FAO, IFAD and WFP/Burkina Faso- Earlier last month, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations agencies in Rome, David Lane, visited projects implemented by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and World Food Programme (WFP) in northern Burkina Faso. The site visits allowed the diplomat, who was accompanied by a group of journalists from the region, to exchange with beneficiaries, technical partners and local authorities and to collect their stories about the impact that the support from the three agencies has on their everyday lives.

On September 17, Ambassador David Lane visited three projects in the province of Passoré: the Health Clinic of Arbollé, a lowland rice production site in Goubi and a poultry production project in Godin. He was accompanied by Aristide Ongone Obame and Jean-Charles Déi, Country Directors of FAO and WFP, respectively, and Jean-Charles Kaboré, Programme Manager of IFAD as well as representatives from the three agencies.

The Health Clinic of Arbollé organizes activities for the treatment and prevention of Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) in children 6-59 months and pregnant and nursing women. According to the state nurse of the health clinic, Jonathon Kaboré, 10.4% of children from 6 to 59 months in the Commune of Arbollé suffer from MAM. Thanks to support from WFP, pregnant and nursing women and children who test positive for MAM receive food products enriched in micronutrients.

Alice Kientega, the mother of Thérèse Sawadogo, a malnourished child of two years, discusses WFP assistance: “my child was very sick and had lost a lot of weight, but after a few weeks of treatment, she not only gained the weight back, but she is even more adorable now and I’m very proud of her.” The satisfaction was shared by Jonathan Kaboré. “WFP assistance has significantly improved the nutritional status of malnourished children in the area. From January to August 2014, 269 children suffering from MAM received treatment, with a recovery rate of 92 percent. Unfortunately, we have experienced ruptures in the food stocks, and during these periods, children could not receive their rations.”

Increase agricultural production and reinforce resilience of vulnerable rural populations

In the village of Goubi, Ambassador David Lane and his delegation visited rice lowland developed and valorised with funds from IFAD and support from WFP through the “Food for Work” programme, in which beneficiaries receive food assistance for the development of community assets. The lowland was developed and used by 246 producers, including 105 women.

Minata Sawadogo has one of the best developed parcels and is considered an exemplary producer. Ambassador Lane congratulated her on her success. “If the rains continue until October, I will be able to harvest 700 kg of rice, which is three times more than last year. With the sale of the surplus, I will be able to pay for the school fees for my children and buy animals,” she said.

“In the lowland, we had a production surplus. Not only do we have food security now, the income from the sale of our products allows us to improve our living conditions. Even better, rice is no longer a luxury item in this village,” declared Moumouni Nocré, Present of the Village Development Council.

Poultry farming, a complementary activity for vulnerable households

 In Godin, the Ambassador visited an improved poultry production activity implemented by an FAO project aimed at improving the resilience of vulnerable households in response to the food crisis in 2012.

At the time, Godin was one of seven villages in the province of Passoré supported by FAO by the United Nation’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). Forty-three thousand families in ten provinces benefited from the distribution of seeds, small ruminants, animal feed and animal health services. In Godin, 47 beneficiaries each received 10 hens and 1 rooster as well as chicken feed, sanitary products and technical training at the beginning of the project. Today, each beneficiary has more than 80 chickens, plus others that they have already sold. Thanks to these sales, the beneficiaries are able to cover their household expenses, including school fees, bicycles, agricultural production inputs and other animals (sheep, pigs). The project is an important support for the most vulnerable populations, especially female heads of household and elderly persons.

Collaboration between FAO, IFAD and WFP produces significant results in the province of Yatenga, where Ambassador Lane continued his visit on 18 September, 5 500 people, including 4 600 women, in seven villages benefit from the “Risk and Catastrophe Management Pilot Project” and “Reduction of Post-Harvest Losses Project.” Both projects are jointly supported by FAO, IFAD and WFP and aim to reduce the vulnerability of local communities by increasing preparation and capacities needed to face climatic risks.

In the community of Nodin and the training centre at Tangaye, which were the destinations on the second day of sites visits, the combined activities of the three agencies with the support of local partner, “Association Training-Development-Rural Communities” (AFDR in French) highlighted the importance of the collaboration. The activities focused on several sectors, including animal husbandry, agricultural production, production of organic manure, garden production and support for smallholders through the commercialization of their production surpluses in order to allow them to access institutional markets through WFP’s “Purchase for Progress” (P4P) programme.

In these communities, the combined support of FAO, IFAD and WFP to vulnerable populations was implemented through: cash transfers to support digging of wells for gardening, rehabilitation and conservation of soil, development of a ravine, construction materials for the work, animals, production inputs, technical assistance, etc. An information session also addressed gender issues, especially equal access to land, management of farmers’ organizations, value-chains and post-harvest management through the conservation of cowpea.

During the visit to Nodin, Ambassador Lane was able to see women working in their gardens and was able to exchange with women who, even during rainy season, grow onions, cabbage, tomatoes, eggplants and other vegetables.

At the training centre in Tangaye, new techniques for making compost and post-harvest storage of agricultural products were presented.

 Martine Sawadogo, a beneficiary from Tangaye expressed her satisfaction with the project: “At the centre, thanks to support from the three agencies, we benefits from several trainings that allowed us to increase our yields, pay for school fees for our children, support our spouses in the diversification of the family diet and carry out income-generating activities. If we have a better life today, it is because of the support, and on behalf of all the beneficiaries, I thank you.”

At the end of the visit, during discussions with a large group of cowpea producers, the project activities, reiterated by the AFDR, impressed Ambassador Lane and the other visitors. The results speak for themselves: 1 400 ha developed, 500 ha planted for cowpea production, 7 ha developed for garden activities, 24 wells dug, 360 ruminants, 591 Mt of cowpea produced in 2014, 500 Mt of cowpea sold to WFP through P4P for its operations in Burkina Faso.

Before the project, the community experience daily food insecurity that gave rise to high malnutrition rates and illnesses. Today, food is no longer a preoccupation. Even better, the project promoted economic development in households and the malnutrition rate has dropped.

According to Amidou Ouattara, President of the AFDR, “the results of a study carried out by FAO revealed that with the support, the proportion of beneficiary households with malnourished children dropped by almost 40 percent.”

Despite the general satisfaction with the project, the beneficiaries also discussed the constraints and difficulties, including the transportation of perishables, the need for literacy and equipment, the difficulty of mobilizing and managing water for food and production and the need of a perimeter extension for rice production.

At the end of the visit, Ambassador Lane, said that he was impressed with all of the projects. “I was impressed with the quality of the activities organized by FAO, IFAD and WFP, which reveal, through associations such as AFDR, reveal the collaboration between the three agencies in order to benefit vulnerable populations. The beneficiaries who receive support use it to improve their living conditions (gardening, animal husbandry, etc.), which shows that the population itself is taking responsibility for itself. The population has taken initiatives such as the use of new farming techniques, the production of compost with basic materials to produce more, improve their living conditions and reinforce their capacity for resilience, which is extremely important in the context of climate change.”

The beneficiary populations will serve as an example to other communities who will be inspired to break out of their precarious situations and reinforce their resilience in the face of climate change. FAO, IFAD and WFP hope to benefit from the support of donors in order to replicate these positive experiences to help the more than 1.3 million vulnerable people identified by the last joint food security evaluation conducted by WFP, FAO, the Government of Burkina Faso and Fewsnet to get out of poverty.

During his visit, Ambassador Lane also visited other projects run by USAID and MCA funded by the American government.