Two Worlds

While my role as the facilitator of Rural Empowerment Initiative (rei) will have me in two worlds, I can experience certain things in each continent.
For example weather.
Here the news will lead off with the weather. Its going to be in the high 80's today with dew points near 70!
This is news?
While in West Africa in February and March, I experienced their weather. While there isn't much variety in the news broadcasts, especially in Liberia, where basically the whole country remains off the grid from decades of fighting, it sure aint about the weather.
In fact, when you ask people "how hot is it?" Most people have no clue, do not care and just live life as usual.
They do not have ozone alerts or water sprinkling stations.
You know what they do. They don't complain. There are much bigger fish to fry so to speak. Its called survival. You see you have to do what you got to do, or you don't eat that day.
Women continue to carry large loads of material on theirs heads. Men continue to labor in the sweltering heat...if so fortunate, children walk along way to go to a school that is very under qualified.
I never knew how hot it was during my stay, other than it was really hot.
But its amazing when you don't let media tell you how it is, it doesn't seem that bad, or i guess you just put up with it and just do life.
I wish my world here in the US would pay attention to bigger fish and not make the weather headline news.
Believe me, there's much going on that could lead the news.

Partners Worldwide Confernce

PARTNERS WORLDWIDE CONFERENCE

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A Tale of Two Cities — Clean Water and Sanitation

A Tale of Two Cities — Clean Water and Sanitation as posted on business as Mission website...http://www.businessasmissionnetwork.com/


Guest Post by Chris Horst - Last month I started a journey, in monthly installments, to two fictional cities—Assetsville and Needsville—both cities representative of poor communities in Africa. While the issues in these cities are identical, the responses to these issues could not be more different—both in philosophy and methodology.


Clean water and sanitation are luxuries. The statistics are devastating: One billion of our planet’s citizens lack access to clean water. Unsafe water and poor sanitation cause 80% of all diseases and kill more than two million people annually, 90% of whom are children under the age of five.


When these realities became publicized in Needsville, the response from the international community was swift and profound. Wells were drilled. Rainwater was collected and purified. Water filtration plants were installed. The challenge was big and the response was inspiring.


Sadly, the outcomes fell far short of the aspirations. Shockingly, 80% of the new wells fell into disrepair. The entire region became a “wasteland for broken water and sanitation infrastructure.” The working wells became overworked, plagued by shortages and unmotivated staff. Long lines developed at these wells as the meek recipients waited anxiously to fill up their jugs with the “free” water. Even some church well projects, while well-meaning, were not sustained. The wells were drilled for the residents of Needsville by missions trippers, not by or with them.


In sharp contrast, the streets of Assetsville are now flowing with clean water. Local ingenuity, entrepreneurial grit and sustainable models abound. A local church recently built a water purification center with the help of a Christian ministry and is now providing affordable clean water to their community. The water business employs a handful of church members and creates a revenue stream for the church to pay its underpaid pastoral staff. Refreshing: The local church is providing affordable pure water and sharing about the Living Water.
A microfinance program in Assetsville built a purification system in its branch office. Dozens of clients subsequently took out loans to purchase the clean water in bulk. These water vendors load up their bicycles with jugs of water and sell it in some of the most-underserved communities in the city. Through this model, they collectively sell over 300,000 gallons annually and experience the dignity of work. Innovative: Water solutions—microfinance-style.


Down the road, a pioneering new business is a booming success, bringing dignity to sanitation, through its high-quality, public, pay-per-use toilet and shower facility. Counterintuitive: “The poor” paying for the privilege of using clean bathroom facilities.


Even the children are involved in the movement. They pump clean water into their schools while they play on merry-go-rounds. The excess water is sold to the community and advertising space on the water tanks is sold to ensure the pumps are maintained. Clever: Sustainable clean water fueled by the play of children.


All throughout Assetsville, fresh ideas and entrepreneurial tenacity are charting a new course—a course fueled by smart solutions, and framed by healthy partnerships between the residents of Assetsville and those who are descending on the city to provide help.

