The project will be implemented in Vea, Gowrie and Yorogo rural communities in the Bongo District of the Upper East Region. Vea, Gowrie and Yorogo are three rural farming communities in a continuum with a total population of 6,200 people in the district. The communities have a severely degraded land which is prone to increasing soil erosion as a result of deforestation, inappropriate farming practices, and bush burning. Soils have become increasingly poor over the past years and this has reduced crop yield, resulting in seasonal food shortages in the community. Striga weed infestation was common in bush fields.

The relationship between soil fertility and Striga infestation was studied in the project area and thirty percent of the compound fields contained Striga seeds (on average 0.4 seeds in 100 g dried soil) but emergence of the parasite was rare (0.1?6% of the planting holes). The bush fields were contaminated with 11 Striga seeds/100 g soil on average and Striga plants were observed at 45.5% (10?81%) of the planting holes. Maize in the compound fields is continuously mono cropped whereas mixed cropping is common in the bush fields (e.g. maize/sorghum, maize/groundnut). Fallow periods lasted 2 years on average in bush fields and the introduction of fallow was rather exceptional and linked to local practice in compound fields. Two-year fallows were too short to maintain soil productivity in the bush fields. In the compound fields organic manure (e.g. cattle dung, in addition to continuously dispersed human faeces and compound waste) was applied in 8 out of 10 years on average. The bush fields received organic manure or mineral fertilizer in 4 out of 10 years. Due to long-term application of organic manure the contents of phosphorus, nitrogen and organic carbon were significantly higher in compound field soils. The availability of nutrients (NH4, NO3, Pbray 1, K, Ca, Mg), the microbial biomass and the microbial activity benefited significantly from the manure treatment compared to bush fields. The results indicated that the Striga infestation is negatively related to the total nitrogen content and microbial biomass. (Savannah Agricultural Research Institute, 2003)

Farmers in project area have limited resources to invest in Striga control practices and longer term, low-input approaches are needed. Long-term Striga control approaches focus on controlling the production of new Striga seeds and on reducing the number of seeds in the soil. Several seasons of hand weeding are required before the beneficial effect on the cereal crop can be observed. Rotations with trap crops can reduce Striga seed banks but selection of a rotation crop should be based on socio-economic factors such as market value in addition to whether or not it can stimulate Striga seeds to germinate. Striga seed banks can be readily reduced in suppressive soils. Organic matter and fertilizer additions may help induce suppressiveness. Extension of long-term Striga control approaches requires intensive interaction with farmers. In an attempt to finding solution to especially the hunger problem, there is seasonal migration of some youths to the Southern Ghana usually between January and April to offer their labour for cash, which is brought back to purchase grains to supplement what has been harvested by the household. Continuous cropping on poor soils with low crop yields necessitated increasing dependence on chemical fertilizers which have become more expensive, unavailable and unsustainable.

Although the communities lie close to the Vea-Gowire water pond, which provides water for irrigation, these communities have no access to water resource. The water canals that run close to the communities have broken down.
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

The purpose of the project is to develop the capacities of the indigenous farmers to build, own and operate renewable energy supplies to support sustainable land management.

3.1 THE SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT ARE AS FOLLOWS:

? To build capacities of local farmers in solar energy systems to pump water for small scale irrigated organic agriculture and agro-biodiversity conservation.

? To support sustainable organic agricultural practices under solar irrigation system for increase agricultural productivity and promote rich diversity of crops and crop varieties. ;

? To initiate and sustain dissemination, outreach and technical assistance programme that will nurture and build networks of early adopters and advocates for renewable energy in agricultural productivity.

3.2 PROJECT OUTPUTS:

The following outputs are anticipated by the completion of the project:

Output 1:
Three solar energy systems built on community-owned farms to irrigate 10 ha of degraded lands in the project area (in Vea, Gowrie and Yorogo).

The project will acquire Monoflo solar drip irrigation system and treadle pumps for small scale irrigation and, enabling sustainable agriculture. Drip irrigation uses the least amount of water and ensures that the water source is used most effectively. Monoflo design and supply complete irrigation packages with a supply system up to 2400 Watts will be installed giving great design flexibility.
The project will establish three Solar Market Gardens in the three villages to engage 75 farmers actively producing vegetable, seeds and nuts under irrigation system. Each solar market garden will be 1.5ha fitted family drip irrigation systems. The plots would be divided among the farm families to cultivate organic products under guided supervision and monitoring.

The project will train a team of masons and solar pump technicians, creating a knowledge base in the district for both repairs of the current systems and installation of future systems. In addition, technicians from the MOFA will continue to provide technical assistance to farmers in terms of deciding which products to grow and how to manage local soil and pest conditions.

The installation of the effective, affordable, and sustainable solar water pumping and small-scale irrigation systems will allow farmers to nearly double the growing season for vegetables and other crops in their region. Food crops and vegetables have a high value in the dry season, so increased crop yields during periods with little rainfall will help families progress from mere subsistence to the beginning of poverty alleviation.




Output 2:
Three farmer-groups (15 members each) from Vea, Yorogo and Gowrie communities receive training and support in organic farming and agro-biodiversity practices to produce marketable products for the export of market and local processing.

The project will train 45 farming families in organic farming and agro-biodiversity conservation practices. The farmers would be introduced to compost preparation and application. The processing of Neem leaves and seeds as pesticides. The farers are custodians of rich diversity of crops and crop varieties. Most of these crops are neglected and under-utilized. Some of these crops are sometimes despised as "traditional" or "indigenous" in opposition to the handful of economically valuable crops that are relevant in agricultural trade and urban food habits. These traditional, neglected and under-utilised crops would be promoted under the project to the extent that their use and dignity would be enhanced as strategic crop genetic resources in household food security and nutrition, whilst providing many options for improving rural livelihoods and addressing evolving needs, such as particularly the food security and nutrition concerns

Some of the products to be promoted are (Maize, sorghum, groundnuts, soya beans, alliefu and, sesame seeds). The project will offer direct support to women's groups, as the traditional growers of vegetables in the district. The project will be run in three villages initially, with a hope of expand to all communities in the district off-grid. The participating families will work to pay back the cost. Outside the irrigated areas farmers would be introduced to agroforestry. A community tree nursery will be established to supply tree seedlings to farmers to be planted on farms.

Output 3:
20 indigenous farmers identified, trained and supported as Community Trainers (?lead farmers?) to lead investment opportunities and promote local institution strengthening towards self-help renewable energy in sustainable agriculture.

The farmers who will operate under the irrigation facilities will pay for the services. The level of fees will be determined by the farmers after a comparative analysis and production cost assessment. The project management will operate a project bank account in Bongo. All funds accruing from the fees collected under the project will be paid into the accounts. At the end of the year, the net income would be used to acquire additional panels to run the family solar irrigation system.

The farmers would be trained I business management. The training will be in two stages. First, basic capacity development training will assist the farmers to have the basic skills needed to start their own business, specifically: cost-benefit analysis, pricing, profit and loss, basic money management including record and book keeping, banking procedures and credit management.

The project will facilitate access to credit to farmers to produce organic products under irrigation. The farmers would be assisted to access credit facilities at the rural banks to enable them own and replicate the renewable energy interventions in other parts of the project area.

The farmers will link farmer trust groups to fair and ready markets. The project will assist the trained farmer groups to source for, identify and exploit market opportunities for their products. The emphasis will be on creating access to market information and linkages with existing marketing organizations Market surveys would be conducted and fair market options identified to provide ready market to farmers produce.