In our globalised world the basic right to adequate food is denied to more than a billion people. This statistic represents the highest level of chronically hungry people recorded since 1970.
Livelihoods
We tackle the root causes of poverty.
Livelihoods are the many different ways that people can earn their living and meet their essential needs.
We work with people who are denied the right to a dignified livelihood and have not benefited from global economic development.
Across the world there has been persistent failure to address the injustice of poverty. Our livelihoods programmes support people who are struggling to build a way of life. But the underlying causes of poverty are equally urgent issues, which we also focus on.
We devote a large part of our work to help poor households in Africa, Asia and Latin America. These families and communities often live in rural areas with no agricultural support. They rely on very small plots of land and in many places they are denied even this basic right, to farm their own land.
We support people as they build a reliable way of life through our agriculture programmes. These programmes include developing agricultural techniques, helping families to store food, supporting people to securing access to their land, working with people to teach them skills they can use to make money.
Our work focuses strongly on helping people to meet their basic needs. But we also support peoples’ rights to land, shelter, water and their right to a fair wage and good working conditions.
This ‘rights approach’ links to Trócaire’s political advocacy work on trade and labour issues at national and international level.
Livelihoods training in Ethiopia
The ‘Mai Zeg Zeg’ Watershed in Hagreselam, northern Ethiopia is co-funded by the Trócaire/CAFOD/Sciaf Joint Office and the Big Lottery fund. 82% of the population in this area depends on agricultural production for their survival and through its activities this project has helped improve the livelihoods of farmers.
The project is carried out by the Adigrat Diocesan Catholic Secretariat which has its roots in the structures set up to respond to famine in Tigray, northern Ethiopia in 1984. Since then it has moved beyond emergency work and also focuses on providing a range of services to the community including education, health, HIV and AIDS prevention, care and support, food security, water and sanitation, and natural resource management and conservation.
The Mai Zeg Zeg project has trained farmers to diversify their income by producing more profitable crops like fruit and vegetables rather than just cereals. It has also encouraged involvement in other income generating activities such as bee-keeping and dairy cooperative development. Through its conservation activities and irrigation initiatives the watershed project has reduced soil erosion and water run off, helped reclaim degraded hillsides and gullies for use, improved the productivity of farmers’ plots, and increased income for the inhabitants of the area.
Fitsum Gebretinsae, Mulu Gebremeskel, and Hadesh Gebremedhin, pictured above are all members of the‘Harena’ Dairy Cooperative, set up as part of the Mai Zeg Zeg Watershed. The cooperative helps its members to improve their dairy production and strengthens their position in the local market.
Timirit Hailemariam received a cow from ADCS as part of the Mai Zeg Zeg watershed. Timirit and her husband Gebre named the cow Simiret which means success in Tigrine, the language of the region. Simiret produces between 10 and 12 litres of milk a day. Timirit uses some of this milk to supplement her families’ diet and then sells the rest. For Timirit “this extra money has made a big difference.”
Related policy papers
This paper outlines our focus, strategy and approach to livelihoods work and is intended to serve as a guide for both staff and partners. While providing a global framework for livelihoods work, it allows scope for the development of context specific programmes.
This publication is based on information collected by Trócaire and highlights how climate change is affecting our work in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
This document provides a contextual overview to Trócaire staff and partners on access to water and how it relates to development at a global level.
This document provides an overview of migration to Trócaire staff and partners and how it relates to development at a global level.
