Action for Agricultural Renewal In Maharashtra (AFARM)

Action for Agricultural Renewal in Maharashtra (AFARM) is an association of voluntary organisations working in the field of rural development. The organisation was established to coordinate the efforts of civil society organisations, to provide water and agricultural extension services to villages in drought affected Maharashtra. The NGO has been developing and managing their livelihoods through trainings, micro-finance, micro-enterprises and market linkages.

Major Interventions:

Watershed Development:  Implementing good watershed management practices and approaches have always been a core of AFARM’s work almost for last 30 years. The strategy focuses on enhancing water security at farm level - through the adoption of technologies for increase in water storage capacity thereby promoting efficient use of water for agriculture. It enhances community driven decision-making systems for water resources planning & management. Works are carried out through Village Development Committees and Water User Groups. Recharge Pits are created & recharge shafts are installed based on the geological studies to facilitate ground water recharge. Repair/revival of major water harvesting structures are conducted along with construction of new cement check dams.

Livelihood & Sustainable Agriculture: Increased cost of cultivation, poor soil health results and adversities of climate change have resulted in decreasing farm productivity. The NGO works on reducing dependency of small and marginal farmers on external costly chemical agricultural inputs through adoption of low cost bio nutrients and bio pesticides. It promotes climate resilient agriculture practices along with soil health improvement, integrated pest management, on-farm water management and crop diversification. Livelihood enhancement is encouraged through skill and capacity development programmes which is a women centric approach and promotes self-reliance. All producer groups are trained on business management and promotion. The youth work as an interface between government agencies and local communities to facilitate access to social security.

Networking and Advocacy: AFARM’s endeavour has been to identify local needs, challenges and opportunities and work out the solutions jointly with the grassroots level member organizations. Regional presence of member NGOs facilitates AFARM to expand and reach out to more and more small and marginal rainfed farmers, tribal communities and women members in the community. It conducts meetings, workshops, seminars, conferences, etc. thereby providing consultancy services for project planning, management and monitoring, and creating an NGO help desk for information dissemination and mentoring.