Farm record keeping is a critical component of modern agricultural management. Accurate records enable farmers to monitor production costs, track income and expenditure, evaluate farm performance, and make informed business decisions. However, although several agricultural projects have introduced farmer diaries in the past, their effective utilization has remained limited.

The limited success of previous initiatives can be attributed to several factors, including inadequate orientation of farmers, insufficient follow-up and monitoring, limited technical support, and low motivation among users. Consequently, farmer diaries have often been underutilized and have not fully served their intended purpose as tools for farm management and decision-making.

Recognizing these challenges, the BRECSA Project has adopted a more comprehensive approach to the implementation of the Farm Business Diary. The initiative focuses not only on distributing the diary but also on building the capacity of both extension personnel and farmers, establishing continuous support mechanisms, and strengthening monitoring and reporting systems.

The BRECSA Project successfully conducted a two-day Training of Trainers (ToT) on the Farm Business Diary (FBD) and Management Information System (MIS) for Sanam Jabchorpas (SJs) at Sarpang and Zhemgang Dzongkhags. The training was designed to strengthen the capacity of field-level personnel responsible for supporting farmers in maintaining Farm Business Diaries and ensuring timely and accurate data collection through the MIS.

A total of 33 participants attended the training and received comprehensive training on farm record keeping, farm business management, and the use of the MIS for data collection and reporting. The sessions combined presentations, demonstrations, practical exercises, group discussions, and hands-on MIS training to ensure participants gained both theoretical knowledge and practical skills.

Training Objectives

• Enhance participants’ understanding of the Farm Business Diary and its importance in farm business management.
• Familiarize participants with the Farm Business Diary formats, indicators, and reporting requirements.
• Build participants’ capacity to accurately record farm inputs, production, sales, labor, and expenditures.
• Provide practical training on the use of the Management Information System (MIS).
• Strengthen skills in data verification, validation, error checking, and reporting.
• Develop implementation plans for the rollout of the Farm Business Diary at the field level.