Dimapur, October 14 (MExN): Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and North East Network (NEN) organised a 3-day training on ‘Community Seed Bank’ at Kohima from October 9 to 11.
Farmers representing 5 districts – Kohima, Wokha, Zunheboto, Mokokchung and Tuensang attended the 3 days training. The training was moderated by the North East Network and the resource persons were Wekoweu Tsuhah, Programme Director, NEN Nagaland and Stephen Gangmei, Programme Associate, NEN Nagaland.
A press release by the State Coordinator, Climate Change Adapatation-North Eastern Region (CCA-NER), Dr. Cressida Jamir, stated that the purpose of the training was to enhance traditional social seed networks through women led community seed banks with the objective of helping enhance the traditional knowledge on seed management. The training focused on understanding local food and agriculture systems, local seed saving and sharing practices and operational aspects of setting up community seed banks.
The trainees also visited the women-led community seed bank established at Chizami Village, Phek district and interacted with the women seed guardians.
Sütsüngsola, a farmer from Mokokchung district, commented that she was very happy to find one of the millet seed varieties, which was said to have been lost in her village, at the Community Seed Bank (CSB), Chizami.
It informed that a one-day orientation programme on Community Seed Bank was also held on October 12 for “agriculture field functionaries” with the objective of orienting them on CSB while enabling them to facilitate the farming communities in setting up community seed banks. It said that S. Kivikhu Achumi, Joint Director, Department of Agriculture, called for encouraging the trainees to work together with the farmers in identifying indigenous seeds.
