Regional Markets

Regional Markets for Local Development
The Kurigram District is located in the north-eastern part of Bangladesh bordering
India. Kurigram is one of the poorer areas of Bangladesh and among those afflicted by
a severe food scarcity phenomenon called Monga 12 in the Bangla language. Moreover,
in general, livelihood opportunities and provision of services by the private and public
sectors are limited in this area. ActionAid International (AAI) works on poverty alleviation
through the FoSHoL project in the Kurigram, Patuakhali, Khulna, Noakhali
and Satkhira districts. FoSHoL is an abbreviation of Food Security for Sustainable
Household Livelihoods (the word foshol also means ‘crop’ in the Bangla language). 13 It
is a successful example of community mobilisation, empowerment of women, income
generation, and seed and food security.
FoSHoL’s approach
The project actions described in this case focus on three unions 14 in the Kurigram
District: Pandul, Dhoronibari and Durgapur. The project sought to enhance food and
livelihood security of poor and marginalised households through a holistic approach
with four key objectives. The first objective was to promote innovation in farming
systems and improvement of cereal and livestock production. The second focused on
strengthening the community’s capacity to better market their produce. The third
objective was the development of the community’s linkages with various public and
private service providers. Due to the perceived potential for growth in the local market
and economy, facilitation of income generation and livelihood diversification was
the fourth objective.
Several measures were taken to improve agricultural productivity and production volumes.
Sustainable agriculture was promoted by reducing the use of agro-chemicals
and by taking measures to increase the efficiency of water and soil use. Farmers were
provided with training on the harmful impact of chemical fertiliser and pesticides on
soil fertility and productivity. The approach introduced a balanced use of fertiliser,
quality seeds, mulching, integrated crop and pest management as well as new sowing
methods.
Biodiversity centres, managed by women’s and men’s farmers groups, were established
for the production of locally improved varieties of medicinal plants, spices, vegetables
and fruits. Compared to previous market-based sources, the planting materials could
12 Monga is a period of severe food insecurity, caused by floods, droughts and spells of cold weather. Usually it
is an annual phenomenon, but can occur also twice a year.
13 FoSHoL is actually a series of projects aimed at addressing food security concerns across the entire country,
with support of the European Union (see Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh).
14 Union is the lowest administrative unit of local government.
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