Agricultural NGOs focus on sustainable development, fair trade, and community empowerment. They use technology to improve productivity and eliminate pests, while also promoting social organization and political participation. Some provide microfinance to rural entrepreneurs.
Agricultural non-governmental organizations (NGOs) often specialize in certain types of activities as stated in their mission statements. Larger NGOs may have one division specializing in certain agricultural objectives, while the rest of the NGOs are involved in other aspects of development. Agricultural NGOs have increasingly moved away from emergency or emergency aid and towards sustainable development, using technological research with the aim of slowing or halting environmental and social degradation in rural areas. Agricultural NGOs are also moving towards the goals of fair trade, community empowerment and participation in decision-making, helping to channel more political power towards communities or towards specific social groups, such as women. Other NGOs are focusing on business creation in rural communities through the provision of micro-credit.
NGOs interested in R&D can aim to develop relevant technologies for farmers in a particular region, making use of farmers’ skills and experience combined with modern technologies to improve productivity. This agro-ecological approach can involve specialist issues such as soil management, introducing modern farming methods that combine well with farmers’ skills. Research is often directed towards eliminating pests that threaten crops in some regions or health problems caused by insect pests or poor sanitation in rural areas.
Agricultural NGOs often combine their activities with the broader goal of social organization and empowerment, ensuring that rural communities have a say in their own future and are heard by governments. For example, helping communities manage their basic health needs and their children’s education can be combined with training adults in social organization and political participation. An emphasis on sustainable land use can be complemented by land rights and tenure education, enabling rural communities to defend their rights against encroachment by corporate or political interests. Other NGOs could address fair trade, enabling rural groups to form cooperatives and advocate for a fair price from participating organizations in industrialized countries.
Some agricultural NGOs focus on providing microfinance, including loans, savings and insurance. In the area of microfinance, some NGOs focus on providing micro-credit to farmers and other rural businesses on fair terms, to enable them to build their businesses and account for the use of funds responsibly. These NGOs open up business expansion possibilities for rural entrepreneurs who would otherwise be unable to obtain a bank loan due to their inability to raise collateral for loans and lack of credit history.
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