Mitigating the effects of the crisis in Burkina Faso’s Centre North and Sahel region

At the end of 2019, a number of vulnerable households in Burkina Faso’s Sahel region received small ruminants, animal feed and seeds from FAO. Among the beneficiaries of Dori was Ms Haoua Boubacar whose livelihood improved thanks to the support received.

On a windy December morning in Djomga village, women were busy keeping bundles of wood lit while some men were getting ready to go to Dori or the surrounding villages to sell certain products. Under the palaver tree, leaders of Dori’s Union Fraternelle des Croyants (one of FAO’s implementing partners) were chatting with a few heads of households. Together with staff of the Ministry of Animal and Fisheries Resources, FAO discussed with the leaders the progress made on the distribution of small ruminants to vulnerable households. Among village participants - mostly men - was Ms Haoua Boubacar. “Since the death of my husband five years ago, I have been taking care of my five children,” she began, explaining the difficulties she encountered to meet the needs of her family, especially given the limited outcome of the 2019 agricultural season. Her face lit up when she started talking about the small ruminants she had recently received “what a relief! I will tend to these three sheep so that they grow and can reproduce in the best conditions. I will then be able to generate an income and support my family,” she said.

Ms Haoua Boubacar received the three sheep under FAO’s Swiss-funded project, which aims to support the livestock production of vulnerable households through the provision of inputs in order to increase availability of quality fodder and improve breeding in response to the crisis in the Centre-North and Sahel regions. To date, the project has: distributed over 440 tonnes of livestock feed in the two regions; carried out a study on the impact of insecurity on animal husbandry practices and the functioning of livestock markets in Burkina Faso; trained 31 facilitators on good food and nutritional practices, and on the maintenance, health care and feeding of animals; distributed 1 500 crop production kits including a total of 8 750 kg of cowpea, 5 000 kg of cereals, 4 500 triple lined bags and 138 000 kg of organic fertilizer to 1 500 vulnerable households; distributed 2 250 animals to 750 households; and vaccinated and dewormed 4 000 cattle and 12 500 small ruminants.

Ms Haoua Boubacar, as other households in the Centre-North and Sahel, is grateful to FAO and the Swiss cooperation. She now has the means to engage in livelihood activities during the 2019/20 dry season to produce food and generate income.