Across Myanmar, families affected by conflict, displacement and loss of livelihoods continue to struggle to access enough nutritious food. Rising food prices and the cost of fertilizer and other farming supplies, along with disrupted markets and fuel shortages, have made it harder for many families to grow or buy the food they need.

A Garden that Feeds a Family

For Ma Nwe, her home garden is an important source of food for her family of 14, an intergenerational household of grandparents, parents and children. She grows vegetables including aubergine, chilli, mustard, water spinach and pumpkin. The family eats most of the harvest and sells surplus vegetables to buy other essential foods.

But maintaining the garden has not always been easy. The soil has deteriorated, and rising fertilizer costs have made it increasingly difficult to maintain production.

“I was really worried because the soil in our small home garden had become acidic and our whole family depends on what we grow there,” Ma Nwe says.

With support from the Myanmar Humanitarian Fund (MHF), UNDP provided organic fertilizer made from locally available materials to help families restore and improve local food production.

For Ma Nwe, the support has already made a difference.

“After applying the organic fertilizer, I was able to harvest vegetables three times in just two months.”

She sold the surplus and used the income to buy meat, fish and cooking oil.