“To improve the integrated management of natural resources and sustainably restore natural ecosystems in the Sahel in order to strengthen the resilience of vulnerable populations in the face of climate change. This is the overall objective of the “Rilgre” project to promote agroecological practices and enhance agricultural production. To achieve this objective, the project plans to restore and develop 2650 ha of degraded land to enable the production of 7000 tonnes of agricultural produce , thanks to a combination of several innovativecommunity-based agroecological practices (mechanized recovery, CES/DRS, lowland development, bio-inputs, etc.).
To this end, 20 ha of rice-growing lowlands will be developed in the communes of Boulsa, Méguet, Ziga and Andemtenga. To ensure optimum participation of women in these lowland activities, local day-care centers called “MaBYZ” (in the local Mooré language “Ma Baas Yiire Zaka”) will be set up in the vicinity, meaning “a place where women can free themselves from childcare responsibilities”.
This is a childcare initiative for children aged 0 to 6, designed to optimize women’s participation in production activities. It has the advantage of saving mothers time in carrying out their activities, guaranteeing better protection for children in the workplace (reducing children’s exposure to wind, dangerous materials, etc.) and providing peace of mind for the mothers of working children.
To ensure the sustainable operation of the MaBYZ, women are identified by consensus within the beneficiary communities to play the role of animators, responsible for looking after children during production activities. To enable them to play their role effectively, six (06) women from the villages of Fatimatenga in the commune of Méguet and Ouagoulé in the commune of Ziga were equipped with the skills they need to look after children aged 0 to 6. The training, which took place from June 03 to 07, 2024 in Loumbila, covered, among other things:
- a child’s needs for harmonious development;
- Mastery of the concepts of hygiene/sanitation, health, nutrition and domestic safety;
- Early-learning activities (games, singing, storytelling, poetry, dance, etc.);
- preparing balanced meals for children.
Animation game demonstration
The animators received an introduction to the preparation of balanced meals for children.
The Rilgré project is being implemented by the Solidar Suisse consortium and the Association Beo-Neeré Agroécologie (ABNA). It is financed to the tune of 1,246,316,400 FCFA by the Kingdom of Belgium through its development agency, Enabel, as part of the implementation of the Portefeuille Thématique Climat Sahel (PTCS)-volet Burkina Faso.
