Ango Konyak, DCF (HQ) and Deputy Project Director of NFMP,
along with Wennyei Konyak, Resident Commissioner of Nagaland House, New Delhi,
receiving the SKOCH Award in New Delhi on Saturday.
- DIMAPUR — The
Nagaland Forest Management Project (NFMP)—a Japan-assisted initiative to
improve forest ecosystems and support income generation by rehabilitating jhum
areas—received the prestigious SKOCH Award 2024 during a ceremony organised for
national award winners as part of the 100th SKOCH summit held in New Delhi on
Saturday.
- An update informed that Ango Konyak, DCF (HQ) and Deputy
Project Director of NFMP, along with Wennyei Konyak, Resident Commissioner of
Nagaland House, New Delhi, had received the award on behalf of the Department
of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (DEFCC).
- It explained that the NFMP is a project implemented by
DEFCC, with assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
- “The project aims to improve forest ecosystems and support
income generation by rehabilitating jhum areas and supporting livelihoods.
- “It focuses on sustainable forest and environmental conservation
and improving livelihoods in targeted villages through need-based,
village-specific interventions led by Joint Forest Management Committees,” it
informed.
- Started in 2017, the JICA-assisted project is set to run
till 2027.
- It is designed to cover 185 villages across 11 districts and
22 forest ranges. It will cover an area of 79,096 hectares under forest
intervention and also aims to form 555 self-help groups under the livelihood
component.
- “The SKOCH Award stands as one of the highest independent
honours bestowed upon states and organisations. The award is known for its
rigorous and independent outcome-based assessment process.
- “SKOCH Group, the organisers of the award, is India’s
leading think tank dealing with socio-economic issues, with a focus on
inclusive growth, since 1997. It has instituted India’s highest independent
civilian honours in the fields of governance, technology, economics, and the
social sector,” it stated.
