Another training seminar on the Role of Farmers' Council in assisting farms took place on November 8-9, 2013 in Termez, as a part of the "Developing farming in Uzbekistan. Phase IV" project. The seminar was organized for the employees of the regional and province divisions of Surxondaryo Province Farmers' Council; being another one in the series of seminars held throughout the provinces in Uzbekistan. The seminar was organized by Farmers' Council of the Republic of Uzbekistan, OSCE and Ministry of Agriculture and Water Management of Uzbekistan.
We have previously mentioned about the Uzbekistan GEF Small Grants Programme's participation in one of such seminars in Tashkent. This time SGP was represented by the Program's National Coordinator Alexey Volkov. The participants of the seminar learned about the SGP's work methods, about the program's assistance in testing and distributing new technologies as well as technologies that either had not been in use for a long time or had not been in use for a number of reasons, but that can one way or another save natural resources: save water, save soil fertility, save energy or help with its more economic use, save flora and fauna.
In practice, it is the technology that people benefit from that will be in demand the most. In general, the works are performed in the rural area, i.e. where the resources are used directly. Thus, the primary beneficiaries of SGP technologies and program's assistance are the farmers and villagers. SGP is aiming at distributing technologies that use less natural resources but at the same time are more economically beneficial for the farmers, that is - the technology that would bring the farmers extra revenue.
A lot were said about soil at the seminar - as the base of food security in the country. It was determined that for a long time the soil has not been just a natural resource, but the country's main capital that requires investments, care and proper treatment.
It was also mentioned that agriculture in our climate is only possible with the use of irrigation, but today the decrease in soil fertility, and as a consequence - the decrease in productivity (that is, in the amount of food that can be grown) - are evident. This is caused by the decrease in the amount of water available, and obsolete and inefficient technologies of tillage. Apart from this, the participants of the seminar learned a lot about:
Alternative ways of use of unproductive, dry soils were also presented to the participants: on the example of growing pistachio plantations in rainfed soils and forestries, and on the example of haloxylon regeneration in prairie areas of the country to prevent degradation and desertification.
In conclusion, it was said that apart from climate change the existing problems were also caused by man created issues both locally and globally. The main problem is neglecting the importance of creating the proper conditions for using the perfect irrigation technique - the key to amelioration of arid-zone soils, especially highly permeable and saline soils. The scientists believe that in the past 20 years the areas of saline and swamped land in Uzbekistan increased by 10% and 15% respectively. It is obvious that this process will continue unless the reasons are understood and measures are taken.
This organizers' initiative is highly in demand nowadays and SGP will support such endeavors. The organizers now took a break, and will resume their work after New Year holidays. The SGP team will be happy to further participate in these series of seminars throughout the country.
As for our programme, for the coming year we are planning, with the support of UNDP, to organize and hold a series of training seminars on SGP technologies and its partners for the employees of regional municipalities, associates of regional and province Farmers' Councils, Water Users' Association and other enterprises, upon the well coordinated actions of which the present and future of sustainable development of farming and economic growth of the country on the whole depend. Stay tuned!
Please, find the presentation right below:
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