SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL-DEVELOPMENT FOR SMALL FARMERS IN NEPAL - MYTH OR REALITY

Small and marginal farmers in Nepal mostly depend on their farms and t he forests for their livelihoods. But continued population growth and increasing demands for food, shelter and cloth have stepped up the pre ssure on land and other natural resources. Furthermore, there is evide nce that farmers have been extending the agricultural production area largely by clearing vast tracts of virgin forest, which are a precious natural resource. This has been creating both environmental and econo mic problems. Because small and marginal farmers have to survive below the subsistence level, in self-perpetuating dismal conditions, 'susta inable agricultural development' for them remains a myth rather than a reality.