Labels: Chris Horst, Water
posted by Justin Forman | 5.05.2010 - 10:02 AM

Liberia-Full of Hope

While this piece rings so true with moving Liberia forward...it brings up the issue about aid workers and how little aid really gets to the people...it's time for change in development...bottom's up!

Open letter to Bono and Bob Geldof

Open letter to Bono and Bob Geldof

President Obama Meets with Liberian President Sirleaf

The Greater Cane Rat- AKA-Grasscutters-A delicacy In Cote d'ivoire

One of the projects being started by ACLCP(Association of Christians Fighting Against Poverty) and the demonstration farm in Cote d'Ivoire is a grasscutter production.
In the beginning of the month,30 grasscutters where delivered at that Ghana border by Renita Reed.
Three died in transport as these little 'rats' are sensitive to travel.
Now the 27 have found a new home in the demonstration farm and will be the base for production.

Wikipedia states;
The Greater Cane Rat (Thryonomys swinderianus) is one of two species of cane rats, a small family of African hystricognath rodents. It inhabits Africa, south of the Saharan Desert. The cane rat lives by reedbeds and riverbanks. As humans move into such territories, the cane rats accepted plantations and cultivated areas. Cane rats can grow about two feet long in the longest individuals and weighs a little less than 19 lb (8.6 kg). It has rounded ears, short nose, and coarse bristly hair. Its forefeet are smaller than its hindfeet and supports its weight on only three toes. Cane rats live in small groups led by a single male. They are nocturnal and make nests from grasses or burrow underground. The oldest cane rat can live more than four years. If frightened, they grunt and run towards water. They eat grasses and cane and since they have tastes for cultivated foods, they make serious agricultural pests. So far, their conservation status is lower risk.

In the country of Ghana and other regions of West Africa, the Greater Cane Rat is usually called a grasscutter or cutting grass. In both West Africa and Southern Africa, it is considered a delicacy. As a consequence, "grasscutters" are beginning to be raised in cages for sale, and so are sometimes referred to as micro livestock.

So in here begins a small enterprise raising grasscutters.

The goal is to help in self sustainability of ACLCP and teach other farmers in the production of these delicate, expensive meals.

My Latest E-Letter-Saturday Morning Post(s)

Saturday Morning Post(s) has been in production for 3 years...get latest copy here

Jatropha-the other weed

In 2008, Mission Goorgoorlu won a grant to produce biofuel outboards, with the goal of helping rural Senegalese use their waterways to connect them to markets, hospitals, and cities. This is our first launch.

Check out this video

‘Agribusiness is the pathway out of rural poverty’

http://www.ifad.org/media/press/2010/30.htm

‘Agribusiness is the pathway out of rural poverty’: IFAD President urges African leaders to invest in agriculture

Rome, 29 April 2010 – African governments, donors and the private sector need to act now to turn the world’s 500 million small farms into profitable businesses, said Kanayo F. Nwanze, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Prior to leaving for Dar es Salaam to attend the regional World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa, hosted by the United Republic of Tanzania, Nwanze said, “What we need to be rethinking is how to turn political will into profits for Africa’s agriculture sector, 95 per cent of which is smallholder farming.”

He added that this could be accomplished if African governments step up their investment in agriculture and build partnerships with the private sector in an open and accountable way. “Working to double the income of a subsistence farmer is simply poverty management. But helping that farmer to launch an agribusiness; that is poverty eradication,” emphasized Nwanze.

The theme of this year’s WEF meeting on Africa is “Rethinking Africa's Growth Strategy”. Nwanze is slated to speak at key Forum sessions.

“African governments must create the right policy environment to allow agribusinesses and agro-industries to develop and flourish, which can provide much-needed employment for Africa’s youths,” he said. “At the same time, investments by the international community and developing country governments need to be smart to focus on the research and development of new technologies to enhance productivity and intensify production.”

Investments and policies need to pave the way for private sector involvement by providing smallholder farmers sufficient access to assets such as land and water, and improving infrastructure, such as roads, power and storage.

