INITIATIVE

Fulbari VDC (Chitwan):

A Potential Destination for B ounded by 4 village
Development Committees
(Mangalpur, Sharadanagar,

Agro-tourism Business
Agro-tourism Business Shivanagar and Gitanagar) and
Bharatpur Municipality, Fulbari is the
smallest VDC in Chitwan district of
Lowland Nepal. It occupies 13.88 %
of the area of the district. It is 9 km
west to the district headquater and
nearly 2 km from the Nepal’s only one
agricultural institute (IAAS).
According to the district profile of
2058, it had total households of 679
with the total population of 3016
(female-1526 and male- 1490) with
population density of 217.29.
Households chiefly engage in
agricultural activities, which range
from crop cultivation to poultry
farming. Some households are
pioneer in permaculture promotion in
this district and are actively involved
in organic agriculture and sources for
aspiration for the local farmers. They
are socially and institutionally
bounded in Organic Agriculture
Farmers Cooperative (OAFC),
perhaps the first one in Nepal.
Last year, this OAFC launched
“Organic Pest Management School”
for six months in collaboration with
Ecological Services Centre, a
dedicated Chitwan based NGO. “We
have learned innovative ways of
organic pest management strategies”
Trainees got opportunities to build
capacity of local farmers in organic
agriculture.
Agrotourism
Realizing physical resources and
human capital, Fulbari VDC can be
promoted as potential destination for
agrotourism business. This business
can be launched by a local farmer or
farming family or cooperatives for
generating additional income through
touring in farms, festivals and
museums, selling farm products, and
providing organic food and
accommodation. This business
creates opportunities for farm
diversification and conservation of
traditional knowledge and
agrobiodiversity, and helps educate
the public about evolution of

44 NTTR June 1 - 15, 2008

 INITIATIVE
ecological agriculture development in
the VDC. Finally, it may enhance the
appeal and demand for value-added
products and direct-marketing
opportunities that may stimulate
economic development and spread
the benefits to various communities
in the village.
“We are planning to develop this
Fulbari VDC as agrotourism village
linking with Ecological agriculture”
Chandra Prasad Adhikari says. He
also informed that international
tourists from UK, France, Italy had
already stayed in Fulbari. “We have
the capacity of homestays for 30-35
tourists at a time” Mr. Adhikari adds.
Places to Visit
Chandra Prasad Adhikari has keen
observation on the tourist appealing
places. “Institute for Social and
Environmental Research, Schools,
Milk Collection Centres, Health
Centre, Shrines and temples are the
main places we can take our visitors ”
he adds. Other places that appeal
tourists are the upland and lowland
fields, poultry farms, fish farms,
banana plantation, irrigation
canal, etc.
Key persons to contact
Visitors have got contacts with
creative personalities and think
tankers working either in Organic
Farmers Cooperative or Institute for
Social and Environmental Research or
with youths wishing to provide better
education and environment and rural
development. One can share their
experiences with them or take organic
agriculture programs, or researches or
developmental works or
environmental conservation camps
there and implement the activities in
partnership with local people.
Learning opportunities
„ Ecological agriculture (Organic
agriculture and permaculture)
Ecological agriculture plays vital
role in protecting and conserving
ecosystems, species and genetic
diversity in landscape levels. It is
practiced by the farmers of the Fulbari
VDC to produce safe food. Tourism
promoters can use this ecological
farming as eco-friendly agrotour for
the farmers, researchers, teachers and
students, and planner and policy
makers. Visitors can directly purchase
this tour package for learning
environmentally safe agriculture by
NTTR June 1 - 15, 2008
observing farmers fields and their
activities. Here visitors can enjoy
observing organic sunflower
cultivation, rice cum fish culture, etc
and learn agrobiodiversity of
vegetables and trees. “Each year I
take my students (from Rampur
Campus) to Chandra Adhikari’s place
(at Fulbari) for learning organic
agriculture and organic farmers
cooperatives” Khem Raj Dahal shares
his experiences.
„ Local innovations
The visitors can see unique
agricultural practices that help farmers
fight against the problems of the
agriculture production, storage and
marketing. One can see rice cum fish
fields, or water outlets, or modified
plow, or organic fertilizer made from
medicinal plants. One can meet farmer
researcher innovating best practices in
ecological agriculture and natural
resource management for contributing
to Nepalese farmers.
„ Research methods and data
management
The visitors especially interested
in research methodology and data
management can take unlimited
benefits from the Institute for Social
and Environmental Research (ISER).
This institute has national
researchers and international
collaborators and organizes training
events on research methodology,
capacity buildings, and
environmental conservations. Dr.
Dirghajibi Ghimire, Executive Director
of ISER, describes, “We have trained
human resources in our organization
and well furnished facilities necessary
to organize survey researches and
data analysis”
Agricultural Products
Organic Farmers Cooperative has
vision of marketing their organic
products in Nepal and abroad. They
are currently marketing their products
in Kathmandu valley. “I am interested
to promote organic products buying
organic rice, organic vegetables and
organic sunflower oil” Dr. Resham
Thapa, Professor in Entomology of
Rampur Campus, tells. This indicates
possibility of marketing organic
products in the academic institutes
nearby Fulbari VDC. The Organic
Farmer Cooperative already started
organic food as lunch or dinner in the
functions like interaction programs or
meetings.
Redefining the role of
organizations
In Chitwan, there are many
organizations working in this field.
Some organizations, like Institute for
Social and Environmental Research,
Organic Farmers’ Cooperatives and
Society for Environmental, Education
and Development, are the ones
located in Fulbari VDC. These
organizations have to redefine their
role for institutionalizing agrotourism
in their organizations and developing
and promoting this business in this
VDC. These organizations should play
to identify potential partners and
organizations that can help in
facilitation, coordination and growth
of agro-tourism as a distinct economic
activity and require strategic planning,
event management, joint promotion,
advertising campaigns and
information management. Developing
network among governments,
academic institutions, NGOs and
INGOs helps promote this VDC as a
potential site for agrotourism in
Chitwan.
Developing capacity in
agrotourism
Capacity building is a tool that
catalyzes individuals and
organizations to understand, plan,
and conduct activities such as
training, research and development.
Thus, it is necessary to build capacity
of the organizations as well as
individuals in agrotourism to promote
Fulbari VDC for rural development
through agrotourism business. The
organizations should be strengthened
and should build their capacity in
proposal writing, reporting,
communicating, guiding the tourists,
financial management, environmental
conservation and sanitation,
agriculture knowledge, skill and
entrepreneurship development,
networking and partnership
development, designing and planning
infrastructures, research methods to
conduct social and natural sciences
including biodiversity monitoring,
visitors impact analysis, carrying
capacity, etc.
Dr. Dharma Raj Dangol
Senior Research Associate in the Institute
for Social and Environmental Research
Fulbari, Chitwan, Nepal
Fulbari VDC and Agriculture
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