CULTIVONS L’AVENIR- Promuovere un sistema alimentare e nutrizionale per tutti in Burkina Faso
Cooperative Development Organisation
Implementing Partners and Organisations
Period of Implementation
Geographic scope
Africa: Burkina Faso
Cities: Poa, Thyou, Ramongo, Kokologo, Dassa, Kyon, Dalo’ and Bougnounou
Budget
Donor(s)
Bilateral Aid: Italian Agency of Development Cooperation
Sector(s)
Type of Activity
Summary
Burkina Faso is among the ten poorest countries in the world: its Human Development Index ranks 184th out of 191 countries (2021 data: HDR-UNDP). The social situation is challenging and has been further worsened by the country’s political crisis, which led to two coups d’état in less than a year, the latest on 2 October 2022. The analysis conducted by the project partners, based on the data collected and the main studies and plans reviewed regarding food security and nutrition in the areas under assessment, has highlighted the following key problem areas: access to food, education and training, employment and social protection, health and nutrition, and access to resources. Indeed, in Burkina Faso, they have spontaneously formed formal cooperatives with the aim of increasing their income-generating capacity and, as a result, reclaiming their role in a strongly patriarchal society, where women do not have equal access to assets and are excluded from decision-making processes. Through the proven experience of Shalom and Haliéus in business and cooperativism, the intervention aims to provide an additional opportunity for economic growth through a training and technical support programme designed to strengthen the cooperatives’ capacity to move from production solely for household nutritional needs to the development of an agribusiness activity. During the needs assessment phase, it was in fact established that their production now exceeds household consumption, and that it is possible to organise the distribution and sale of surplus production on local markets.For each cooperative, a diagnostic assessment will be carried out in order to develop tailored managerial and technical strengthening plans, which will be implemented through a training and mentoring programme delivered by expert agronomists. The cooperatives will then be supported by experts from the Italian cooperative movement through field missions, in the process of defining their business model and implementing their agribusiness development plan. In parallel with the strengthening of the cooperatives’ agribusiness activities, capacity-building activities will also be carried out for local institutions, through the training of technicians and officials from territorial services linked to local economic development and agricultural policy across the eight municipalities in which the cooperatives operate.
Project Objectives
The initiative Cultivon l'avenir is implemented in 8 Rural Municipalities comprising 35 villages in the Centre West Region of Burkina Faso. The aim is to contribute to Sustainable Development Goal No. 2, through the promotion of an inclusive, sustainable, resilient, equitable, diversified and highly nutritional food system (production and consumption) (specific objective), and 3 expected outcomes as: Outcome 1 (31161 food crop production CRS CODE DAC) involves 1750 smallholder farmers (M/F) who cultivate using expensive and harmful pesticides and chemical fertilizers. The initiative intends to equip them with specific skills in sustainable agricultural practices and techniques in a context of protection of their rights and social inclusion through the introduction of a mutual health insurance and the drafting of birth certificates and identity cards for farmers who do not have them. The action prioritises the active involvement of the local population in all its phases, including the selection of beneficiaries (activity 1.1). This will be carried out by giving priority to women heads of households (gender equality is a significant objective) and young people, with the aim of creating equal opportunities. Outcome 2 (31194 CRS CODE DAC agricultural cooperatives) involves 919 farmers, predominantly women (gender equality significant objective) who already practice agroecology and organic farming and have spontaneously organised themselves into 13 agricultural cooperatives. Thanks to the expertise of the partner Halieus - structure of Legacoop (National League of Cooperatives and Mutual Societies), the cooperatives will be coached and supported to develop and implement a plan to commercialise their production (Trade Development: significant objective), generating additional income. Outcome 3 ( 43072 Household food security programmes CRS CODE DAC) the initiative intervenes in the prevention and care of acute or moderate malnutrition in children 0-59 months and pregnant women, complementing the treatment and care provided by the local health centres with an outreach and community-based service in the 35 villages. 70 community health workers will be selected and trained to refer patients at risk of malnutrition to area dispensaries for the health checks required by the ministerial health protocol and to follow the most severe cases at home during the nutritional recovery plan. It is expected that 3,100 children 0-59 months and 1,000 pregnant women (Minors: significant objective and Contributed to maternal and child health. explicit primary objective) with a diagnosis of acute or moderate malnutrition will be treated through the action. A training and information campaign on the preparation of highly nutritional baby food will be organised and carried out by women and men belonging to the community and trained to do cooking demonstrations and information campaigns. To this end, kitchen and storage facilities will be equipped in each village for the storage and preparation of food for cooking demonstrations.
Impact on SDGs
Direct beneficiaries
Organisations: 13
Individuals: 25000