During the Forum, Nwanze will outline the potential and promise of rural agriculture and call for governments of African countries and the private sector to find synergies among their competing priorities.

“We must continue to ask tough questions about how African countries, and particularly their leadership, are managing their own houses and applaud those who are setting examples,” said Nwanze, adding that “lessons must be learned from past mistakes that have led to misery for poor people in the rural areas of the continent.”

It will be the first time the WEF has held its meeting in East Africa, where according to UN agencies, a major food crisis is building in southern Sudan.

“With some 80 million small farms in sub-Saharan Africa producing 80 per cent of the agricultural outputs, smallholder farmers can unlock the continent’s potential to feed itself,” he continued.

“Agriculture, irrespective of the size of the farm, is a business. And every entrepreneur, whether it is a smallholder farmer or a large commercial farmer, needs or wants to make money. We have the responsibility to transform smallholder agriculture into smallholder businesses," Nwanze said.

At WEF, Nwanze will meet private sector leaders and explore wealth creation for smallholder farmers. “I will be working to empower them to increase incomes from one dollar a day to five dollars a day,” he stated. Partnerships with the private sector are a linchpin in the new vision of IFAD, and under Nwanze’s leadership the Fund is looking to mobilise resources through the private sector for agro-processing, marketing and business development to transform rural areas into thriving economies.

SENEGAL: Small-Scale Irrigation: Key to Rural Development

SENEGAL:
Small-Scale Irrigation: Key to Rural Development

Koffigan E. Adigbli

DAKAR, Apr 13 (IPS) - Over the past four years, the Local Small-scale Irritation Project has spent more than $10.5 million U.S. dollars supporting rural communities in Senegal.
These water reserves have contributed to increased rice yields, which grew from less than one tonne per hectare in 2003 to three to six tonnes per hectare in 2009. It also allowed the development of off-season horticulture, rice cultivation and vegetable gardening. Communities in target villages of Fatick, Tambacounda and Kolda Kédougou also achieved six to eight months self-sufficiency in rice crops.

"The project has also helped increase the income of more than 6,000 farmers by over 50 percent; replenished the water table; launched micro-projects (in water supply and sanitation), and an anti-salinisation campaign," Wally Gueye, technical advisor to the Ministry of Environment told IPS.

He said more than 2,100 hectares of land that had been rendered saline was reclaimed; preventive measures were taken to protect a further 9,800 hectares of land at risk. of salinity.

"The activities conducted in different regions often exceeded targets," said PAPIL coordinator Amadou Baba Sy, "whether it be seedling production and reforestation, creating and maintaining fire-breaks, or cattle rangeland clearing and maintenance."

He added that a programme on water-borne diseases was implemented by regional medical centres which included information, public education and communication campaigns along with advocacy tools.

Sy emphasized that the persistent food and financial crisis, the adverse effects of climate change, floods caused by torrential rains, desert encroachment, coastal erosion and loss of ecosystems have combined to hinder some of PAPIL's achievements.

He also said there were still some difficulties to be overcome before the programme can expand nationally. These difficulties are mainly tied to implementation delays and funding gaps.

An agreement was signed in February between the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and PAPIL defining a framework for collaboration, co-managing and co-financing joint activities and guaranteeing the project's sustainability as a tool for grassroots development, Sy told IPS.

A total of 207 microprojects amounting to about $1.6 million dollars are available to rural communities, according to Sy. The projects include 35 for water education, 10 health, and 98 for post-harvest equipment.

Jeffrey Povolny, Senegal director of USAID/Wula Nafaa ("Benefits of the Forest" in Bambara), states that USAID has the added intention to work with PAPIL to help the Senegalese government improve its agricultural policies and activities.

"We work on the same issues. It was logical for us to combine our efforts and work together for better returns," he says. The overall objective of USAID / Wula Nafaa is to contribute to poverty reduction and sustainable local development by increasing the income of rural producers and local communities, he told IPS.

Ibrahima Diouf, coordinator of a group of farmers who've been participating in the project in Fatick for over three years, the breadth and productivity of rice cultivation have increased considerably.

