A partnership promoting innovative solutions and community empowerment

• Climate sensitive and economically sustainable food systems strengthened resilience in the Lusakert community of the Shirak region and enabled men and women farmers to conserve up to 40 per cent more water than traditional methods of irrigation, thus helping them to overcome poverty and food insecurity.

Thanks to the partnership with the Chinese government the World Food Programme’s (WFP)project improved the effectiveness of water supply through an innovative irrigation system and helped farmers to conserve up to 40 per cent more water. At the same time, the 20 kW solar station not only helped the community to save around US$ 3,000 yearly for 25 years but also increased clean energy production in the settlement. WFP interventions under this project strengthened partnerships between the community and smallholder farmers and ensure a sustainable future for the community.

Lusakert village is located in the northern part of Armenia's Shirak region. Severe weather conditions throughout the year make it consistently difficult for families to grow enough food to eat. Water is becoming increasingly scarce, and they face recurrent droughts.

In this village, many people grew up thinking that small plots of lands were not enough to help families to run productive and profitable businesses while meeting the households' food needs. With a limited amount of both land and water, families were unable to grow a variety of crops on their small plots.

Lusakert occupies the north-western part of Armenia, with 78 thousand hectares agricultural land.
The region has the highest rate of food insecurity (35 per cent) in Armenia and is among one of the poorest in the country.7

7 Statistical Committee of the Republic of Armenia (2022). Social snapshot and poverty in Armenia, 2022.
Part 1: Poverty profile in 2010-2021.

Figure 1

Food security and poverty rate in the Shirak region (Armenia)

Main livelihood sources in Shirak are agriculture and work abroad. In upland communities, cattle and sheep breeding is more dominant, while population in the lowland communities is engaged in farming. Types of agricultural activities farmers are involved includes cultivation of grain, potatoes, and fruits. Main obstacles of agriculture development in Shirak include high prices for agricultural machinery and equipment, fuel, forage, and workforce.

Climate change has its implications on the agricultural development of the region, by frequent droughts and decrease in precipitation levels. According to the World Food Programme (WFP) Consolidated Livelihood Exercise for Analyzing Resilience (CLEAR), the impact of the climate change on the livelihood and food security in Shirak is high to moderate. Moreover, poor water resource management practices and outworn irrigation system impact on the water availability levels. At the same time, the region experiences a low number of
productive breeds due to the lack of postures.

To strengthen resilience in the settlement, improve livelihoods of vulnerable populations as well as to increase the sustainability of the food and agricultural systems in the settlement, WFP started investing in food systems that are climate sensitive and economically sustainable. To help rural families fight poverty and food insecurity, WFP launched the Covid-19 South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) Opportunity Fund in 2021, with technical support from China. Within the scope of this activity, “Green Energy for Productive Farming” project was launched aiming to assist in overcoming poverty and food insecurity in Lusakert.

To address climate change implications in the face of decreased precipitation and limited availability of water resources, as well as to raise and stabilize food production, WFP supported 15 households in Lusakert with drip irrigation systems that enable farmers to conserve up to 40 per cent more water than traditional methods. Further, WFP provided them with four types of seedlings – raspberries, blackberries, currants, and goji berries – to help establish berry gardens (100m² for each household) to ensure more harvest from the same piece of land compared to other crops.

Figure 2

Example of a planting scheme for a 100 square metre berry garden

Additionally, WFP provided trainings on modern irrigation systems how they contribute to increase agricultural production. The drip irrigation system will help the farmers to save up to 40 per cent more water compared to the traditional methods. Farmers were taught the main principles of efficient agriculture, the care, and characteristics of high-value crops, and how to improve competitiveness in the diverse market of agricultural products.

Apart from the drip irrigation system, within the framework of the food value chain project for poor communities, WFP has also taken steps to transition away from reliance on natural gas and electricity towards solar power, by installing 20 kW solar station allowing the settlement to save around US$ 3,000 yearly for 25 years.

While the solar energy is the most affordable energy source in the country that helps farmers to save money and reinvest in agriculture, it also increases clean energy production.

WFP interventions under this project strengthened partnerships between the community and small holder farmers which are key to overcoming the vulnerability and building a pathway to a sustainable future.