Our aim is to contribute to economic and social change for rural farming families and farmers' organisations by improving food markets through agro-ecological transition and gender equity in agriculture.
To achieve this, we are working with our local partners to support the organisation, structuring and capacity-building of farmers' organisations in Takeo, Battambang and Kampong Thom.
Specifically, this involves training the members of the boards of directors of agricultural cooperatives and cooperative unions in administration, accounting and business plans. It also involves supporting agro-ecological innovations by developing a network of farmer trainers. The emphasis is on making the most of local knowledge and know-how. Leadership training is specifically offered to women, to encourage their access to management positions within farmers' organisations.
We also support the creation of collective enterprises within these cooperatives, and strengthen the agricultural value chains in which they are active, in order to promote the marketing and visibility of agro-ecological products. We are also aiming to increase agricultural productivity and farmers' resilience to climate change through improved on-farm irrigation systems. To strengthen the economic security and autonomy of rural women, we offer them entrepreneurship training.
In terms of learning, we organise the sharing of knowledge between farmers to stimulate innovation and the dissemination of agro-ecological practices. Finally, campaigns are set up with farmers' organisations to raise consumer awareness of agro-ecological products and healthy consumption patterns.
We also support the Agroecology Learning Alliance in Southeast Asia (ALiSEA) network in Cambodia in its advocacy of agroecology and stimulate agroecological innovation through small grants programmes. As a university-based organisation, we also promote local research capacity in the vast field of sustainable food systems, in particular by working with universities to carry out field assessments and action research on agroecology. We are also keen to build bridges between international and local student trainees to enable co-learning research.
Partners :
- Battambang Union of Cooperative
- Tramkak Union of Agricultural Cooperatives
- 3 Agricultural Cooperatives in Kampong Thom
- Development and Partnership in Action
- Cambodian Institute for Research and Rural Development
- Ecoland Research Center (Royal University of Agriculture - RUA)
- Faculty of Agricultural Sciences (FoAS – RUA)