"Our group, which includes over one hundred people, has more than five hectares of rice... Currently we're supported by PAPIL especially regarding irrigation. We also produce garden vegetables, a very profitable undertaking," he told IPS.

Famara Sarr, vice-chairman of Fatick's regional council, said it was important to encourage the government to provide more resources to the project.

"Lack of funding prevents PAPIL from reaching approximately 65 percent of farmed regions and 70 percent of other agricultural production areas," he says. "The project must be institutionalised to support communities with programmes that are to everyone's advantage."

(END/2010)

Slager Vision Video-West africa 2010

Slager Vision Video -West Africa 2010 from rick slager on Vimeo.

Agricultural Empowerment Initaive--LEAD INC.

Agricultural Empowerment Initiative

In response to requests from rural regions of Liberia, LEAD is launching an agricultural component to its training and loan programs. In spite of its fertile land, roughly 80% of Liberia’ s food supply is imported each year. This is largely due to the large number of farms which failed or were abandoned during the war. LEAD’s newest program, the Agriculture Empowerment Initiative (AEI) is dedicated to providing the business skills training and capital needed by Liberia’s farmers as they restart their farms. This program will help to lower food prices across Liberia, stem urban migration, and generate jobs in Liberia’s poorest rural region.

Rice vs Vegtables

DAKAR, 1 April 2010 (IRIN) - Rice may still be a symbol of food security across Africa, but the cereal does little to boost nutrition, unlike vegetables, according to the India-based International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).

Vegetables should have their place in the fields and at the table alongside cereals commonly grown in arid countries, vegetable breeding expert Sanjeet Kumar with ICRISAT and the Taiwan-based AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center (formerly known as the Asian Vegetable Research and Development Center) told IRIN.

“While rice and other cereals can cut hunger, vegetables bolster nutritional security and take up less land to grow.”

“Rice is a poor source of essential vitamins and minerals, either because these compounds are not present in rice, especially when it is polished [white], or they cannot be absorbed by humans,” UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) nutrition specialist Roland Kupka told IRIN. “Diets that are primarily based on polished rice may thus lead to deficiencies in iron, zinc, vitamin A, and thiamine [B1] deficiency, which in turn impair growth, immunity, and mental development among children.”

Mineral and vitamin-packed foods include fruit, vegetables and animal products like eggs or fish, said Kupka.

UNICEF estimates 40 percent of under-five children in the arid Sahel are chronically malnourished because they lack the vitamins and minerals needed to bolster their immune systems and mental skills. Another estimated 300,000 die every year from malnutrition.

While health workers may have scales, armbands and yardsticks to measure acute malnutrition (when children are underweight for their height), they are less likely to have microscopes to analyse blood work to measure micronutrient deficiencies.

Comparative advantage

When asked whether rice overshadows more nutritious agriculture sectors, the director of Africa Rice Centre, Papa Abdoulaye Seck, told IRIN that rice cultivation can subsidize these other crops.

“Rice is a strategic commodity… We can do business with rice. Imagine if the US$2 billion dollars [2006 estimate] that Africa spends on rice imports every year were reinvested in the agricultural sector - do you think Africa would now have 265 million starving people?” asked Seck, referring to an estimate from UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).


Photo: Tomas de Mul/IRIN
Rice fills stomachs, but empty in other ways (file photo)
Seck said farmers in Africa have a comparative advantage in growing rice. “We want to develop rice instead of [only] vegetable gardening, because Asia, the largest producer of rice, will not be able to continue doing so. In Asia, there is arable land, but less water. While in Africa, we have enormous potential.”

FAO estimates farmers use 17 percent of cultivable land in Africa, which leaves some 126 million hectares to plant, he said.

Lack of seeds

Based in Niger, vegetable breeder Kumar said ICRISAT and AVRDC-The World Vegetable Center have worked with local groups since 2001 to establish in West Africa 2,500 vegetable gardens that use low-drip irrigation - small perforated pipes that deliver water directly to plant roots.

