100 people invited and attended the open door day to review project achievement and to show case project activities. 30 women participated in 3 peer visits to Kumbo, Belo and Mendankwe to learn about Biogas, agro-forestry techniques and composting. 4 issues of newsletter produced and distributed. 100 Posters and 500 leaflets of educational and advocacy materials produced and distributed.
Community inhabitants contributed, in kind – land and labour and time 1300 day old chicks and 15 young pigs bought for fattening and sale. Mushroom house of 15m2 with 15 shelves and 200kg mushroom capacity for sale.
Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods
Sustainable natural resource management,Promotion of renewable fossil energy use by constructing and using 15 simple biogas units based on pig and poultry manure.
Growth, distribution and sales of 250 piglets, 3000 broiler poultry and 20,000 eggs within one year.
Production of manure for the bio digesters: Enhancement of soil fertility and crop yields by promoting the practice of afro-forestry and organic agriculture.
Project sustainability
The establisment of the Women Sustainable Development revolving loan Fund is an initiative.
The project is to a very large extent a capacity building and awareness raising initiative aimed at ensuring behavioural change amongst project participants. The knowledge acquired will contribute significantly to ensuring project sustainability.
Capacity building has resulted in better farming practices as well as more modern techniques of agriculture and livestock production. Some participants have been able to improve on their own farms while others have had the opportunity of obtaining employment both in the formal and informal sectors. Five of our trained framers belonging to a group were able to benefit from the national programme to support competitiveness in agriculture known by its French acronym as PACA. Four other trainees have picked up jobs with private livestock farmers.
The long term economic benefits are that the project promoted a value chain. Ingredients are bought from producers who have a ready market constantly and hence a steady income. The project also valorized agro-industrial by-products like cotton seed cake, palm kernel cake, rice bran and soya bean meal. All these have positive socio-economic benefits for the participants.
Replication of project activities
The replication and upscaling of this initiative in other communities and countries is quite possible in most developing country context. The fact that it is a grassroots women led participatory initiative makes it attractive for future replication. The technologies involved are low external input technologies relatively easy to adopt in both urban and rural settings. The biogas units are relatively simple to construct and maintain and the slurry remaining after gas production provides excellent manure for green agriculture in a sustainable farming system. The grassroots women revolving loan fund can easily be replicated with slight local modifications to fit the socio-economic and cultural context. In terms of upscaling to a bigger level it is extremely easy to upscale provided the necessary financial means are available.
Gender Focus
This project aims at empowering women, 75 women were
20 Youths, 10 Men and PLWHA trained as sustainable natural resource managers, given the fact that they are main users of land and water resources and of fossil energy for cooking purposes.
Capacity - Building Component
Three Training workshops organized for 100 people consisting of 70 women, 20 youths and 10 men on IGA, small livestock production and marketing. Training on climate risk mapping, the importance of natural resources, risks and vulnerability, resilience and negative environmental impacts of practice of slash and burn rampant cutting of trees for fuel wood and charcoal. Training on income generation, small business development and livestock production. Training on the enhancement of soil fertility and crop yields by promoting the practice of afro-forestry and organic agriculture in the project area by introduction of poultry and pig manure, organic compost and at least four leguminous species into the farming system to curb soil degradation by slashing Ankarra activities by 50% in one year of project implementation in the beneficiary community. Training on the production and use of organic compost.
Notable Community Participation
Women are mainly involved in agricultural activities especially those dealing with subsistence agriculture. The contribution of the beneficiary community; land - 5,000,000, Labour- 1,000,000, Time- 1,000,000 frs CFA.
Project Results
1. Organisation of an information workshop on sustainable natural resource management, climate change and energy recycling. The results achieved were better understanding of the concept of natural resources, their sustainable use, environment, climate change issues at community level, risk and vulnerabilities, coping mechanisms and understanding of some international conventions or legal instruments relating to environment, climate change as well as risk and disaster reduction. 75 community members attended workshop; this initial workshop targeted only women because of their dominant role in agriculture in the community.
2. Training on income generation, small business development and livestock production and marketing: Forty (40) people (29 women, 7 men and 4 youth) trained on business management. The trainees or workshop participants better understand that agriculture is an economic activity like any other with attendant risks, need for market feasibility studies as well as timely need for credit or capital. Farmers and community members who have alternative livelihood strategies are less likely to over-exploit their natural resources than those who are totally dependent on farming activities year round.
