| ID: | 85920 |
|---|---|
| Country: | Tajikistan |
| Title: | Tajikistan - Community-based Agricultural Support Project (CASP) - October 2023 |
| Description: |
Halimboy MAHKAMOV was born on 2 November 1976 (47 years old) in Ghazantarak Village, Devashtich District in the Sugd Region of northern Tajikistan. He is married and father of four children. Halimboy is a farmer and raises livestock. He is also a mechanic and machine operator employed by the Ghazantarak Village Organization (VO) to operate and maintain the combine harvester received with support from the IFAD-supported CASP project. Halimboy’s maintenance and repair work to prepare the combine for the season starts in May with the grain harvest (wheat, barley) typically taking place during the months of June and July. The rice harvest follows in October. During those months, the village organization pays Halimboy to provide harvesting services to members of the community, and when time allows, also to paying clients from neighbouring communities. Village organization member farmers and external clients book services directly with the Ghazantarak Village Organization office that then directs Halimboy when and where to perform the harvesting service. He earns 30 per cent of the fee paid to the village organization, with non-members paying a slightly higher fee than members. “I drive a combine - this is my daily work, what I do every day for three months. When I am not harvesting, I do other work around my house. I have livestock and do farming.” The Ghazantarak Village Organization received the harvesting combine first, followed by two MTZ 82 tractors, an excavator and other equipment. Of course, all of these support people to provide them with services. “Having the agricultural machinery is very beneficial for the people. Farmers have access to timely farming services without paying high prices. They no longer have to search for the services in far-away villages and wait for the service providers to be available, often missing peak planting and harvesting seasons, negatively impacting on crop yield. “A lot of our fields and lands are rain fed. People can now plough their land in a timely manner and then also cultivate and harvest in a timely manner.” “Before the project arrived here, I used to travel to a different district, to Khujand district, to do similar work. I was a mechanic and combine driver, but in a different district. I stayed there until the end of the season providing agricultural machinery services. I was far away from my family. Now I am here with my family, and I have time to take care of my household and also provide services to farmers in my village.” Halimboy is also an innovator, and his knowledge and experience as an agricultural machinery operator and mechanic is invaluable to the village organization. After receiving the combine and putting it to use, they realized that it did not have a separator device to properly collect the straw. Halimboy innovated and installed a device on the back of the combine that distributes the straw discard in neat rows for hay baling. The Community-based Agriculture Support Project (CASP) stimulates inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction in rural Tajikistan. Its activities help communities and dehkan (smallholder) family farmers access productive infrastructure and services, leading to sustainable agricultural production, equitable income-generating opportunities, and improved living standards. CASP works with village organizations (VOs) to develop community-driven action plans that define their own improvement initiatives. Village-level participation in decision making is critical to the success of these plans and helps establish a sense of community ownership and cohesion. |
| Size: | 6.70 MB; 5472 x 3648 pixels; 463 x 309 mm (print at 300 DPI); 1448 x 965 mm (screen at 96 DPI); |
| Show more details: | Didor Sadulloev |
| Copyright: | © IFAD/ Didor Sadulloev |
| Categories: | New from Near East, North Africa, Europe and Central Asia |
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