Innov4AgPacific

A Value Chain Coordinating/Agricultural Innovation Platform in the Pacific Region Initiated under the Project 'Promoting Nutritious Food Systems

Kastom Gaden Association (KGA)

KGA is the largest farmer organisation in the Solomon Islands with a large network of farmers (5,451 members), which are also part of Planting Material Network (PMN). KGA also has helped to strengthen their village structures by forming a number of Community Based Organizations (CBOs), who eventually become KGA’s rural based partners.  Its mission is to ‘Strengthen village-based food security in the Solomon Islands using participatory, practical, grass-roots approaches that enable village people to examine, understand, and develop their own solutions to improving household food security and village- based agriculture economy’

Seed Funding Title: Improving Local Food Crop Planting Material Production and Supply Systems for Improved Food Security and Livelihoods of Rural Populations in the Solomon Islands

Seed Funding Supported Activities:

  • Identification, collection and multiplication of improved varieties of root crops (sweet potato, yam, taro) to include planting and evaluation of superior vaities in genebanks operated by community-based farmer groups and training and distribution to establish active fields.
  • Establishment of two open-pollinated vegetable seed production centers in Malaita and KGA Burn Creek and provide seed saving training to 50 farmers from 3 provinces; Malaita, Western and Guadalcanal on aspects of rapid multiplication and small scale seed production and proper seed storage using appropriate, low cost technology / storage facilities.
  • Sensitization and awareness raising on the nutritional value of local foods and their importance in a diversified diet and management of NCDs and pest and disease and soil fertility management.

 

www.kastomgaden.org

 

 

Kastom Gaden’s Experience Capitalization Publication:

Sharing superior crop varieties with local farmers in the Solomon Islands – Pitakia Tikai, Kastom Gaden Association (KGA)

Content: In 2006, the Kastom Gaden Association (KGA) recognised the need to diversify the Solomon Islands’ crop varieties in order to combat the strain that an increasing population was having upon people’s livelihoods. The 3-year Searem Niu Plant Long Gaden project sought to introduce African yam, cassava and sweet potato varieties from overseas and this established a process of crop diversification which improved the country’s self-sustainability.