Farming for the Future in The Gambia, West Africa

Local community members preparing a breakfast of ground millet. A diet lacking in diversity is a major problem in the Gambia.

The Gambia, located in West Africa, is one of the most impoverished countries in the world ranking 151 out of 186 in the UNDP Human Development Index. It is challenged by food insecurity, poverty, an alarming rate of environmental degradation and the largest population growth rate in the world (4.2% per annum). Since the 1970s, world market prices for groundnut, the country's largest crop product, have rapidly declined leaving the Gambia's export industry in financial ruins. Conventional farm methods are also affecting income levels as practices such as monocropping and planting downslope are reducing the soil's fertility and lowering crop production. Forests are also being heavily denuded by the growing need for fuel, livestock forage, farmland development and the burning of agricultural fields.

In 2003, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) supported an Exploratory Phase Mission to the Gambia and a corresponding Canadian Youth International Internship Program that will be ongoing for the next 3 years. As a result of this support and the exploratory mission, partnerships were developed between REAP-Canada, the Njawara Agricultural Training Centre (NATC), Village AiD �| The Gambia (VATG), and the Gambia National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI). NATC, is a local NGO established by the community for the purpose of training both male and female farmers in sustainable agro-forestry techniques. Village AiD �| The Gambia is working with women to overcome economic and social barriers to securing livelihood and basic rights. NARI is the Gambia's principal agricultural research and development institute focusing on the advancement of livestock, horticulture, agronomy, and agro-forestry systems. The three organizations have previously collaborated largely on small-scale projects, but are now working together to complement each other's expertise in a larger collaborative effort.

Local community members and REAP-Canada staff congregating in a community garden in the Lower Saloum District of the Gambia

The partners agreed that a holistic and integrated development approach is required to respond to the interrelated challenges of soil infertility, environmental degradation, and lack of income generating opportunities inthe Gambia. Introducing diversified ecological farming systems would not only increase the soil's fertility but also enhance crop production, suppress weed growth, inhibit pests and diseases, increase food security, generate more income, reduce use of chemical inputs and improve the health and nutrition of farmers and their families. Between the partners, two CIDA-sponsored development projects have been created and are now underway.

A Gambian farmer pleased with his improved Cassava plant variety. Through learning farms, Gambian farmers are testing and distributing improved plant materials adapted to ecological farming.

These projects aim to transform local communities into Agro-Ecological Villages, developing self-reliant, integrated and ecological food and energy systems. This involves four main activities: farm planning, farm implementation, farmer-to-farmer training and plant material improvement. Activities have been designed to both empower the local villagers and enhance the natural resource bases in their respective regions. In addition, some of the communities have committed to addressing regional issues, those which affect the landscape at a macro-scale, such as soil and water conservation or environmental deterioration as a result of the free-range livestock system. Volunteer committees are being formed containing village representatives whose aim is to tackle these issues and develop a more global and holistic approach to village development. Emphasis is being placed on agro-forestry techniques and semi-intensive livestock management, practices which both enhance farming and preserve the natural environment. The projects also support rural communities through the creation of self reliant, integrated and ecological food and energy systems. Overall, the Agro-Ecological Village Development Model can provide the Gambia with an easily replicable approach to rural community development that meets the dual objectives of poverty alleviation and environmental sustainability. This strategy has proved to be the logical evolution for rural development programming in agrarian areas and could be successfully implemented on a wide scale with minimal resources to effect real change in desperately impoverished and degraded environments in West Africa.

Female farmer discusses water problems in the village and develops solutions with other residents

The Gambia Ecological Agriculture Development (GEAD) Project has been developed to assist local communities in the north Bank Division in the Gambia. Phase 1 of the GEAD Project, initiated in February 2004, involves the introduction of the Agro-Ecological Village Development model by the Njawara Agricultural Training Centre (NATC) as a new approach for sustainable community development as a means to reduce poverty, enhance food security, increase self-reliance and reduce environmental degradation in some of the most impoverished areas of the Gambia. In collaboration with the Gambia's National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), the project improves the plant material base for ecological farming of community gardens and farms in impoverished areas through a participatory plant material improvement program, and encourages the development of gender-sensitive agrarian communities through participatory assessment, participatory farmer-to-farmer training and participatory on-farm research approaches.

The Gambia Agro-Ecological Village (GAEV) Development Project is a partnership initiated in August 2004 with REAP-Canada, Njawara Agricultural Training Centre, Village AiD �| The Gambia, and the National Agricultural Research Institute. The partners are implementing the Agro-Ecological Village Development model to reduce poverty, enhance food security, increase self-reliance and reduce environmental degradation. The project also introduces the Mayon Turbo Stove (MTS) into communities in CRD and North Bank Division (NBD) to help alleviate pressure on deforestation from fuelwood gathering.

During its first six months of implementation, the GEAD project has already achieved the following:

• Selection of community project management committees for each beneficiary village and the formation of subcommittees and farmers associations
• Undertaken a Participatory Rural Assessment, Action Planning, and PM&E Program on community food security and agricultural activities
• Training of 20 farmer trainers (25% female) on the participatory training methods and ecological farming and the establishment of a farmer-to-farmer training network
• Learning farms and adaptability trials established with improved plant materials for crops, vegetables, and demonstrations of ecological agricultural farm management

To learn more about our programming in the Gambia, refer to the documents in our on-line library.

(C) 2004 REAP-Canada