MANILA, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced on Thursday that it has approved a 77-million-U.S.-dollar loan to promote ecotourism and natural farming in the Indian state of Meghalaya, creating sustainable livelihoods and strengthening environmental resilience.
The project will integrate nature-based tourism with climate-smart farming and forest conservation, generating economic opportunities for more than 8,000 local people, including women and Indigenous communities.
The ADB's Northeast Economic Corridor study helped shape the project by identifying nature-based tourism and value-added agriculture as key drivers of Meghalaya's growth.
Key project components include building nature-based ecotourism visitor facilities that serve as interpretation centers and demonstration areas for traditional crafts and skills, as well as marketplaces for local crafts and agricultural products.
The bank said the project will restore 25,000 hectares of community forests via performance-based payments for ecosystem services, and support farmers in adopting climate-smart practices and rehabilitating degraded fields, fallow lands, and drip irrigation systems.
The ADB will provide an additional 1 million dollars technical assistance grant to enhance institutional capacity, strengthen market linkages, and ensure sustainability through innovative financing mechanisms such as carbon and biodiversity credits. ■
