Mango Horticulture: A Livelihood Opportunity for the Poor

Highlighting the recent developments in the mango sub-sector, the workshop identified the opportunities for enhancing the potential of this promising source of livelihood for farmers with small holdings in eastern India.

Introduction

I ndia is the largest producer of mangoes in the world, producing 40 to 55 per cent of the global supply in any given year. There are over 200 varieties of mango, and its cultivation covers over 30 per cent of the total area under plantation, and represents 20 per cent of the total national fruit production. The fruit has been cultivated on the Indian sub-continent for over 4,000 years and is favoured for its nutritive value, taste, attractive fragrance and health promoting qualities.

Workshop Overview

A two-day workshop on ‘Mango Horticulture: A Livelihood Opportunity for the Poor’ was organized by the National Resource Centre on Rural Livelihoods, in collaboration with Oxfam India, in Ranchi on 24 and 25 March 2011. The objective of the workshop was to explore the recent developments in the mango sub-sector, and to identify the opportunities to enhance the potential of this promising source of livelihood for farmers with small holdings in eastern India. There were about 60 participants from various government departments, agricultural institutions, NGOs and market players.

The first day of the workshop was spent in the field, visiting the communities engaged in mango horticulture in Gumla district, Jharkhand. On the following day, there was an interactive session, to address the objectives of the conference and to assimilate the lessons from the field visit.