{"id":66297,"date":"2026-02-09T18:46:19","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T13:16:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=66297"},"modified":"2026-02-09T18:49:19","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T13:19:19","slug":"agroforestry-india-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/09-02-2026\/agroforestry-india-challenges","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s Agroforestry Ambitions &amp; Financing and Policy Hurdles"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Environment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Recently, the experts highlighted that <strong>India\u2019s agroforestry<\/strong> continues to face serious challenges, especially in <strong>access to finance, policy implementation, and farmer awareness, <\/strong>during the <strong>first South Asian Agroforestry &amp; Trees Outside Forests (AF-TOF) Congress.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<p><strong>South Asian Agroforestry &amp; Trees Outside Forests (AF-TOF) Congress<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is referred to as the <strong>\u2018Treescapes\u2019 2026 Congress<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It marked the <strong>first regional platform<\/strong> dedicated to advancing agroforestry and Trees Outside Forests (TOF) across South Asia.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It was organised by the <strong>Centre for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF)<\/strong> in collaboration with the <strong>Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About Agroforestry<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is a <strong>land-use system<\/strong> that integrates <strong>trees with crops and\/or livestock<\/strong> on the same land.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It enhances <strong>food security, soil health, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and income diversification<\/strong> for farmers by combining perennial trees with farming systems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It helps in addressing land degradation and climate risks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Current Status &amp; Future Projection<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India currently has <strong>about 28 million hectares<\/strong> under agroforestry, and the government aims to expand this to <strong>50 million hectares by 2050<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tree-based systems account for nearly <strong>20% of India\u2019s national carbon stocks<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Related Issues &amp; Concerns<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Limited Access to Finance: <\/strong>Of nearly <strong>\u20b920 lakh crore<\/strong> in annual institutional agricultural credit, <strong>less than 5%<\/strong> reaches agroforestry. Reasons include:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Long gestation periods (5\u201330 years);<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Tenure and land ownership complexities;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Lack of acceptable collateral;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Policy Awareness Gaps: <\/strong>Low awareness among farmers about the <strong>National Agroforestry Policy, 2014<\/strong>, especially regarding:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Tree harvesting rights;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Transit and regulatory clearances;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Weak Policy Implementation: <\/strong>Although agroforestry is recognised as climate- and livelihood-friendly, it remains <strong>under-supported by institutions and financing mechanisms<\/strong>, limiting scale and impact.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Missed Economic Opportunities:<\/strong> India imports <strong>over $7 billion worth of wood annually<\/strong>, indicating <strong>underutilised domestic potential, lost opportunity for farmers<\/strong> and the green economy, despite strong domestic tree resources.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Efforts For Agroforestry in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>National Agroforestry Policy, 2014<\/strong>: First-of-its-kind policy globally to promote tree-based farming.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>ICAR-led research and regional studies<\/strong>: Evidence shows agroforestry helps reduce deforestation and avoid <strong>tens of millions of tonnes of GHG emissions annually<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>AF-TOF\/Treescapes Congress<\/strong>: Regional platform involving policymakers, researchers, financial institutions, industry, farmers, and youth to strengthen governance and investment frameworks.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Forward<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Improve Institutional Credit Flow<\/strong> through tailored financial products for long-gestation tree systems.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Simplify Regulations<\/strong> on tree harvesting and transit, with clear, farmer-friendly guidelines.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Enhance Awareness<\/strong> of agroforestry policies at the grassroots level.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Leverage Carbon Markets and Digital Tools<\/strong>: Align carbon credits, digital traceability, and private-sector procurement with smallholder realities.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Reduce Import Dependence<\/strong>: Promote domestic timber and tree-based value chains to strengthen rural incomes, especially for India\u2019s <strong>86% marginal farmers<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Align Climate, Agriculture, &amp; Trade Policies<\/strong> to unlock agroforestry\u2019s potential for income generation, climate mitigation, and ecosystem services.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.downtoearth.org.in\/agriculture\/indias-agroforestry-starved-of-finance-despite-ambitious-50-mln-ha-target-by-2050\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source: DTE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong> Context <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> Recently, the experts highlighted that India\u2019s agroforestry continues to face serious challenges, especially in access to finance, policy implementation, and farmer awareness, during the first South Asian Agroforestry &#038; Trees Outside Forests (AF-TOF) Congress. <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong> South Asian Agroforestry &#038; Trees Outside Forests (AF-TOF) Congress <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> It is referred to as the \u2018Treescapes\u2019 2026 Congress. <\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> It marked the first regional platform dedicated to advancing agroforestry and Trees Outside Forests (TOF) across South Asia. <\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/09-02-2026\/agroforestry-india-challenges \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-66297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66297","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66297"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66297\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66301,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66297\/revisions\/66301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}