Sanma Farm India

Rural sustainability through Enhanced Micro-Farming

Educate a micro-farmer better farming methods $48 Give a pair of goats for a farmer family $55 Sponsor dairy water buffaloes $300 A pair of plowing animals $350 Build a village school (CEC) $6000 Related Articles Farm goats to offer child laborers freedom A pair of plowing animals triples the income of a farm laborer Dairy animals allow parents to provide education for their children

Community based agriculture development program helps small farmers to restart farming and to utilize their full capacity.

Is it possible for one person to prevent global famine? Yes, one village at a time. Sanma's enhanced micro farming methods can significantly increase the food production and thus help curb a global food shortage. The program also helps to improve the quality of food and farm products reach the markets, indirectly contributing to the overall quality of human life. Sanma applies its simple, yet effective methods by educating and equipping the micro farmer community of India.

Kavitha and Daniel live in a small farm community of 25 families. Most of them own two acres or less land raising cotton, tobacco, maize, and beans.  The first crop allows them to break-even, and if they can do a second crop, that means a profitable year. Unfortunately, they do not get to farm more than one crop a year. Sanma helped the small community utilize the water sources efficiently which allowed them to have a reserve body of water. As the summer rolled in and land got dry, farmers started rationing the water carefully. This year Kavitha have a second crop, which is going to help them break the cycle of poverty!

The micro-farm community of India is comprised of more than 400 million people who own small parcels of farmland, in most cases, less than two acres each.  Though individually small parcels, collectively they are capable of providing food for the whole nation. And that is one out of every six person on earth. The problem however, these farmers live from crop to crop. One crop failure can spell trouble to the micro-farmer. Having no reserves or backup plans, these farmers become desperate, and are forced in to the traps of lenders who take advantage of the illiterate.

What Sanma does

Sanma's plan to help poor farmers and to enhance agriculture goes beyond giving poor farmers the tools and supplies they need. Sanma reaches the root cause that keeps so many hard working farmers in poverty. Often the lack of knowledge stands in the way of a small farmer who tries hard to farm better.  Sanma educates micro-farmers, and prepare them to utilize the information and tools, and then provide them quality tools and plowing animals.

Small farmers are brought together at Sanma Community Education Centers where the farmers receive quality education in all fundamental aspects of farming, in addition to topics such as animal health and personal hygiene. The study program is simple, prepared by professionals in the subject, and taught by the community educator. Most farmers successfully complete the course in less than six months and graduate at Literacy Graduation.

A farmer who is given a tool after such a training is several times more prone to success than one who simply receive the tools or the money without a training. A farmer who has graduated from the CEC can significantly increase his farming because he is now an educated, and responsible person, rather than a victim who seeks welfare.

Several times I took loans and purchases, but was not able to keep them for more than a season. Sanma's CEC taught me how to be a better farmer and even a better citizen. Thanks to Sanma! I am able to produce much more than I used to, with less work!

Sanma's Agricultural literacy has long range effects. The majority of small farmers have lived and worked in their small farms for generations. A micro-farmer's crop failure has repercussions that go beyond the waste of usable farmland; during the past six years, India's villages witnessed the horrible scenes. More than 150,000 micro farmers have ended their lives since 2003. Ashamed of the financial crisis, and unable to watch their inheritance taken over by creditors who offer them easy credit, they gave up.

Thankfully, this is a tragedy that we can stop today! Your help to enhance Farm India program will have lasting impacts. Sanma deploy this program through our village schools known as CEC's. Each CEC can help sixty or more farmers to enhance farming. That is sixty families who will be able to break the cycle of poverty. Their children who are child laborers can be released because of this program. Each CEC can help fifty or more child laborers freedom from the abuse at work, and offer a childhood!

How can you help today'

Sponsor a six month education for a farmer $48

Give a pair of goats for a farmer family $55

Sponsor a pair of plowing buffalos $350

Sponsor dairy water buffaloes $300

Build a village school (CEC) $6000 

Here is an excerpt from one of our field reports:

Only until a few months ago, Mr. Naik would sit by the porch of his hut and would wonder about the future of his children. His neighborhood is made up of farm laborers who worked for large farm owners. Three months out of each year his neighbors would not have any work, which would mean the family would have to get by with hardly one meal each day. With the current level of income, sending his children to school was not an option for him.

Naik is sitting with his children today, not wondering about their future, but as a proud father and a confident man, who is grateful for being able to provide his children basic education! The change Sanma brought to his life was simple, yet dramatic. Naik joined Sanma CEC, and received Agriculture Literacy, and he received a pair of plowing oxen from Sanma.

With the help of these animals, Naik is doing the same job he was doing, but earning four times as much pay! Upon his graduation at Sanma Community Education Center, he was selected to receive a pair of animals, along with the training to keep them healthy.

Each day, as he cares for his animals, and builds up a happy family, he is also trying to define you. In his definition, you are more than a giver; you impacted their life with compassion.