ABSTRACT
This project was originally envisaged as an 18-month development-oriented project based in Provinces 1 and 2 of the Nepal Terai. It aimed to build solidarity and teamwork around the drive for agri-mechanisation in each of these two provincial governments. Unfortunately, the short time frame paired with intensive efforts to establish new relationships and then the onset of COVID-19 meant that there was limited scope to deeply develop these new relationships and fully build the envisaged roadmap process and plans. Regardless of this, the project has made some essential steps in improving provincial agri-mechanisation planning and implementation, including: (1) substantial capacity developed though placement of engineering experts within the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), the Ministries of Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperatives (MoLMAC), various cooperatives and agricultural knowledge centres;(2) new and deepened relationships with and between key stakeholders, and particularly between NARC and provincial government, as well as with and between various cooperatives;(3) development of the first quantification of the status of agri-mechanisation on the Nepal Terai - indicating that there is high potential for rapid mechanisation if some key constraints are addressed;(4) publication of the learnings for a review of mechanisation in India and Bangladesh, and what that means for Nepal's agri-mechanisation planning;(5) regional learnings and new collaborations with various stakeholders in Nepal and West Bengal;(6) a national symposium on agri-mechanisation on the Nepal Terai, with a large number of supported individuals attending and learning from the national Agrimechanisation Fair;(7) development of a "roadmap" process that can be used more widely with additional further development;and (8) technical guidance and relationship building to improve the scaling of government supported custom hire centres in Province 1.