Having land security helps farmers invest in natural resources and their own futures

Binta Ba is helping to lead a quiet green revolution in the fields of Mboro, where she lives. In this coastal region of Niayes, close to Senegal’s capital Dakar, she is training her fellow growers in agroecology, an integrated approach applying ecological and social concepts to sustainable agriculture, which turns a lot of conventional farming wisdom on its head.

The dramatic change came after she was offered the chance to be one of 16 producers selected for a pilot using agroecological practices in the Niayes area. With the support of FAO and local nongovernment organization, Environment Development Action for the Natural Protection of Lands, or ENDA Pronat, Binta received seeds, irrigation equipment and fertilized trees. She was trained in practices such as composting and bokashi, a process for making food waste ferment using special bacterial inputs. Instead of using chemical fertilizer on her fields, these practices both helped to preserve biodiversity and prevent the soil from being overworked. They have also reduced the need for intensive labour on the crops, freeing up more time for Binta to pursue other activities.

Binta has already planted two hectares of land with organic potatoes and has built up a seed reserve for next season. She has already been contacted by other producers in her commune and beyond, wanting to be trained and to join the project to reduce the use of chemicals and increase the value of their lands. She has thus become a trainer of farmers spreading knowledge of agroecological practices in the Niayes area.

Women owned

Another critical aspect of the progress on land tenure and the initiatives growing out of it is the empowerment of women. Despite a constitutional provision granting women equal access to land ownership, cultural and customary practices make this difficult to achieve in practice. So raising awareness of the issue and helping women negotiate their rights has been a particular focus for FAO and its partners.

“The project helped empower women across the region. When women have more access to land, they contribute more to decisions about family farms. They know their rights and duties better, and now the heads of households consult with them for rural activities and to make decisions related to the household,” says Dieynaba Diallo, President of the Women Promotion Group, Kawral Sinthiou Sambarou. “Women also now have more access to decision-making bodies. For example, some have actively joined municipal councils. Others have become presidents of producers’ organizations.”