The celebration was organized to create awareness among them about the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP).
Over 400 women from 160 villages of the coastal belt of Gujarat celebrated International Women's Day by marching to Gandhinagar on March 8 to participate in celebrations organised by Gujarat Ecology Commission (GEC).
The celebration was organized to create awareness among them about the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP).
Under this project, their skills in using solar equipments for drying fish, crab fattening etc, will be sharpened.
Speaking at the function, Mangubhai Patel, minister, environment & forest, Gujarat, said, "Mangrove plantation & conservation come with a lot of benefits particularly for women in the coastal belt. It provides fodder for the cattle & firewood for domestic consumption and increases the density of fishes in the respective area which in turn maximizes its availability for human consumption."
Welcoming the women participants, SK Nanda, principal secretary of environment & forest department said, "Being a native of a coastal area, I know the hardships that one has to face while living there and how mangrove can help in many ways in overcoming these problems. So, by taking initiatives to safeguard vegetation, they all can make a difference."
Giving outline of ICZMP, Sonia Chand Sadhu, senior environment specialist, World Bank, said, "Social & economic upliftment of the community living in the coastal belt is one of the objectives of this project. We intend to facilitate a greater say for the fairer sex not only in household affairs, but also in any troubleshooting exercise, may it be any social or economical."
Addressing the gathering, E Balagurusamy, member secretary, GEC, said, "Low income is the common problem faced by all the participants. As a solution to this problem, we want to promote some process like crab fattening & use of solar dryer as a part of this project so as to enable the community to make value addition to their products. This will definitely increase their income substantially."
ICZMP was launched by Government of India & Government of Gujarat jointly in September 2010. The project is funded by the World Bank. In Gujarat, GEC implements the project through members of various self help groups (SHGs) & community based organizations (CBOs).
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