Enhance Capacity of Ethnic Communities Project (ECEC)

Project number: 22-0510-15

Project Period: 2007-2011

Project Holder: Community Livelihood Improvement of Namlang Watershed (CLIN)

Founded in 2004, CLIN works with rural poor farmers in the area of Pang Ma Pha district. The village is located on the hill and far from city, which is the great barrier for them to access communication and transportation. CLIN is belonged to local people and the organization is run by local people who are member of village. The major development approach of the organization focuses on animal-based holistic development and sustainable natural resource management. It also acts as learning and coordinating center for nearby communities in this area.

Project Profile:

By the year 2010, this project aims to help in 5 villages (Shani and Lahu) in Phang Ma Pha District to improve their livelihood thru animal-based holistic development approach. The animal-based development approach will assist 60 families in 2 tribal villages to strengthen their group management and income. Another 3 communities will receive water supply to improve their farming production and their drinking water supply. The project will support target families with 20 cows, 100 pigs, 15,000 catfish, 3,000 kg of seed, 2 water system and 30 kitchen gardens.  HPI Cornerstones will be highly focused thru training and group activities. The self-help group members will be limited at 25 and saving groups have to be established first.  Other trainings including group management, livestock improvement, gender issue and kitchen garden will be included.

Project areas: Pang Ma Pha district, Mae Hong Son province

Local Conditions:

Pang Ma Pha is located in the mountainous area along the border of Thailand and Myanmar. The majority of geography is mountains and forest. Most of the mountains are occupied by the tribal communities who’ve been in the area for decades but some of them just recently migrated from the neighboring country, South of China and Myanmar. Identified as migrants, these tribal people are not eligible to apply Thai citizen which it is important for them to access official helps from the government or other facilities including school, financial, hospital and politic. Due to most of them are Thai illiteracy, it is hard for them to communicate with low land trader and access to resources necessary for them to improve their production.

Only small percentages of these villagers earn enough income to feed their families. Rice is the main crop for their own consumption but with the limited land and natural disaster (drought and flood) rice is not produced enough to feed the family for all year all. Garlic and bean are their source of income to buy rice, food, housing, clothes and school for their children. However, the productivity of these crops are not profitable due to several reasons such as flood during rainy season, drought during are period and low soil fertility due to high erosion in these mountainous areas. With their poor economic status, these villagers highly move to the city  to sell labor. 

Limited Land for agricultural is one of their foremost problem. This area is claimed by the government as wildlife preservation and forest protection. Farmers are strictly controlled by local Forestry Department to not expand the agricultural land. Whereas, the population size in the mountainous communities is greatly increased leading high pressure to farmers in maximizing their land. Land is used more intensively and lead to rapid decline of soil fertility and high soil erosion. Additionally, the conflict on land control between villagers who try to expand their farm land and the officers who try to preserve forest become more often and seriously. Many farmers were arrested resulting from their farm expansion.

Insufficiency of water is the serious problem of the area. Located in the mountainous, water is not able to keep long for the entire year for both farming and consuming especially during the dry season. Moreover, the area does not have any local irrigation because of no fund allocated from the government. The inadequacy of water also create the conflict between farmers and commercial farmers in water management.

Lack of funding source for improving the agriculture is another crucial issue. Since the farmers do not have enough fund due to low income, they need some loan for improving their production. Farmers lack proper skills and knowledge in managing their group, low agricultural skill. Some farmers misuse the loan and are in debt. So, they turn to money lender who give them the interest of as high as 5-10% monthly (60% annually).

Opportunities for Assistance:

The project will address these problems by establishing self-help saving group comprised of 25 members. In the period of the project, farmers will be trained and ensured that they understood and applied HPI Cornerstones. In this period, participatory group management have to be ensured at all activities. The second period, project activities will be implemented with the groups that already passed the first requirement. Co-mentoring approach will be applied for project monitoring among beneficiaries and lesson learned from the project will be shared regularly.

Project Goal:

By 2010, 120 families in 5 communities become security in their economic status and have sustainable and just communities using Heifer Cornerstones

Objectives:

• To internalize HPI Cornerstones and efficient group management
• To increase income from livestock and integrated farming.
• To have adequate and safe water for agriculture and drinking

 Passing on the Gifts:

• Animal: Farmers will pass on the first female offspring at the same weight and price of original animals. If the first offspring is male, animal will be sold and buy female animal at the same price of the original.

• Seeds & fish: Farmers will pass on same amount, quality and price to the next needy family. Fish will be paased on by same amount of original fund.

• Water Supply: Farmers will contribute money, labor and time to build, maintain and fix water supply as requested by village committee.

• Knowledge: Sharing knowledge with group members and co-mentoring approach can create opportunity to share knowledge among groups.

Funding source: Heifer Project International