“There are local vegetables and people know the importance of traditional vegetables, but they do not have the seeds or they get seeds donated from other countries that are not adapted to local conditions,” Kumar told IRIN.

He said land in the Sahel is not the main obstacle to expanding vegetable cultivation, but rather lack of seeds. The vegetable plots are at most 500 square metres. Vegetables that can survive in the Sahelian sun need to be grown for their seeds, but seed commercialization is undeveloped.

Then there is tradition. “Staples like millet and sorghum have long dominated diets in the region, and they are suited to the climate. Vegetables, including indigenous vegetables, have always been part of local diets, but improved vegetable varieties that grow well in the Sahel were introduced only in the past few decades,” said AVRDC’s director for Africa, Abdou Tenkouano.

Problem of perception

There is also the problem of perception. “Vegetables like traditional leafy greens are sometimes viewed as ‘food of the poor’. People may not know how to prepare vegetables to benefit from their nutritional content, and they may lack knowledge on the health benefits of a balanced diet,” he added.

For the past two decades in Mali, Mariko Fadima Siby has grown 'fonio', a local cereal found throughout the Sahel.

She told IRIN rice has always been seen as a sign of status. “Since rice cultivation first picked up here in West Africa decades ago, you were somebody if you had rice during the holidays or growing in your field. It is not that local crops were forgotten, but they paled next to the sheen of rice.”

But eventually, people turn to what grows in their backyard, Siby concluded. “This is a hot place in the world. Whatever takes root here, we will take.”

pt/cb

Themes: (IRIN) Food Security, (IRIN) Health & Nutrition

[ENDS]
Report can be found online at:
http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=88650

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

Moringa- A Gift from God

While at Echo's (Education Concerns for Hunger Organization) conference in December of last year, I was reminded of the importance of this plant. My friend Andy from Echo, sent a bag of dried Moringa home with me years ago to try.

While in Liberia, I seen that it had been introduced to parts of Nimba county from Ghana.(that is what I was told...need to research that)
I can't help to think of the possibilities that this could provide for local farmers. While it would provide income generating activities for the small market holder, it would also provide nourishment.

What's great about this plant, it can grow almost anywhere and can take arid and semi arid conditions.

I will be studying this plant (hope to go to ECHO for two weeks this year) and I pray that we can be part of the production of it someday... somewhere.

Check out this video....

Out of Poverty-the old fashioned way

Last fall, I was told about a guy named Paul Polak. "Never heard of em" , I said. I was talking with another ministry explaining the ideas and the method I was thinking about to reduce poverty in rural areas, it was then I was told of the book 'Out of Poverty'.

I returned home and I Googled it, and ordered the book on Amazon right away. That book radically changed my thinking and it confirmed some thoughts and ideas that had been rattling around in my cranium for some time.
What the book did for me is to realize, that if I were to dedicate the rest of my life to working with the rural poor, the approach should be the old fashioned way, work for it.

While traveling in West Africa last month, I witnessed many NGO's that I would imagine are getting thousands and if not millions of dollars and Euros to eradicate poverty. What kind of impact are they having? I would imagine some. But is it the long range solution?

The point of this post is using grass roots approach to reduce poverty.(I won't use the word 'eradicate' on this blog, Jesus said the poor will always be among you) There are 800 million small subsistence farmers in the world and they tend to be overlooked for many reasons.

But Paul Polak, the founder of International Development Enterprises (IDE) has proven methods that they share with others in reaching the rural poor. I hope that we can incorporate these into our ministry.

(From his website)
Paul Polak is drawing on his 25 years of experience, Polak explodes what he calls the "Three Great Poverty Eradication Myths": that donations alone will end poverty, that national economic growth will end poverty, and that big business, operating as it does now, will end poverty. Polak shows that programs based on these ideas have utterly failed–in fact, in some areas where these approaches have been tried, such as sub-Saharan Africa, poverty rates have actually gone up.

