KATHMANDU, Jan 29: The government initiation of the farmer registration process to provide services and facilities to farmers through an electronic system has progressed sluggishly. In about four years since its introduction in February 2021, only about 2 million farmers have registered for the program.
According to data maintained by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD), only about 47.7 percent of farmer families nationwide have enrolled in the registration system.
The National Agriculture Census 2021 reports that Nepal has 4.13 million farming households. Dr Ramnandan Tiwari, head of the Agricultural Information and Training Center (AITC), said that 1.97 million farming households have been registered in the system so far.
“More than half of the farming households are still not registered in the government system,” he said, “Local authorities are still collecting farmers' details through the online system.”
150,000 new farmers registered in government database
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The government introduced the registration program to prevent duplication in the beneficiaries of its grants and ensure that subsidies reach the targeted farmers. It plans to link services such as agricultural insurance, agricultural loans, chemical fertilizers, seeds, and subsidies with the registration system. Farmers engaged in agriculture or business must obtain a farmer registration number to receive grants and assistance from the government.
The AITC has been assigned the responsibility of collecting farmer-related details for registration and managing the electronic system. It has carried out the identification of farmers under the farmer registration program, using the authority granted by Section 47 of the Food Rights and Food Sovereignty Act, 2018.
The MoALD plans to identify farmers, classify them through the system, and link the farmer identity card to the national identity card and other software created by the MoALD for farmers. The farmer registration management system will store data on the farmer’s status, qualifications, farming area, the climate in which they are actively farming, and the farming method they are using.
The registration management system is planned to link all agriculture-related government bodies, including farmers. Additionally, the ministry has stated that entities such as banking institutions, insurance committees, agricultural cooperatives, and development partner organizations will also be able to access the system in accordance with the rules of the Government of Nepal.
The MoALD plans to provide services and facilities to farmers across the country through an easy-to-use electronic system. The ministry aims to develop a single-window system and integrate various electronic information systems from different bodies, including the chemical fertilizer management system and the digitally enabled seed system.
The government plans to make the farmer identity card mandatory. Farmers will need to present their identity card to receive services such as grants from the government, non-governmental, and private sectors, or to request services. The ministry has stated that the farmer identity card will serve as the main basis for accessing public agricultural services and as proof of farmer identification.
Amid complaints about duplication in government grants and the inability of actual farmers to receive them, many believe this initiative will streamline the distribution of grants. Over the past five years, the government has distributed grants worth Rs 107.66 billion to farmers. Despite the disbursement of grants, agricultural production has not increased. Complaints persist that the governmental grants have not reached the targeted groups of farmers.