Badi Foundation Hosts Round Table Conference on “The Role of Farmers in Rural Community Development”

On August 10, 2011, the Badi Foundation Beijing Representative Office organized a round table conference on the theme “The Role of Farmers in Rural Community Development” at the office of the China Charity Federation. Badi Foundation president Dr. Lori Noguchi, Badi Foundation Beijing Office Chief Representative Mrs. Shareen Farhad, Foreign Capital Project Management Center of the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation (“FCPMC”) Director  Mr. Liu Shengan, China Charity Federation Deputy Secretary-General Mr. Zhang Xinguo, Chinese Association for NGO Cooperation (“CANGO”) Secretary-General Mr. Wong Ho Ming, and Associate Professor from Tsinghua University’s Research Center on Non-Profit Organizations, Dr. He Jianyu each shared perspectives and insights from their areas of work related to the question of the crucial role of farmers in rural community development. In addition, members from three of the community-based organizations the Badi Foundation is supporting shared their experiences working in rural communities

Badi Foundation President Dr. Noguchi shared that the core work of the foundation during its two decades of existence has been developing the capacity of local human resources to participate in the development of their own communities. The Badi Foundation is committed to releasing the potential of rural communities, individuals and organizations, thereby promoting the development of local communities.  Deputy Secretary-General of China Charity Federation Mr. Zhang Xinguo highlighted the importance of the empowerment of farmers from his personal experience in rural areas, and the importance of the “China Charity Federation Badi Community Development Fund”, established in collaboration between the China Charity Federation and Badi Foundation, cooperating with local communities. FCPMC Director, Mr. Liu Shengan, summarized various anti-poverty strategies in China, concluding that China’s future development relies heavily on building capacity in farmers, who play a significant role in rural poverty reduction and rural development. CANGO Secretary-General Mr. Wong Ho Ming analyzed the experience, challenges and development strategies of China’s rural communities. This was followed by presentations from community-based organizations the Badi Foundation has been supporting in Hebei, Ningxia and Yunnan Provinces.  For the past several years, these organizations have been committed to carrying out capacity building projects for farmers in their villages. At the round table conference, they summarized and analyzed their experiences and the challenges they face in the implementation of development projects in rural communities.

In the open discussion session, the members of the community-based organizations discussed with other guests issues including organization registration, government collaboration, and how to organize and mobilize larger segments of the population. FCPMC Director Mr. Liu Shengan shared his experience relating to government policies and roles of rural officials. Professor He Jianyu from Tsinghua University NGO Research Center commented on the strategy and schema of the Badi Foundation’s Institutional Capacity Building Program for rural institutions, noting that the government is paying more and more attention to the development of capacity of rural organizations, and that he was moved by the farmers’ contributions to community development.

The round table conference is an initial effort of the Badi Foundation’s Beijing Representative Office to create a forum for sharing and dialogue, so that farmers, government agencies, community based-organizations, and academics participating in community development can discuss their experiences of rural development. The foundation hopes to build on this experience in the future, providing a space for experts in a variety of fields to share and exchange views on the development of rural communities in China.

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