1.  How much funding does each member of the group receive?
2.  What is the sale price of each type of oilseeds & revenue mix?
3.  Is there a local market for the seeds?
4.  How will the rest of the community benefit from the campaign activities?

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1. How much funding does each member of the group receive?

Women are provided sufficient funding and materials to plant and maintain the tree for the first 3 years.  Money is only disbursed as long as the women (as part of a group) remains fully committed to the campaign.

There are 3 types of funding that women receive from the campaign (see amounts in graph below):

1. Seed Funding: This one-time cash payment is given to compensate women to their time spent preparing the site, doing water management work, planting trees, and caring from them immediately after planting. The income stream starts immediately as soon as women are ready to plant the trees: they earn money for their labor hours at the same rate as for other agricultural labor they are hired at.
    
2. On-going conditional cash: This small quarterly cash payment covers time spent to inspect and maintain the trees and is similar to a stipend. It does not cover the cost of materials which will be distributed by the campaign. It decreases as the trees require less maintenance over the years.

   These funds will be conditional on clear commitment to maintaining the trees and attending quarterly meetings and training sessions. Groups that fail to uphold their commitments may not receive ongoing support and may be reorganised. In this way, up to one-third of the campaign budget (the amount for ongoing support over 3 years) will only be used if the campaign is on track.  This "pay-for-performance" or "pay-for-impact" approach significantly reduces risk for donors.
    

3. Cash rewards and bonuses: These are small but direct financial incentives to further motivate the women to maintain the trees and recognise exemplary motivation and commitment.  The rewards will be given every 3 months during training sessions based on quarterly inspections to celebrate achievement and create positive competitive pressure. Small bonuses will be given once a year for the first 3 years for outstanding performance.
    
4. After first harvest the 4th, and eventual major income stream will start:  Revenue from Oilseeds. See graph below (Note: Extra income from oilseeds byproducts sales and agroforestry is not shown)

(Click here to see a larger version)
 

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2.  What is the sale price of each type of oilseeds?  What is the revenue mix?

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3.  Is there a local market for the seeds?

Over the last three years, demand for inedible oilseeds has picked up in the local markets (mandis).  Prices have formalised and trade volumes have risen. Government schemes to promote BioFuel processing units have played a role, as have private sector investments such as a new 5 million liter BioDiesel refinery in Latur district about 150 km away from the campaign area. Most BioFuel processors currently face a severe shortage of feedstock for their units and are thus aggressively seeking suppliers.

While the local markets continue to develop in an attractive way, they are still controlled by middlemen who will squeeze value from small scale producers.

Therefore, the campaign intends to develop partnerships with direct buyers who will recognize the extra social and environmental benefits of the campaign, and be ready to offer a premium price for the oilseeds. Some Indian corporations have already expressed an interest in supporting the campaign in this way by purchasing oilseeds from beneficiaries to produce BioFuel for their backup Diesel generators.  This will help the corporations meet both their social and environmental responsibility goals.

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4. How will the rest of the community benefit from the campaign activities?

The local communities will get immediate benefits in the form of jobs related to setting up the plantations including nursery raising, supporting water management work, and supplying and transporting material.

As trees mature, significantly more employment will be generated to harvest, transport and process oilseeds.
 

 

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