Exchange program for Swiss volunteers

Helvetas Head Office together with Globotrek and Swiss magazine COOP initiated an exchange tour of Swiss volunteer tourists to BioCotton Project in Jalalabad. In Kyrgyzstan the tour was organized by NoviNomad tourism company and Bio Service Foundation. 18 days tour program over the South of Kyrgyzstan focused on 8 days of living on Bio cotton farms. Altogether 48 tourists grouped in 4 groups arrived in turn one by one with an interval of a week in between. In Jalalabad the tourists were hosted at Bio cotton producing farmers in Kyzyltuu and Shaidan villages of Nooken rayon, Beshikjon and Seitkazy villages of Bazarkorgon rayon. Volunteers and the host farmer families exposed to intercultural exchange with each other gave positive feedback to this pilot program. Tourists tasted a real rural life of Kyrgyz bio farmers with all of the village hardships during their stay in the families and appreciated helping the farmers with cotton plugging, household duties and other farming works. Farmers in their turn showed a traditional Kyrgyz hospitality and also appreciated to have this chance to meet the guests and additionally earn money.