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POLICY ROUNDTABLE
Strategic Group: Resilient Economies and Landscapes , Action Area: Landscapes & HI-REAP
Karnali Province, Nepal
05 September 2025 to 12 September 2025
Led by the provincial Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture Cooperatives (MOLMAC), in collaboration with ICIMOD’s Himalayan Resilience Enabling Action Programme (HI-REAP), this event will facilitate a high-level policy roundtable to explore innovative incentive mechanisms to strengthen Karnali’s path towards climate-resilient organic agriculture, incorporating innovative agroforestry and rangelands management innovations.
The programme will bring together representatives from 10 districts and feature field consultation in Jumla to explore how integrated forest, rangeland and agriculture policies can be harmonised to strengthen the organic vision of Karnali province.
The overall goal is to strengthen the implementation of the Karnali Province Organic Agriculture Act (2076) and the Karnali Agriculture Development Strategy (KADS) and Karnali Rangeland Strategy by co-developing innovative incentive framework that accelerates the adoption of nature-based practices and solutions. This event is supported by the United Kingdom International Development.
The specific objectives of the event are to:
Since 2018, Karnali Province has pursued a bold vision to transition into a fully organic province under the Karnali Province Organic Agriculture Act (2076). In parallel, the province hosts some of Nepal’s most ecologically significant high-altitude rangelands vital for agro-pastoral livelihoods, biodiversity and ecosystem management. In the past, ICIMOD, through its Building Resilience of Agroecosystems and Community Empowerment (BRACE) initiative, has supported agroecological and climate-resilient farming, leveraging digital advisory services, action research, and knowledge co-creation. Additionally, the ongoing HI-REAP project contributed to the development of the Karnali Rangeland Strategy, where agro-pastoralist issues and innovations are discussed.
Agroecological farming in Karnali integrates traditional knowledge, ecosystem functioning, and locally available resources, minimising reliance on chemical fertilisers and external inputs. Practices such as vermicompost, trichocompost, biochar, urine- and dung-based fertilisers, green manures, crop rotation, and herb-based pest repellents are demonstrated across community learning centres.
By linking organic agriculture and sustainable agroforestry and rangeland management together, this initiative aims to foster a shared provincial strategy that addresses both environmental concerns and livelihood challenges of farming communities.
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