PHASE Nepal has improved the livelihoods of thousands of people in its project areas. The goal of PHASE’s livelihoods programme is to ensure both food security (access to enough food) and proper nutrition (access to enough variety of food) for farming families living in remote mountain areas of Nepal, mainly through the introduction of improved agricultural techniques. This includes increasing arable produce such as vegetables, learning new skills like mushroom growing, and livestock production such as poultry and goats. On top of this we provide technical and vocational skills enhancement, and direct support to vulnerable groups such as the elderly, single women, and people with disabilities. 

In the areas where PHASE Nepal work, livelihood insecurity can be due to lack of basic infrastructure, the difficult geophysical situation such as thin soil and cold climates, a high rate of migration of the young and able-bodied, and the majority of the population being reliant on subsistence agriculture. In places that were affected by the 2015 earthquake, rural livelihoods became even more vulnerable with the loss of production factors such as seeds, fertilisers, tools and irrigation facilities.

In remote and highly food-insecure western Nepal, PHASE supports integrated livelihood projects in Bajura and Mugu with an emphasis on nutrition for women and children. In earthquake-affected Sindhupalchowk, trainings have been provided on improved agricultural practices and infrastructure including irrigation and drinking water schemes that benefitted over a thousand households. In Gorkha, also devastated by the 2015 earthquake, our work focuses on improving access to services and livelihood opportunities for most vulnerable populations, such as people with disabilities, single women, internally displaced people, the elderly, and the extreme poor.