Solidarity between host and internally displaced producers enabled the Zemstaaba cooperative to increase its production to 889 100kg bags. Illustrative image of onion packaging in bags
Since January 2016, Burkina Faso has faced a recurrence of attacks by non-state armed groups in several regions of the country. This situation is causing massive displacement of populations to other localities considered peaceful. According to figures from the Conseil National de Secours d’Urgence et de Réhabilitation (CONASUR), there are over 19,134 internally displaced people in the Plateau Central region (including 3,528 in the commune of Nagréongo as of March 31, 2022).
This situation of insecurity is compounded by climate change and the scarcity of natural resources. With the aim of strengthening resilience and social cohesion among internally displaced persons (IDPs) and vulnerable host communities in the commune of Nagréongo, SOLIDAR Switzerland, in partnership with the Manegdbzanga Association, has initiated the project “Resilience and social cohesion in the communes of Kaya and Nagréongo in Burkina Faso (PRECOS)”.. One hundred and forty-seven (147) beneficiary producers, including 52 IDPs, are involved in market gardening (107), breeder breeding (20) and sheep fattening (20) in the commune of Nagréongo, thanks to this project.
Officially launched on October 01, 2021, the PRECOS project ended on December 31, 2021. The main areas of intervention were: i) the provision of emergency food aid to vulnerable populations, including IDPs in the communes of Kaya and Nagréongo, by promoting their access to income and livelihoods through the opportunity to carry out market gardening and livestock production activities; ii) the improvement of learning conditions for pupils, both hosts and IDPs, in the schools of the Diocesan Direction of Catholic Education in Kaya and iii) concerted action at local level to promote social cohesion.
At the end of the1st market-garden onion production campaign of the “Zemstaaba ” cooperative in the commune of Nagréongo, we went to meet producers to gather their opinions on the progress of the campaign and their outlook.
“My name is Adboulaye KAFANDO, and I’m the president of the “Zemstaaba” cooperative in the commune of Nagréongo. The cooperative was created in January 2022, and to date has 107 members, including 78 women and 32 IDPs operating the market garden perimeter. This season, we produced onions on a 3.5-hectare plot (each measuring 11m x 25 m). Overall, we are very satisfied with the good production we achieved this year, as the total quantity harvested is estimated at 889 100kg bags. We had a turnover of 5,150,000 F CFA for 343 bags sold, which far exceeded our expectations. The remaining quantity of onions has been stored to await better selling prices in the coming months. We’ve been operating this space for over 20 years, but we’ve never had a good income like this year. We were able to achieve this result thanks to the support of the PRECOS project, which enabled us to benefit from production equipment, agricultural inputs and training to enhance our knowledge of Bokashi natural fertilizer production techniques and crop maintenance.
In addition, our collaboration with the IDPs is going very well, and we now see them as our brothers and sisters. Following discussions on the merits of the PRECOS project for food security and social cohesion, the landowners and former farmers of the site have given their consent to the creation of the cooperative integrating the IDPs in the operation of the market garden perimeter. The proceeds from this campaign will enable us to buy food to feed our families, ensure our health care and buy animals for fattening until the next onion production campaign. We are very grateful to the NGO Solidar Suisse for its solidarity with us. We now have the technical skills to improve our production to meet our needs and those of the village’s internally displaced people.”
“My name is Mamounata SAWADOGO, I live in the village of Nagréongokodogo and I’m a member of the Zemstaaba cooperative. I’m very happy to have the opportunity to be part of this cooperative. It’s an opportunity for me as a woman to have an income-generating activity that will enable me to support myself and my children. On the cooperative’s perimeter, I have a plot measuring 11mX25m on which I produce onions. My harvest for this first season amounts to 12 100kg bags of onions. I’d like to thank Solidar Suisse for its support, which has put a smile on my face, because thanks to the PRECOS project, I’ve gained a lot of knowledge about market garden production. What’s more, the “MaBYZ” day-care center that has been set up has relieved me of the burden of looking after my 2-year-old daughter, which I used to carry with me to work. With MaBYZ, I could leave her in the mornings with the instructors who looked after her, and I could work quietly in my plot, knowing my daughter was safe. Keeping my child with MaBYZ has enabled me to invest more time in my production, so that in the long run I’ll have a satisfactory harvest. The income from this market gardening activity will enable me to meet my family’s food and health needs.
“My name is Mikaïlou MORO, and I come from the village of Arbinda in the Soum province (Sahel region). Insecurity in this region forced us to move and settle here in the village of Nagréongokodogo. We have been warmly welcomed by the local population, and thank them for their unconditional hospitality. What’s more, to show their solidarity with us, the locals have allowed us to join the “Zemstaaba ” cooperative to benefit from the support of the PRECOS project. We work well together and benefit from their advice on production. As far as I’m concerned, market gardening is a great reconversion opportunity. When I arrived here, I didn’t know how to produce onions because in Arbinda, I was working in an artisanal gold mine that we had to abandon because of the difficult security situation. But today, I’m a fulfilled man. As a member of the “Zemstaaba ” cooperative, I have acquired a lot of knowledge about market gardening. This season I was able to harvest 6 x 100kg bags of onions from my plot. For my first experience, I’m very proud of my production. Of my total harvest, I sold 5 bags for 75,000f and kept the rest for the consumption needs of my family and neighbors. This money will be used to feed my family of around twenty people and buy agricultural inputs (fertilizers and biopesticides) to prepare for the next production campaign. The PRECOS project is an opportunity for us internally displaced people to assert ourselves. I’m proud of my new profession as an agricultural producer. With a view to improving my production next season, I’ve started collecting animal dung so as to have enough to produce Bokashi compost. Many thanks to the NGO Solidar Suisse for its help, which has given us internally displaced people in the village of Nagréongokodogo a taste for life again.
Read it on the headquarters website here
SOME LESSONS LEARNED
At the end of the first season of operation of the “Zemstaaba ” cooperative’s market garden perimeter as part of the PRECOS project in the commune of Nagréongo, the following lessons can be drawn from the difficulties encountered:
- The lack of a tricycle makes it difficult to transport the cooperative’s agricultural inputs and goods;
- Difficult access to raw materials (animal waste), particularly for IDPs, slows down compost production. However, the increase in the number of sheep made available to project beneficiaries will minimize this difficulty and promote the availability of sufficient raw material for Bokashi production.
