By Rafiullah Mandokhel
ZHOB (Parliament Times): In order to modernize farming practices and enhance crop yield in rural Balochistan, farmers associated both with horticulture and poultry farming, received modern agricultural and poultry farming equipment here in Zhob.
With the financial support of the European Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Trade Centre (ITC) have provided hundreds of agricultural and poultry farming kits to male and female farmers under the GRASP project (Growth for Rural Advancement and Sustainable Progress), which aims at providing facilities to small and medium-sized farmers and poultry breeders at their doorsteps. The distribution was done under the ‘Farmers Climate Business School’ (FCBS) approach.
The distribution ceremony held at the FAO office was attended by Deputy Director of Livestock and Dairy Development Dr Alla ud Din Kibzai, Deputy Director of Agriculture (Extension) Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Research Officer of Water Management Atta ur Rehman Mandokhel, master trainer for FAO (Agriculture) Imran Shah, Engineer Shehr Yar Khan of the Asian Development Bank, Livestock Officer Masam Khan Kibzai, master trainer for FAO (Livestock) Dr Karim Dad Babar, Dr Humayun Khan, and male and female farmers in large numbers.
District Value Chain Facilitator FAO Zain ud Din Mardanzai, while briefing the participants about the project, said that state-of-the-art kits have been distributed among the small- and medium-scale farmers from various union councils of the district, including Meena Bazaar, Takei, Garda Babar, Appozai, and Badinzai, so that the farmers could benefit from these modern pieces of equipment and put the agriculture and poultry farming sectors on modern lines.
“The GRASP project aims to strengthen the rural economy, promote food self-sufficiency, and increase the production of small-scale farmers, especially rural women, by empowering them,” adding that an important aspect of the project is to provide hands-on training to women in poultry farming, animal husbandry, and agriculture to make them economically independent, keeping in mind gender equality.
On this occasion, Deputy Director of Agriculture Jamal Khan Mandokhel, master trainer at FAO Dr Karim Dad Babar, farmers Toti Jana, Abdul Khaliq, Nadeem Jan, Maula Dad, and others, while talking to journalist Rafiullah Mandokhel, appreciated the initiative of the European Union, FAO, and ITC and said that now they will benefit from the modern equipment and hands-on training as well as modern agricultural and poultry farming practices.
They said the GRASP project is a positive step towards sustainable development as it reduces rural poverty and strengthens agribusinesses and entrepreneurship in rural areas. ‘Climate Smart Agriculture’ and ‘Farmers Climate Business School’ are the significant models of the project.
“The FAO-GRASP project is transforming the lives of rural communities by improving their livelihoods, boosting agricultural productivity, and empowering rural women. The farmers have been trained on modern agriculture, climate-smart farming, and business skills,” they added.