A statement of the problem to be addressed:

About 31.7% of the population live below the national poverty line of Nu. 740.36 per capita a month and most of them are in the rural areas where agriculture is the main source of income for livelihood. Poverty in Bhutan is largely a rural phenomenon. (Poverty Analysis Report of the 2004)

Project's objectives

The specific objectives of the project are as follows:

1. To develop a Handbook on how to carry out a simple study on the situation of farming practices in communities.
2. To carry out a simple situational analysis study on farming practices in the rural communities.
3. To analyze findings of the study and identify issues and problems.
4. To draw up a plan of action for improving farming practices of the community.
5. To carry out the prioritized actions for improvement of the farming practices.

Main activities involved:

1. Organize a Workshop on Development of Handbook;
2. Procure training materials and equipment such as digital camera, and laptop;
3. Print 1000 copies of Handbook;
4. Orientation Workshop for the selected NFE Instructors and Head teachers on use of Handbook and project implementation;
5. Train NFE learners how to carry out the study;
6. NFE learners carry out situational analysis study and draw up action plan;
7. Finalize the action plan in different centres and submit progress report;
8. Implement the action plan + Monitoring;
9. Monitor and evaluate the project and submit final report.

Main expected results:

The main results of the project will be as follows:

1. Attitudes and behaviour of community members changed regarding improved farming techniques and practices;
2. Farming production enhanced and community members motivated to continue improving on their own;
3. Community members skilled in improving the farm products.

Department of Adult and Higher Education, Ministry of Education (Thimphu, Bhutan) Department of Adult and Higher Education, Ministry of Education (Thimphu, Bhutan)

The Royal Government of Bhutan introduced a non-formal education system as early as 1992 to provide second chances to those youths and adults who had missed the formal education system. The Government of Bhutan is committed to providing Education for All and strives towards achieving the goal of Gross National Happiness. It aims to provide the best possible education to make each and every citizen of the country productive and self-reliant. In line with the national goal, the main mission of the organisation is "to create a system of learning opportunities for all people at any stage of life. To make the entire population literate in the national language, Dzongkha, and numerate by 2012. However, realising how large the adult illiterate population is, the full adult literacy target has been extended to 2015. One of the main tasks of the organisation is to make opportunities available for those outside the formal system of education to learn new skill and knowledge through a system of continuing education. The policy is to make learning opportunities community-based and seek to improve people's quality of life to the greatest extent possible. In the light of important development outcomes and effect on overall well-being of the family, particular emphasis is placed on the learning needs of women, especially in the rural areas. The national goal for the 10th Five-Year Plan is to reduce the portion of population living below the poverty line from 31.7% to 20%. To this end, educational activities are aimed towards contributing to the achievement of the national goal. The NFE curriculum and programme is aimed at providing knowledge, information, and skills that will help in empowering girls and women, improving the quality of life and promoting a self-reliant, happy and healthy society.

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