From Our Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Nov 28: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $77 million (around Rs 688 crore) loan to Meghalaya for the restoration of 25,000 hectares of community forest land for promoting ecotourism, natural farming and other sustainable projects, mainly to help women and children of the farming communities.
The project will go by performance-based payments for ecosystem services and support farmers in adopting climate-smart practices. The main purpose is to create sustainable livelihoods and strengthen environmental resilience.
The Integrated Ecotourism and Sustainable Agri-Based Livelihood Development in Meghalaya Project will integrate nature-based tourism with climate-smart farming and forest conservation. This will generate economic opportunities for more than 8,000 people from indigenous communities, including women.
“The project supports Meghalaya’s Vision 2032 to become a top ecotourism destination while improving farmers’ incomes through sustainable agriculture,” said ADB Country Director for India Mio Oka.
“By combining conservation with tourism and rural markets, it produces new livelihood opportunities and offers a model that can be replicated in other states to promote inclusive growth,” he said.
ADB’s Northeast Economic Corridor study helped shape the project by identifying nature-based tourism and value-added agriculture as key drivers of Meghalaya’s growth. Key project components include building nature-based ecotourism visitor facilities that serve as interpretation centres and demonstration areas for traditional crafts and skills, and marketplaces for local crafts and agricultural products.
The project will restore 25,000 hectares of community forests via performance-based payments for ecosystem services and support farmers in adopting climate-smart practices and rehabilitating degraded fields, fallow lands, and drip irrigation systems. It will also establish processing and post-harvest facilities and infrastructure.
ADB will provide an additional one-million-dollar (around Rs 8.9 crore) technical assistance grant to enhance institutional capacity, strengthen market linkages, and ensure sustainability through innovative financing mechanisms, such as carbon and biodiversity credits.
The project will strengthen agriculture and tourism cooperatives, promote public–private partnerships for facility management, and launch an innovation fund for tourism enterprises, agribusinesses, forest management, and gender-focused initiatives.
It will create inclusive, climate-resilient livelihoods for rural communities in Meghalaya, particularly by empowering and facilitating women to lead and participate in local entrepreneurship, farmers’ organisations, and tourism cooperatives.
