Lok Sanjh is a non-profit, non-governmental organization working with the rural communities particularly with women farmers in Pakistan. The organization started its work in 1996 and is registered under the Societies act 1860. At present it is working in more than 130 villages in nine districts of Punjab, Kashmir and with partners in NWFP, Sindh and Balochistan.

The Lok Sanjh is striving to develop rights based programmes to promote just development. In the pursuit, it develops food production systems based on economic, social and political justice.

 

Specific Objectives are:

1.  Capacitate Farmers to enhance control over their resources to produce food
2. Organize farming communities at different levels.
3. Strengthen capacity of women farmers to analyze their problems and enhance access to control over resources.
4. Organize policy advocacy campaigns for the rights of marginalized farmers.

The Lok Sanjh facilitates institutions and individuals in developing research priorities and in conducting research on the issues and problems relevant to communities particularly in the fields of biodiversity, indigenous knowledge, and ecological farming.

 

The Lok Sanjh in collaboration with University of Agriculture, Faisalabad has set up a Center for Agricultural Research and Technologies (CART) in Lok Sanjh at Faisalabad office. The Center is working in close cooperation with the university. While conducting research, help of university staff and a well-established library is taken. Lok Sanjh arranges training workshops for both senior teachers as well as young professionals in ecological agriculture, rural poverty and implications of WTO etc. Internship programmes for undergraduate and postgraduate students are also arranged.

Lok Sanjh has been promoting the agenda of sustainable development since its inception.  The mission of sustainable development is pursued through;

1. the creation and strengthening of local institutions to inculcate the democratic values at grass roots level,
2. involving communities in the decision making processes through decentralized and bottom up planning with the active participation of marginalized particularly the small farmers and women and
3. enhancing the capacity of rural communities to plan, implement, manage and pursue their development needs efficiently and effectively.

Lok Sanjh firmly believes that sustainable development cannot be achieved without securing the livelihood and active participation of the partner communities. The social mobilization process thus plays vital role for launching all its programmatic interventions in the field.