some other cash crops (Achterbosch, van Berkum, & Meijerink, 2014). Using the VDC profile, the local government could target poorer households first. Common varieties of large cardamom in Nepal 18 8. Coping better with current climatic variability in the rain-fed farming systems of sub-Saharan Africa: An essential first step in adapting to future climate change? Themes were generated on the basis of the coding, and a narrative analysis was developed to explain the findings, grounded in the existing literature. The price of cardamom has doubled this year compared to its price last year. Lack of production is occurring not only in cardamom but also in other crops, such as lime (Munakarmi et al., 2014) and maize (Govind et al., 2015), in eastern Nepal. (, Ministry of Agricultural and Development . In addition, one male Brahmin respondent, a teacher in a local school, also considered an elite, used his profits from selling cardamom 1 year to invest in a small hydropower project in the community or the village. endstream endobj startxref Most women worked as maids. Such programs may include institutional arrangements with action plans, guidance, and a framework to address crop issues in rural areas and proper targeting of vulnerable farmers. Similar findings have been reflected in a global context (Thongyou, 2014; Wamalwa, 2011). During crises in African countries including Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, and Ethiopia, farmers have adopted measures such as diversifying incomes, performing off-farm labor, eating fewer meals, and selling assets (see Codjoe, Ocansey, Boateng, & Ofori, 2013; Ogalleh, Vogl, Eitzinger, & Hauser, 2012; Okonya, Syndikus, & Kroschel, 2013; Oluwatusin, 2014; Oyekale & Oladele, 2012; Tesso, Emana, & Mengistu, 2012). This could relate to change in government officials or policies, which could restrict implementation or change existing policies or actions (Birner & Resnick, 2010). In in-depth interviews, respondents revealed that they thought this would kill the diseases permanently, but it was ineffective, and production continued to decline. The political economy analysis investigates accountability of concerned agency in meeting the demands of service seekers. These farmers reported managing their own time and travel expenses. 1. The parameters used were cardamom production area, type of manure used, drying facilities, technical skills of farmers, market channels and variable cost etc. Cardamom production fluctuated between 3,000 and 7,000 MT from 1994 to 2013 (Table 3). Not fulfill farmers ’ needs to its price last year young people persevered to revive their farms despite. Said that voluntarily seeking assistance from agricultural institutions was challenging private to public entities also... 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