Disability Inclusive Water Management
& Agriculture
NEWS:
Enablement and MetaMeta recently finished a joint policy paper 'Disability and Age Inclusive Water Management'. Download the paper here.
Case Studies
A selection of case studies on Inclusive Agricultural Water Management
Case Study 1 - Menegesha Social Farm (Ethiopia)
The Menegesha social farm is part of the rehabilitation services that Cheshire Ethiopia provides to people with disabilities to help them recover from surgery. The farm has the aim to show both children and adults that there are different opportunities to engage in income generating activities in a rural context, which do not require very physical work. Menegesha’s farm activities focus on home gardens with seasonal crops, a variety of herbs and fruit trees. Animals are also kept, such as chickens, pigs, goats, cows, fish and bees for honey production. Furthermore, Cheshire Ethiopia often organises workshops for both patients and the community on aquaculture, animal grazing, and the production of dairy products.
In this project, people with disabilities are taught how to engage in agricultural income generating activities. The proposed farming activities are innovative and low in intensity. Bee keeping, fish ponds, and the cultivation of herbs and crops can be a good source of income and they do not require heavy labour. Social farming also represents a new opportunity for farmers to deliver alternative services and to diversify the scope of their activities, thereby having a multi-functional role in society.
Case Study 3 - Lalibela's Farmers' Organisation (Ethiopia)
CBM and Addis Development Vision initiated an irrigated agriculture project in 2014 for people with disabilities. Currently, 16 farmers (male and female) are daily involved in managing the farm. During the dry season, water is being diverted from the main river to the crops, using traditional irrigation techniques. During the rainy season, to avoid floods, the farmers make use of self-constructed flood protection measures made from stones.
The group has the policy that a person does whatever she/he can do. Sometimes, family members help out as well. The farmers furthermore manage their group income in case new equipment or seeds need to be bought, as well as taking account for possible emergencies or misfortunes. Everyone gets an equal part of the harvest to sell or for their own consumption. In the future, the farmers want to cultivate stable fruits trees and sugar cane.
In this case study people with disability are actively engaged in cultivating their crops, diverting water and constructing flood protection measures. While such projects have a lot of merit, the dream of MetaMeta and Enablement is to see the mainstream large-scale agriculture to become disability inclusive.
Case Study 2 - Ponds for semi-nomad communities (Somali land)
The four-year project of Handicap International addresses the semi-nomad communities of Somali land, a particularly vulnerable group. The aim of the project is to improve the access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities. In doing that, one of the main aims is to include people with disabilities in all the project phases.
Water shortage is an essential problem for many farmers. Therefore, the idea is to restore former ponds, and to make them safe from animals’ faeces and environmental pollution. Furthermore, ponds and sanitation structures have been adapted/designed to make them accessible for people with disabilities.
Not only people with disabilities benefit from the restored ponds (with safe water), but the community at large will benefit. In addition, ensuring safe water prevents the infection from water-borne diseases.
Case Study 4 - Mushroom farming (Thailand)
The FAO joined the Thai government in their commitment to improve the livelihoods of rural people with disabilities in a step towards poverty alleviation and sustainable development. The aim of the mushroom farming project was to establish economic self-reliance for rural people with disabilities as entrepreneurs.
The mushroom production training for people with disabilities was initiated 12 years ago in Thailand by the FAO. Mushrooms offer good market opportunities, as they are part of the daily Thai diet, and can be produced against low costs. Furthermore, mushroom production does not require intensive physical labour, and therefore can be cultivated by people with a physical and/or mental disability.
Every step involved in mushroom cultivation was reviewed during training, including entrepreneurship and environmental protection. Forty-seven trainees successfully completed the 60 days training, after which they transferred their newly acquired know-how to their family and community.
Agriculture activities can be a strong source of livelihood and income for people with disabilities living in rural areas. This case shows that a mainstream organisation such as the FAO is willing to invest in small pilot projects that include people with disabilities in income generating activities. As a result, people with disabilities who received training became more self-reliant and enhanced their social status, at the same time benefiting their family.
Case Study 5 - Horticulture and livelihood (India)
The association for people with disabilities (APD) is an NGO in Bangalore (India) that focuses on the rehabilitation and livelihood skills of people with disabilities. ADP runs several rural and urban community programmes for the provision of mobility aids, inclusive education, vocational training, and training in horticulture.
Ramesh is a thirty year old man who works as a gardener at a nursery. Considering that as a child he had cerebral palsy and therefore could not go to school, it seems surprising that he is an employed man nowadays. Ramesh indeed struggled to get a job and to be self-reliant for a long time. At the age of thirty, he however heard about the horticulture programme of ADP.
During nine months of training by ADP, Ramesh not only learned how to cultivate herbs, but also how to maintain a business, all of which improved his independence and self-esteem. Ramesh has been employed as a gardener since 2010, is provided free accommodation, a meal and a salary of 3500 Indian rupees (US$55,-).
Agricultural and water management training can be the beginning of a long process to engage people with disabilities in employment in order to sustain their livelihood and independence. The outcomes of small-scale projects are a useful starting point to the inclusion in mainstream large-scale agricultural programmes.