Riverbed Vegetable Farming for Enhancing Livelihoods of People: A Case Study in the Tarai Region of Nepal

Abstract

Enhancing livelihoods through the promotion of appropriate technical and social means is the popular strategy being adopted by development projects in the developing countries. Riverbed vegetable farming is a pro-poor program intended to contribute on livelihoods of people, especially landless and victims of disasters. In partnership with Plan Nepal, Forum for Rural Welfare and Agricultural Reform for Development piloted riverbed vegetable farming from 1998 to 2010 in Morang and Banke districts of Nepal. A total of 333 households organized into 17 groups were engaged in riverbed vegetable farming in these districts. Farmers grew cucurbit species on riverbed areas. Result indicates that this program has improved the livelihood of people, especially in the vulnerable groups in these communities. Moreover, the benefit-cost analysis of riverbed vegetable farming shows that bottle gourd accrues highest benefits, and average benefit cost ratio from this farming is around two. Moreover, this farming practice has been found to be appropriate to enhance family nutrition and cash income. In spite of the great contribution of riverbed vegetable farming, this practice is suffered from poor soil nutrition, stray animals, strong windstorms, and long spell of droughts. More understanding is needed how this practice could be widely scaled out through innovation platform of government and non-government organizations across the potential domains of this practice.