INDIA - $5,000
Organic Rice and Black Gram Cultivation
Project Coordinator - Ms. A. Jayaraman

MWDF has been working in 25 villages in Pudukottai District, Tamil Nadu, and has formed 120 self-help groups, 20 farmers groups and 10 men’s self-help groups. They are engaged in small savings, internal lending and credit linkage with banks. MWDF focuses on women’s empowerment, sustainable agriculture, promoting indigenous seeds, child development and HIV/AIDS persons welfare issues.

For this proposal, 25 woman-headed families will engage in organic rice cultivation to increase rice production and increase soil fertility. The women will be trained in organic farm inputs such as herbal pesticides, vermi-compost, and panchakavya production. organic tonics, including exposure visits to view organic farming methods. Loans per woman are $155, to be repaid at 15% interest. Anticipated economics are:

GROSS ANNUAL INCOME	EXPENSES	LOAN PAYMENT	NET INCOME
$1,035	$155	$180	$855

From Dr. R. Kannan’s site visit report, “MWDF has formed an organic farming women’s federation. They have experience and expertise in organic farming. We had a meeting of single women farmers at a dry land farm at Veerakudi. They explained that they will prepare farm yard manure, vermi-compost, green manures, organic peat and disease control liquids and then they will start rice cultivation and rotate with nitrogen-fixing legumes (black gram).

MWDF is a former partner, completing two, one-year projects in 2001 and 2002.

Project Completed: June 30, 2011