Sowing the Drops of Change: Transforming Lives in the Sahel Amidst Climate Adversity

Climate change has been a serious challenge in resource-poor households of the Sahel. The most affected are households whose livelihoods are dependent on small-scale crop production and rearing of small ruminants. These areas receive one season of rainfall which only last for three months in an year. This exposes farmer fields to scorching sun and erosive winds for a major part of the year. This has a significant impact on access to nutritious foods and diversified diets, especially during the prolonged dry season. The introduction of promising interventions for revitalizing farmlands can help to reverse this situation and significantly improve livelihoods of thousands of people.

To accelerate this change, a Canadian government funded project titled ‘Adaptation and Valorization of Entrepreneurship in Irrigated Agriculture’ (AVENIR) was introduced in the Tambacounda and Sedhiou regions of Senegal. Currently in its fifth year, the project has already transformed the lives of thousands of households by instilling knowledge and skills, and initiating technologies that can mitigate and increase resilience of beneficiaries to a changing climate. The Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA) is partnering with the Alliance in the implementation of this project.

Certainly, no single strategy can fix every household challenge. In appreciating this, a bundle of interventions ranging from awareness creation and hands-on training in climate smart agriculture (CSA), integrated water resource management (IWRM), food handling and nutrition trainings are being conducted. In addition, weather and climate information services (WCIS) and agro-advisory are being disseminated through text messaging and interactive voice recordings to help farmers make informed decision-making related to times for sowing, ploughing, spreading fertilizer, harvesting, etc.

The 15 demonstration farms with solar-powered boreholes were established as platforms for researchers to showcase new innovations to beneficiaries and nearby communities. Project beneficiaries were allocated small micro plots to practice the acquired market gardening skills. Crops selected for demonstration included okra, bissap (russel), pepper, onions and rice. In addition, high-value agroforestry trees such as early-maturing pawpaw, mango, baobab and cashew were integrated for food and market purposes.

The types of crops planted is as important as the method of irrigation used. Therefore, training was offered on crop selection considering factors such as duration of growth, harvest times, drought tolerance, pest and disease resistance, monetary and nutritional value of commodities produced among other factors.

With temperatures soaring up to 47º C, the evidence of ‘every drop count’s is visible. A balance between water use for research and farmer production is critical. This has required the use of drip irrigation in demo fields. Moreover, project beneficiaries have been introduced to cheap but effective technologies such as planting basins, zai pits, sunken and raised beds and sprinkler irrigation for rice. The beneficiaries are also allowed to use the conventional fetch-and–carry method using buckets to compare its efficiency relative to improved methods.