S M Sehgal Foundation announced the extension of its project ‘Bolstering Farmer Producer Organizations’ in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.
Initiated in 2023 for two years with a philanthropic grant of $1.5 million from the Walmart Foundation, this next phase will reach 23 Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) with 23,000 members to enhance the capacities of FPOs, promote climate-resilient practices and develop infrastructure that adds value to crop production.
“We are excited to support S M Sehgal Foundation for the second phase of the ‘Bolstering FPOs project. We believe strengthening FPOs can enable more opportunities for smallholder farmers in India with capacity building at the core. Additionally, developing transparent structures, designing and implementing business models and establishing collaborations will help ensure more sustainable operations and outcomes,” Julie Gehrki, chief operating officer, Walmart Foundation said.
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The “Bolstering Farmer Producer Organizations” project’s first phase, which ran from 2021 to 2023, had an influence on ten FPOs, strengthened 8,000 current members, welcomed 2,000 new ones, and made sure that one-third of women were represented in leadership positions. Roughly 2,500 women received training in critical knowledge and skills, and 40–45% of them actively participated in project activities at the FPO level.
“Organizing smallholder farmers into FPOs can leverage the advantage farmers have in emerging markets. It can also help mitigate challenges faced by individual farmers, such as low market prices, high input costs and limited access to technologies and markets, among others. With support from the Walmart Foundation, the S M Sehgal Foundation continues to build the capacities of FPO members. The first phase witnessed a turnaround in women’s participation with 92 women-led Farmer Interest Groups (FIGs) benefiting more than 2,500 women farmers actively engaged in FPOs,” Anjali Makhija, trustee and chief executive officer, S M Sehgal Foundation, said.
About Philanthropy at Walmart:
Walmart.org represents the philanthropic efforts of Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. By focusing on where the business has unique strengths, Walmart.org works to tackle key social and environmental issues and collaborate with others to spark long-lasting systemic change.
About S M Sehgal Foundation
S M Sehgal Foundation was established in 1999 as a public charitable trust to strengthen community-led development initiatives to achieve positive social, economic, and environmental change across rural India. S M Sehgal Foundation has five main program areas: Water Management, Agriculture Development, Local Participation and Sustainability, Transform Lives one school at a time and Outreach for Development
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