IBF Discussion paper

IBF has published a discussion paper ‘The Living Wage approach in agriculture’.
 

This paper explores how the concept ‘Living Wage’ that is used in industry, can be applied in agriculture as well. Use of this concept may be useful to arrive at a calculation of ‘fair’ prices the agricultural producer should receive for his products.

  Farmer with tool in India (Kerala)

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Based on existing Living Wage definitions, an example is provided how the Living Wage has been calculated in India. Ideas are developed how to combine Living Wage and production costs in agriculture. The result is a combination of both an ethical approach and market prices that result from supply and demand. Use of the Living Wage concept in agriculture and rural development may result in a better understanding and more problem-oriented solutions at policy level.

The discussion paper can be found at http://www.share4dev.info/kb/documents/5142.pdf

'School In A Bus' is a joint project of Change Initiatives and Sarva Shiksha Mission, Hooghly district, West Bengal, India. Classes at Change Initiatives' School In A Bus project have started from the second week of April 2012.

The project had started in November, with surveys on out-of-school children at eight slums in five places.Currently, the bus is going to five slums in three towns of Hooghly district ---  Bansberia (one slum), Sreerampur (two slums) and Rishra (two slums). It is visiting each of these places twice a week, and is teaching the children for two hours at each slum. Soon the bus will go to three other slums in two more towns, at Uttarpara and Baidyabati.

The bus is meant for out-of-school children. For six days a week, the bus is visiting different slums in the Indian state of West Bengal and teaching the children reading, writing and how to calculate, all in a joyful manner. The aim of the programme is to bring the children back into the formal education system. The interriors of a bus have been turned into a classroom, with facilities such as a large TV set and computers.

“The response has been very good so far,” said project worker Srabanti Paul Saha. “So much so, even school-going children want to learn from the bus,” she added. “I am very excited to be part of the project,” said Giririka Mukherjee, also a project worker. “It is a very novel teaching style, and the children are excited to learn from the bus.”