3. Participatory Community risk mapping exercise was carried out in four communities, involving a total of 45 persons made up of 30 women, 10 men and 5 youth. Communities are now better aware of risks to livelihoods, vulnerabilities, disaster preparedness and other mitigation measures to ensure more resilient communities.
4. Establishment of a grassroots women sustainable revolving loan fund. Micro-loans which are flexible and easily obtained help women to meet up with small business requirements or start small businesses which help reduce dependency on men Women can carry out non farm activities which help secure family livelihoods Women can also buy seeds and other inputs.
5. Establishment, management and proper use of Leguminous Plants; 1 Leguminous tree nursery established; 4 species of leguminous tree seedlings with 2000 seedlings of each species nursed thus a total of 80000 seedlings growing in the nursery.
6. Two (02) peer exchange visits have been organized involving a total of ten women. The technologies learned included alley farming, intercropping, integrated crop/livestock production as well as composting and various combinations of agroforestry. Selection of most appropriate legumes for particular crops and soil types to obtain best results.
7. Eleven (11) simple biogas units were constructed and ten were installed. The ten on farms or homesteads are being used while one is at the training centre for use in trials and demonstration.
8. The project has acquired and fattened 2000 table birds and ten pigs consisting of one male and nine females. 500 day old layer chicks have been ordered and will arrive on the 20th of September 2013. In terms of realization this activity has attained about 75% success rate.
9. The mushroom farm was established with 15 counters by the community. Thecommunity has produced and sold 94kgs of mushroom to clients in and around Bamenda.
10.Sixty five (65) women have so far benefited from the revolving loan scheme, in terms of giving out the 1,030,000FCFA which was available for loaning out to women.
11. Eighty (80) trained women use organic compost as means of practicing organic compost in the project location.
12.Four (4) varieties of leguminous tree seedlings nursed namely Caliandra sp, Acacia sp , Cajanus cajan and Tephoresia vogelii with 2000 seedlings of each species nursed thus a total of 500 seedlings of each leguminous species were produced and distributed and also 2Kg of seeds of each species were also divided to women in five different communities hence a total of 10kg of seeds and 2000 seedlings. 25 women follow demonstration in nursery and farm plots, in terms of surface area established with the leguminous trees, the project envisaged 10ha. However, 4.5ha been established.
*Seventy five (75) community members attended workshop. It should be noted that this initial workshop targeted only women because of their dominant role in agriculture in the community
* Hundred (100) people should be trained consisting of 70 women, 10 men and 20 youth. However, 92 people (67) women, (9) men and 16 youth) were trained on business management and training materials were developed for future training sessions developed
*Participatory Community risk mapping exercise was carried out in four communities namely Njimetu, Alamandum, Mendankwe and Bambui using four focus group discussions and involving a total of 45 persons made up of 30 women, 10 men and 5 youth
* Currently 2000 broiler chicks have been brooded and sold either at 3 weeks or nine weeks. 10 pigs have been purchased and 600 day old layer chicks have been ordered
*One house constructed measuring 25X11M with capacity for 1000birds. Ten suspended pig pens constructed measuring 3X3 meters with a capacity for 70 growing/fattening animals at a time.
* Mushroom house completed and equipped seeds and substrates acquired.
*10 tons of feed were to have been compounded to feed the various classes and species of project animals. Presently 7 Tons have been compounded and used
*Over 100 women granted access to revolving loan fund to help expand or start small businesses
*7 Ha of land established with 4 varieties of agro forestry plants in the farming system
*15 simple biogas units are constructed within fifteen months and the technology adopted as appropriate and affordable.
The key environmental activities were climate and risk vulnerability mapping, soil conservation measures such as the introduction of leguminous trees into the farming system as well as composting. Additionally, biogas production was used to replace fuel wood and hence reduce rampant tree felling. In terms of gender, the project specifically targeted women as a major social category. As concerns poverty reduction activities, there were the introduction of a women revolving loan fund which provided 100 women with access to soft loans. Women were also taught to produce and market pigs and poultry as well as produce and sell eggs and mushroom to raise additional incomes. The targeted beneficiaries were mostly women as stated above. However, some men and youth also benefited from project activities especially capacity building.
Farmers and community members who have alternative livelihood strategies are less likely to over-exploit their natural resources than those who are totally dependent on farming activities year round. Thus it is important for the environment to develop nonfarm activities and services for alternative livelihoods.
