ACCESS Development Services with support from Oxfam India announces the Sitaram Rao Livelihoods India Case Study Competition 2014.

Theme: Empowering Women in Agriculture

While 63 per cent of India’s rural male work force is engaged in agriculture, the figure is as high as 79 per cent for women (NSS 66th Round, 2009-10). As farmers, agricultural workers and entrepreneurs, women form the backbone of agricultural rural economy in India. Women work extensively in production of major grains and millets, in land preparation, seed selection and seedling production, sowing, applying manure, weeding, transplanting, threshing, winnowing and harvesting; in livestock production, fish processing, animal husbandry etc. Inspite of their immense contribution, women in farming remain one of the most vulnerable groups. They typically lack access to education, extension services, land, and credit and are in fact, the largest group of landless labourers with little real security in case of break-up of the family owing to death or divorce. !During 2014, and the International Year of Family Farming (IYFF), the Sitaram Rao Livelihoods India Case Study Competition would like to showcase cases of initiatives that have helped recognize the role and rights of women in farming and  identify efficient ways to support them.  The cases should cover new knowledge and experiences from programmes relating to women in agriculture covering one or more of the following thematic areas among others:

·         Training, extension, input, managerial, entrepreneurial and other support services to women farmers

·         Helping women farmers move up the value chain ·         Agricultural innovations for reducing drudgery of

women farmers ·         Initiatives for food and nutrition security by women

farmers ·         Institutional innovations which better meet the

needs of farm women ·         Initiatives that are in place to link women farmers to

markets ·         Raising awareness and advocacy for women’s land

rights ·         Initiatives for women farmers to adapt to climate

change ·         Forest based livelihoods and women

The case study should include: • Socio-economic conditions and needs of the

beneficiaries within which the programme was initiated and implemented

• Nature of engagement, intervention, support and strategies of the implementing agency for reaching out to women engaged in agriculture

• Impact of the programme in promoting sustainable livelihoods of the women engaged in agriculture

• Factors that contributed to the success of the programme and critical challenges faced

• Issues in achieving scale and sustainability and efforts made by the programme to address them

 

SITARAM RAO LIVELIHOODS INDIA CASE STUDY COMPETITION 2014

How to apply?

i. All participants are requested to send an abstract of maximum 800 words of their case studies by June 15th, 2014 to accessdevorg@gmail.com

ii. Abstracts will be reviewed and a shortlist will be announced on July 1st, 2014.

iii. The shortlisted candidates will be requested to send the full case study, not exceeding 5000 words, by August 15th, 2014.

iv. Once the final cases come in, they will be reviewed and 10 best cases would be selected.

v. The authors of the 10 best cases will be invited for a Jury Meet where the top 3 cases will be selected (tentatively in October)

vi. The top 3 case study authors will receive cash prizes of INR 70,000, INR 60,000 and INR 50,000 respectively and a compendium of the 10 best cases will be released during the Livelihoods Asia Summit 2014.

Please go through the details of our competition on our website www.accessdev.org/lh-li-case-study.php before sending in your registrations. For any clarifications, please contact us at natasha@accessdev.org

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