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In Arghakhanchi, local farmers produce vegetables but struggle with marketing in the regional markets. Vegetables are supplied in Rupandehi from Indian markets while farmers from nearby Arghakhanchi grapple finding easy, accessible market for their produces. Additionally, women in agriculture are also burdened with household chores and are restricted within the lower nodes of the value chain. Their involvement in upper nodes of the vegetable value chain is constricted by their lack of access or knowledge of digital technology, gender norms and rigid gender roles at home. Such challenges along with poor marketing channels have put women farmers at a disadvantage.
In Arghakhanchi, the project is envisioned in Sandikharka Municipality and Malarani Rural Municipality with a focus on women farmers who produce vegetables and women’s cooperatives and groups. The primary interventions of the project will be establishing reliable marketing channels for local farmers and developing digital applications for dissemination of information regarding production and the market. The important agents for materializing the action plan will be women-led cooperatives and farming groups. The project will focus on improving their governance system as well as capacitating lead women farmers to move towards higher nodes of the vegetable value chain.
Bimala BK is a lead woman farmer from Jagata, Sandikharka Municipality, Arghakhanchi. Along with vegetable and wheat farming, she also rears livestock. She is the Chairperson of Deurali Dalit Krishi Samuha and actively participates in meetings and voices her opinions. BK believes that financial agency is vital for women and that they need to have their own source of income.
