The annual review meeting for the year 2025-2026 under the Wokha District Management Unit (DMU) was held on May 29 at the Forest Colony Community Hall. The meeting brought together district administration officials, forest department personnel, JFMC presidents and members, SHG representatives, and FNGOs to review the past year’s activities, share experiences, and chart the course ahead.

The meeting was chaired by Suman W M Sivachar, IFS, DFO cum DMU Head Wokha, who delivered the welcome address and briefed the agenda. Key attendees included SDO Civil, Echungbemo Erui, EAC

Probationer, Vilhoumenuo Tetso, Wokha Range FMU Head, Grace Kikon, Doyang Beat FMU Head, Lansothung Lotha, along with DMU support staff, FNGOs (Natural Nagas), Village Council members,

JFMC presidents and members from Batch I, II, III & IV villages and SHG representatives from Batch I, II, III & IV villages.

Grace Kikon, FMU Head, Wokha Range, presented highlights of activities undertaken during 2025-2026, including the status of nurseries for Batch IV villages, an overview of Batch I to IV villages, register maintenance status, and JFMC review meetings.

Lansothung Lotha, FMU Head, Doyang Beat, provided an overview of the project interventions under his

Beat, with a focus on the total area covered by forestry interventions, along with the status on maintenance work, Batch-IV village status, register maintenance, JFMC review meetings, and various issues and challenges faced.

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DMU support staff, Abeno Ovung, Planning & Livelihood Expert, presented livelihood activities undertaken in 2025-2026 and the annual work plan for 2026-2027. Mhabemo Lotha, Monitoring & Evaluation Expert, shared DMU inspection and monitoring findings along with suggestions.

Mhathung Lucas Humtsoe, Capacity Building, IEC & Documentation Expert, highlighted success stories and good practices for the year 2025-2026.

FNGO Team Leader, Ethel Odyuo (Natural Nagas) detailed activities undertaken during 2025-2026, including supervision of SHG IGA revolving funds (2nd and 3rd cycle), business plan preparation, JFMC assessment reports, DMU inspection assistance, JFMC and SHG meetings, assistance in forestry intervention models, capacity building on mobile application WEB GIS, livelihood data entry, Batch IV nursery status, and challenges faced.

JFMC presidents from Niroyo, Tsungiki, Old Changsu and Humtso villages also shared their on-ground experiences, key learnings, issues and benefits. SHG representatives from New Riphyim, Longsa, Yikhum, and Nungying villages shared updates on their Income Generating Activities (IGAs) and revolving fund repayment, thanking FNGOs, DMU Wokha, and FMUs for their constant support.

As per JFMC assessment data, Niroyo Village JFMC was awarded the Best JFMC, while Longaro SHG from

New Changsu Village received the Best SHG award based on gradation.

Representing the District Administration, SDO Civil, Echungbemo Erui, shared several suggestions, including selecting plantation areas far from roadsides as such sites are more prone to intervention for other activities, encouraging the department to sign an MoU with the village community in the presence of the district administration as a witness to prevent encroachment and enforce strict rules in conserved forest areas, pursuing convergence in livelihood activities by collaborating with Agriculture and allied departments to focus on “One District One Product”  or “ One Village One Product”, working with the Disaster Management Department to manage forest fire incidents and building capacity by motivating youth to participate in skill development training activities and not miss such opportunities.

In his closing remarks, Suman W M Sivachar, IFS, DFO cum DMU Head Wokha, expressed profound appreciation to SDO Civil, Echungbemo Erui for his valuable insights. He gave a firm assurance that the

DMU Wokha is committed to addressing all highlighted shortcomings in line with the suggestions and also assured the JFMCs that all issue related to project activity will be resolved in coordination with PMU. He commended the collective efforts of FMU Heads, DMU support staff, FMU field staff, FNGOs, JFMCs, and SHGs, attributing the meeting’s success to their hard work and active participation.