Engagement of DHAN Foundation on small millets

From 2011-14 it has led a project by name “Revalorising Small Millets in Rainfed Regions of South Asia (RESMISA)” along with Canadian Mennonite University, Canada, LI-BIRD, Nepal and Arthacharya Foundation, Sri Lanka. This project aimed to improve cultivation and consumption of small millets in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka by addressing constraints both on the demand and supply side. It had comprehensive agenda covering conservation, cultivation, processing, value addition, promotion and policy advocacy. As a follow up of RESMISA project, DHAN Foundation implemented “Scaling up Small Millet Post-harvest and Nutritious Food Products Project” along with McGill University from 2016-2018. This project aimed to develop and apply ways for scaling up small millet processing and value addition technologies to reduce drudgery of women and improve the nutritional security in India. Both the projects were supported by International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and Global Affairs Canada (Then CIDA) as part of competitive calls under Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF).

As a result of engagement in these two projects, the project partners could bring out the following:

1. Appropriate technologies & practices
   1. Location specific package of production interventions
   2. Improved hulling and processing assemblies to meet varying operating requirements
   3. Appealing nutritious small millet food products
2. Improvement in capacity of six equipment manufacturers, 273 nano, micro and small food enterprises, 14 NGOs & 85 women/farmers’ federations
3. Reach to >600000 persons in 54 districts of 10 states
4. Working models for scaling up
   1. On-site incubation model for equipment manufacturers, and nano, micro and small food enterprises
   2. Working model for promoting consumption
5. Partnership with research institutions (Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, McGill University & Indian Institute of Millet Research, ICAR), small millet value chain actors, 19 NGOs, Government departments in 10 Indian states and FACHIG Trust, Zimbabwe.

More details of the project activities and their outputs are shared in the Final Technical Report of Revalorising Small Millets in Rainfed Regions of South Asia Project and Scaling up Small Millet Post-harvest and Nutritious Food Products Project and can be viewed at:

http://www.dhan.org/smallmillets/ & https://www.dhan.org/smallmillets2/

These initiatives have created necessary grounds and set direction for scaling up research-for-development interventions for mainstreaming small millets in regular diets. There is considerable need and scope for scaling up the learning in India, other South Asian countries and in Africa. In this background, DHAN Foundation has initiated Small Millet Foundation (SMF) for scaling up the learning from the projects on small millet interventions within and outside India.

Small Millet Foundation (SMF)

The broader goal of SMF is ‘Reviving/ integrating small millets into food cultures and farming systems for healthy lives, resilient agricultural livelihoods and healthy agricultural ecosystems.’

Mission of SMF

To catalyse scale up the production of small millets and promote its consumption among masses to improve nutrition and diet related health security in India and other parts of the world.

Approach

A twin strategy of (i) supporting market development and (ii) implementing ‘what market will not do’ will be followed, to ensure increase in millet consumption among the “bottom of the pyramid” population and to strengthen the roles of women, farming communities and marginalized communities like ST and SC in the emerging millet value chains. As there are large regional differences in millet value chain development across India, focus will be given for scaling up the proven ‘working models’ available in few states to other parts of the country

Objectives

1. Increasing household consumption among 1 million families, by 5 kgs/month/ family
2. Increasing production and productivity in a sustainable way in i) Tamil Nadu, ii) Eastern India, iii) Central India, iv) Karnataka and AP & v) Uttarakhand
3. Scaling up the small millet interventions to other millet growing Asian and African countries

Our organisation

SMF is a subsidiary of DHAN Foundation. It was registered as a trust on 2nd March 2018 under Trust Act. Its Board of Trustees are,