Encouraging them to come to us - changing the way that information is made available to farmers.
Abstract Recommendations for changes to service provision and fisheries policy in support of poverty alleviation emerged recently in India from a process known as facilitated advocacy (see case study on Facilitated advocacy) that helped to negotiate and support a role for poor people and their service providers to contribute to changes in services and policies. Two key recommendations to emerge from farmers and fishers, which were prioritized by fisheries departments, were * to change the way that information is made available, and * to simplify procedures for accessing government schemes and bank loans. This case study identifies the origin of recommendations to change the way that information is made available, shows how different models of the concept have emerged, and follows the development of the One-stop Aqua Shops (OAS) in the eastern Indian states of Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal, which represent a new and vital tier in communications in aquaculture.