These failed top-down efforts contrast sharply with the grassroots approach Polak and International Development Enterprises have championed: helping the dollar-a-day poor earn more money through their own efforts. Amazingly enough, unexploited market opportunities do exist for the desperately poor. Polak describes how he and others have identified these opportunities and have developed innovative, low-cost tools that have helped impoverished rural farmers use the market to improve their lives.

Good stuff...stay tuned for more developments...

Trashy Bags-our bags are trash

While in Ghana for a few days, we visited a very unique and much needed business.
One thing I quickly realized on my first visit to the Gold Coast, is that the trash is limited compared to the other parts of Africa I have been.
Maybe one reason is this company has collected over ten million water sachets (they sell water on the street in these convenient plastic bags) all over Accra.
They pay women a certain price for large bags that are full of these sachets. Income opportunity number one.
Then they are washed and sorted all by hand outside of this modest little factory/building.
Then they are washed and trimmed to specifics with a scissors...by hand. I think you get it here.
These bags are all by hand and are cleaning up the environment and turning trash into jobs and profit.
Its been one thing that has been on mind since first arriving on African soil...there has to be some way to make something out of all this plastic?
There is so much plastic in Africa, that Uganda has banned them.Plastic is interfering with water penetrating the soil as they have become a liner. Every little thing you buy in Africa, they want to give you a plastic bag...
Then we saw the sewing process and so on at Trashy Bags. Very impressive.

Hopefully this can spill over to other countries and provide more work and income so people can be self supportive. GO TRASHY BAGS!

If you want to order these they will be available in the US on this website in about two weeks...http://www.business-connect.net

You can go to Trashy Bags website here

On the Road again...and hold on

Traveling in Liberia is interesting, to say the least. The roads here are few and beat up. Fifteen years of war can do that to a country. To travel anywhere is not easy. First of all the public transportation here needs a major overhaul. The auto taxi's here are clunkers. We were to travel last Sunday to Cote d'Ivoire from Ganta, Liberia.
Our experience started as we went the 'parking station' to get a vehicle. There they sign you up for a taxi. Imagine this... in one little car they will load three people in the front seat(this includes the driver) and four people in the back seat. We could wait for the car to fill up or we could pay for extra seats. This was a easy decision. We each bought two seats. Cost? Ten bucks per seat. No problem. Ok, now my partner asks "do you have a spare tire?" and "does it have brakes?"
So we loaded up...when the driver assured of us both. One women joins us with a little baby and we are off.
Just after going down the road, I realized something. This thing was one piece of junk. We had to push start it every time and everything creaked, squealed,and begged for mercy.
One and half hours into the trip ...it started falling apart. The passenger front tire brake pad was found in the red clay dirt road as the driver realized we had problems.
So not only was our driver, a chauffeur, he was also a roadside mechanic.
He pulls out his bag of parts and starts to fix this beater. Two hours later, he assures us that we will be going soon. (this is after another roadside mechanic jumps in to help)
But,one thing I have figured out in Africa, that while it might take time, it usually happens. We arrived safely at the Cote d'Ivoire border after leaving six hours before.
We said good bye to our driver and prayed for the next passengers to ride in the 'car'.

In Country-Liberia

As I landed In Liberia on Thursday afternoon I was greeted with palm trees and a very beautiful landscape. Overhead on arrival, I was amazed on how ‘green’ it was. Most of my experience in Africa has been in the dry season in Senegal.
As soon as I got off the plane, I was also reminded that this country is coming out of a long bitter confusing war. UN planes and vehicles were everywhere around the airport. Most Americans, including myself were oblivious to what happen here for 13 years. The devastation here from the war I am sure runs very deep into the culture.
I was amazed at the airport. It was very clean and orderly. I had this picture painted of it in my mind, and it was nothing like I had expected. This country is rebounding with resiliency.
My first night for dinner we met with a local doctor at his house. Inside, although very small with electric run by a generator, we were warmly received. There were many laughs and introductions that night and I had a sense I was really going to enjoy getting to know this country.
The heat and humidity here are high. It’s taking some getting used to. I love warm weather, but the humidity here is one thing I could do less of .
The last two here in Monrovia have been full of meeting with Equip Liberia and LEAD Liberia. Two organizations that I am praying about to collaborate with in the future. I am so impressed with both.
LEAD Liberia is a NGO that is building up Liberia through small and medium enterprises. Training and access to capitol for Liberians to build their business is the heartbeat of this organization. Yesterday, at the national conference/Monrovia, we heard about customer satisfaction and the importance of it. The ambassador to Liberia from the US was the keynote speaker. Here she encouraged the Liberian small business owners to be honest and fight corruption.
Equip Liberia is working in rural communities and assisting in reestablish medical work. The work is around 80% in rural communities and is putting a good size dent in bringing back medical care for everyone.
Tomorrow we finally head out to the bush. I am excited to what God is doing out there and look to join Him in the work.

