Bhubaneswar: NIRMAN participated in the DIVERSIFARM-India Multi-Stakeholder Workshop held at the Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, where stakeholders discussed strategies to strengthen community seed banks and promote sustainable agriculture in Odisha.
The workshop featured a keynote address by the Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment, who underlined the vital role of community seed banks in enhancing food and nutrition security among smallholder farmers across the state.
Emphasising the need for sustained collaboration among stakeholders, the Commissioner-cum-Secretary expressed commitment to holding regular quarterly meetings with the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF). The proposed meetings will focus on co-creating practical solutions and developing an enabling policy and legal framework to strengthen and scale up community seed banks across Odisha.
NIRMAN’s women-led Seed Bank initiative at Raisar village in Daspalla Block of Nayagarh district also received appreciation from MSSRF. The initiative has been featured as a case study on the MSSRF website, highlighting the contribution of rural women to community-based seed conservation and sustainable agricultural practices.
The DIVERSIFARM-India workshop brought together multiple stakeholders to explore collaborative approaches for conserving agricultural biodiversity, strengthening local seed systems and improving the resilience of farming communities.
The recognition of NIRMAN’s Raisar initiative underscores the potential of women-led community institutions to play a significant role in building sustainable, locally resilient and nutrition-secure agricultural systems in Odisha.
