Policy Dialogue Highlights Need for Smallholder-Inclusive Subsidy Reform

NASFAM participated as a principal stakeholder in a two-day national policy dialogue on agricultural subsidy reform, convened by the Ministry of Agriculture. The forum brought together farmer organisations, development partners, academia, and parliamentary committee members to review how the current support framework serves — or fails to serve — smallholder farming households.

NASFAM presented field-level evidence drawn from member surveys across 35 district associations, highlighting persistent access gaps in the existing subsidy system. Key findings showed that a significant portion of member farmers in remote districts were unable to access support due to logistical barriers, documentation requirements, and late distribution cycles that did not align with planting calendars.

The organisation proposed a set of concrete reforms including mobile-linked distribution to reduce transport burden, simplified eligibility verification using farmer membership records, and a grievance mechanism to address errors and exclusions. These recommendations were received positively by ministry technical staff and are expected to inform a working group process over the coming months.

NASFAM's advocacy position centres on the principle that subsidy systems must be designed with the farmer's reality in mind — not the administrative convenience of the distributing agency. 'When the most vulnerable farming households are consistently excluded from support that was designed for them, the entire system needs rethinking,' the NASFAM Executive Director stated.

The dialogue concluded with a joint communiqué committing participating institutions to a structured reform review process, with NASFAM named as a co-convener of the smallholder consultation component.