Senegal PBL 2015-17

“Today rain is rarer, weather is hotter, and we have stronger winds and shorter time to grow vegetables”

Woman from Lahel

Project Description

A three-year food security project engaging four villages of the Podor Region of northern Senegal – Guédé Chantier, Lahel, Moundouwaye and Diarra – is aiming to develop 24 hectares of community land to produce organic food more efficiently, and increase the communities’ resilience and capacity to adapt to the advancing effects of climate change.

The project also aspires to strengthen the communities’ social, economic and ecological competence and build skills in agroforestry, permaculture, food processing and trade. It will directly benefit over 3,000 community members, especially women, by enhancing their agricultural and social-enterprise knowledge and skills.

Misguided agricultural policies and practices over the decades have turned their fertile soil by the River Senegal into a barren wasteland resembling a lunar landscape. The project combines both traditional and modern land-use systems in which trees are managed together with crops and/or animal production systems in agricultural settings. Agroforestry in Podor will also enhance ecosystems by storing carbon, preventing deforestation, increasing biodiversity, protecting water resources and reducing erosion.

Led by Gaia Education, CIFAL Scotland and Le Partenariat, approved for funding by UK Aid in June 2014.

Period

Partners

Funded By

UK AID

Partners

Context

Misguided industrial agriculture policies over decades turning once productive soils into barren wasteland; small-scale production under threat; transfer of the most productive land to export for consumption.

The agricultural viability of small-scale producers in the Podor region is under threat, due mainly to the transfer of the most productive land from food production for local needs to export for consumption by global consumers. Misguided industrial agriculture policies over the decades have undermined traditional methods of food production, turning the once productive soils by the River Senegal into a barren wasteland.

The difficult situation is compounded by the relentless desertification of the Sahel, forcing small-scale producers to continually adapt with innovative solutions to keep feeding their communities.

Approach

A three-year food security project engaging four villages of the Podor Region of northern Senegal – Guédé Chantier, Lahel, Moundouwaye and Diarra – aims to develop 16 hectares of community land to produce organic food more efﬁciently and increase the communities’ resilience and capacity to adapt to the advancing effects of climate change. The project combines both indigenous and scientiﬁc knowledge to create productive agroecological systems.

The project aspires to strengthen the communities’ social, economic and ecological competencies and build skills in agroforestry, permaculture, food processing and trade. It is directly benefiting over 3,000 community members, especially women, by enhancing their agricultural and social-enterprise knowledge and skills. Gaia Education has been conducting permaculture, agroforestry and food-processing capacity-building activities with its international and regional experts. Agroforestry practices are regenerating the fragile ecosystem by storing carbon, preventing deforestation, increasing biodiversity, protecting water resources and reducing erosion.

At the end of Year 2 we have seen outstanding results in the permaculture gardens. There is an abundance of produce demonstrating the effective transfer of knowledge and skills. Surveys related to the permaculture gardens conducted in March 2016 by local Monitoring and Evaluation agents trained by the project (Eco-sentinels) showed 100% of the students are using compost, 80% liquid manure and 55% ﬁsh tonic – the three main permaculture techniques promoted by the project. Permaculture techniques and methods offered by the project have resulted in the cessation of the use of agrochemicals on the 16 hectares. Soil nutrient tests performed in March 2016 and compared to January 2015 show the project has increased phosphorus and potassium levels without chemical additives. Additionally, villagers are now producing and consuming a more diverse array of food, which is improving nutrition and health.

Agroforestry nurseries have been initiated in each village allowing beneﬁciaries to gain skills in raising tree seedlings to allow replacement of trees that perish, while continuing to develop agroforestry systems after the project. This approach is 250 times cheaper than purchasing trees. Several people have been trained in pump operation and maintenance. The fencing perimeter will be planted with spiky plants to ensure a sustainable barrier against local predators. To measure attitude-change, pre- and post-surveys were given to 20% of the participants in Agroforestry Training, Permaculture Training, Change Agent Training, and Food Processing and Preservation Training, during beneﬁciary-led demo events. In all cases, 100% reported the trainings to be relevant and beneﬁcial.

Furthermore, 120 beneﬁciaries were surveyed in March 2016 using one-on-one interviews, with the following results: 100% said they no longer spend anything on chemicals, 97% said they consume a more diverse diet, 100% said they buy less from the market, while 82% reported an increase in food production.

It’s important to emphasise that women represent 85% of beneﬁciaries involved – a huge contribution to women’s empowerment. Overall, women want to take an active part in reversing the progressive destruction of their life support systems, both by the forces of climate change and globalisation. Together, they are harnessing their creative efforts, reviving traditional ways of gardening to ensure their families’ security and well-being, and in the process, reclaiming their land and their sovereignty.

Project Based Learning – Supporting SDGs Implementation

Gaia Education’s Project Based Learning is a dynamic learning approach in which stakeholders acquire appropriate skills and analytical tools while actively exploring real-life solutions to the challenges of designing sustainable settlements.

We work with traditional and indigenous communities in the global South to improve the way they manage their environments and villages, while addressing climate change vulnerabilities. Engaged communities benefit with more stable and fertile soil, secure supply of food, clean water and enhanced livelihoods.