Nepal is on its way to developing a national agroforestry policy following a three-day consultation workshop, which was held from 26-28 March in Kathmandu. More than 150 people attended the meeting, which was jointly organized by The World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Nepal’s Ministry of Agricultural Development, and the Asia Network for Sustainable Agriculture and Bio-resources (ANSAB).

“In order to have a more focused and coordinated strategy and approach to promote agroforestry among various actors and stakeholders, participants agree to develop a National Agroforestry Policy for Nepal,” said the Kathmandu Declaration on Agroforestry (pdf), which was released at the close of the workshop. The statement – which was signed by Nepal’s Minister of Forests and Soil Conservation as well as the Minister of Agricultural Development – added that the new policy is expected to help ease regulatory constraints and ultimately strengthen Nepal’s food security, environmental security, and soil health. 

“To ensure that the population of Nepal gets full benefits of agroforestry, we need to develop a national agroforestry policy, and I am pleased that the process has already begun,” said Mahesh Acharya, Nepal’s Minister of Forests and Soil Conservation, as he officially opened the meeting. Hari Prasad Parajuli, the Minister of Agricultural Development, added that the idea of a national agroforestry policy has his “fullest support.” 

On the opening day of the workshop, Dr. V.P. Sign, Senior Policy Advisor at ICRAF’s South Asia Program, discussed India’s experiences with developing and implementing a national agroforestry policy. Participants agreed that Nepal would take lessons from India as it develops its own national plan. 

Several specific themes were identified as requiring immediate attention. These include helping Nepalese farmers develop incomes from commercial agroforestry; strengthening the country’s food security through the use of multi-purpose trees; improving the quality of planting material and germplasm; developing sources of bio-energy; fighting land degradation and improving soil health; and developing agroforestry models suited for Nepal’s different ecological zones.