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Delfino Plough- A Heavy Digger Supports Action Against Desertification in the Sahel Region
![Delfino Plough- A Heavy Digger Supports Action Against Desertification in the Sahel Region](https://www.fao.org/images/devrtpwslibraries/bestpractices/seedlings-laid-out-ready-for-planting-in-land-prepared-by-the-delfino-plough-in-djibo-burkina-faso.jpeg?sfvrsn=3a838afc_1)
Seedlings laid out ready for planting in land prepared by the Delfino plough in Djibo, Burkina Faso
©FAO/Giulio Napolitano
Farming in the Sahel region of Africa isn’t easy. It’s an area that suffers from degraded soils, erratic rainfall and is often subject to long periods of drought. For that reason, farmland soil is often very hard, making it difficult for farmers to plant seeds and for crops to flourish. But new technology can reduce this burden for farmer and help restore land for future generations.
The Delfino plough, FAO brought this state-of-the art heavy digger to the Sahel region as part of FAO’s Action Against Desertification (AAD) programme, using it to cut through impacted, bone-dry soil to a depth of more than half a metre. Four Delfinos have been introduced into four countries – Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal – as part of FAO’s Great Green Wall initiative.
The Delfino creates large half-moon catchments ready for planting seeds and seedlings, boosting rainwater harvesting tenfold and making soil more permeable for planting than the traditional - and backbreaking – method of digging by hand. The half-moon is a traditional Sahel planting method which creates contours to stop rainwater runoff, improving water infiltration and keeping the soil moist for longer. This creates favourable micro-climate conditions allowing seeds and seedlings to flourish.
In Burkina Faso and Niger, the target number of hectares for immediate restoration has already been met and extended thanks to the Delfino plough. In Nigeria and Senegal it is working to scale up the restoration of degraded land.
For more information click here.
Documents
- Bringing Degraded African Land Back to Life - FAO Story --- Video
- Fighting Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought in Africa through the Action Against Desertification - GCP/INT/157/EC (Africa Component)
- Great Green Wall initiative
Related resources
- Action Against Desertification
- Dryland Forests and Forestry
- Sustainable Forest Management Toolbox
- Review of Forest and Landscape Restoration in Africa
- The State of the World's Forests 2020 - FAO
- The Sahel and Lake Chad Regions: FAO Joins the Global Effort to Reinforce Response to the Food Security Crisis
- Enhanced Cross-Boundary Water Resource Management in the Senegal River Basin
- Northeastern Nigeria Conflict Intensifies Lake Chad Basin Hunger Crisis