Training on kitchen garden empowering unskilled women

Beneficiaries take part in the hands-on demonstration of making raised beds for kitchen gardens.

Dimapur, November 7 (MExN): The ANMA Integrated Development Association (AIDA) SBI Foundation- Gram Seva Programme organised an awareness and training programme on kitchen garden activities. During the programme which was aimed at empowering unskilled women with practical demonstration, the team also distributed green nets to all adopted village i.e. Urra, Bade, Diezephe, and Tsithrongse villages. 

SBI Gram Seva-AIDA in a press release stated that the objective of the awareness and training programme was to provide skilling ways to ensure economic growth of the unskilled women. A total of 55 beneficiaries were given training on better practice of organic farming in order to boost their livelihood income by encouraging kitchen garden practices. 

The SBI Gram Seva-AIDA provides financial assistance to 37 beneficiaries to procure seasonal vegetable seeds, manure, binding wire/bamboo fencing. 18 beneficiaries were provided green nets from the project to safeguard vegetables/plants from unwanted encroachment by domestic animals.

The resource person, Pfokho John, Project Manager highlighted the importance of organic farming and the high demand of the products in the market. Documentation video was shown to the beneficiaries during the awareness training for more knowledge inputs. 

The next session consisting of practical demonstration was conducted at the kitchen garden. Methods of land preparation – initiated by Livelihood Officer, KT Khino Anal, were demonstrated and beneficiaries were shown how to use spades to dig the soil/mud and raise the level of seedbeds from the ground level. Other aspects like the level of spacing, removal of stones, bushes and weeds, making compost pits with weeds, farmyard twigs etc, to be used as organic manure, and making seedbeds etc were also demonstrated. 

The awareness and training session was a fruitful one as the beneficiaries shared their views that the kitchen garden has never been more valuable as it comprises of green vegetables and fruit tree, the release stated. It also boosts household access to fresh food on the table and promotes steady income in the family. The beneficiaries were enlightened with new ideas on how to do kitchen garden at home state by adopting scientific practices to the best possibility, it added.