Inception workshop aims to strengthen implementation of food production project
The inception workshop for the project “Strengthening food production capacity and the resilience to drought of vulnerable communities” is funded by the European Union (EU) and implemented by NARI in partnership with provincial and district administrations, and other relevant Non-Government Organisations or Community-Based Organisations operating within target areas.
The overall objective of the EU supported project is to contribute to achieving a greater resilience of smallholder farming and rural communities in PNG to abiotic stresses arising from seasonal weather patterns, climate change or natural disasters impacting on their livelihoods.
NARI as the lead implementing agency hopes to use this workshop organised for provinces in the Momase and Islands region to formalise partnerships and the commitment of respective provinces and districts to provide their support for the successful implementation of the project.
More specifically, the workshops are expected to provide an opportunity for all potential partners and participants to establish common understanding on the objectives, major activities to be undertaken, and the expected outcomes of the project. The purpose of which is to select and confirm target project sites in each of the identified districts, plan activities for year one, and firm up partnership arrangements in order to start the implementation phase.
The project implementation phase expected to commence in January next year will cover various sites in Madang, Morobe, East Sepik, Sandaun, Manus, West New Britain, Central, Milne Bay, Western, Gulf and Oro provinces. These target sites were selected based on assessment reports of various institutions including the PNG National Disaster Centre, have been found to be among the worst affected areas during the recent 2015-2016 El Niño induced drought.
The two-day inception workshop is the first for the project with an upcoming workshop planned for the provinces of the southern region in mid-November. The 4-year project launched in May is expected to be completed in 2021.