On the Road Again...Goin places I've never been

On February 14, I embark on a 23 day three country trip, to West Africa. Landing in Accra , Ghana on the 15th , I will spend 2.5 days with the Reeds in the capitol city. Renita Reed of Partners Worldwide will be my host and 'tour guide'. The Reeds spent around four years in Liberia and have now settled in Ghana. I am so thankful for this opportunity.
I have spent a considerable amount of time communicating with Renita in preparation for this trip. I will also be with some North Americans from Michigan and Indiana while In Monrovia.

We will visit a few organizations and villages while in Ghana and then take off for Monrovia, Liberia. I will be spending around three days in Monrovia, which is the capitol of this war torn country. I then will proceed to venture out into the bush, Nimba county for about one week. There I will have the opportunity to see the work that Equip Liberia and L.E.A.D are doing in these farming communities.
Then its off to Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) for around five days. Here, I will visit with a pastor who has incorporated a demonstration farm and training center into his ministry. Because of the looting by rebels around 2003, it has to be reestablished.

So whats the point?
As we are beginning a new season of life with Equip International, we are looking at plugging into an opportunity for ministry and development.
I am interested in what these organizations are doing, and seeking God's plan for our lives.
Exciting times!

And I'm sure I will be ready to go home again...after visiting places that I've never been...

Oceans Waste Management-Monrovia Liberia

OCEANS from Partners Worldwide on Vimeo.

Africa Can Feed Itself?

There are lots of opportunities in agriculture to turn the African continent from food-deficit to food-surplus, but all sensible commentators agree that it is smallholder agriculture particularly that deserves attention if we are to achieve this goal. Questions are: Why are smallholders still net importers of food into their homesteads? And why does 30-40% of African agriculture go to waste every year?



Better seeds, fertilizers, market information, roads, post harvest storage, local value adding, more facilitative regulations, access to credit - all these are cited as important responses and necessary to the 'green revolution'. But one fact stands out starkly: only 4% (or 6% according to some) of African agriculture is irrigated. This means that 96% is rain fed.



Rain fed means feast-famine, glut-shortage production cycles which are out of whack with demand which is constant (and indeed rising). Increasing the productivity of rain fed agriculture will compound the existing problem of 30% - 40% waste, by placing additional strain/demand on already inadequate infrastructures. Nowhere else in the agriculture world does anyone depend so heavily on rain fed production.



Asian agriculture is 43% irrigated! So why can we not apply this solution here? Some say it is because Africa is water scarce ... but it absolutely is not. Others say that it’s because irrigation is so phenomenally expensive - big schemes, large dams, small dams, other storage systems like RWH tanks do indeed cost a lot. But irrigation need not be so expensive as we have shown:



At KickStart we have developed an irrigation technology that:



* Costs less than $400 per irrigated hectare (versus $5,000 - $10,000 for conventional irrigation schemes)



* Is as conservative of water (arguably even more conservative) than micro-drip - and is less expensive per hectare and much easier to set up and use



*Only uses surface or shallow groundwater (e.g. from hand-dug wells), which is renewed/recharged every rainy season



* Is already used by over 90,000 rural families - who have invested in the technology themselves without any assistance from anyone



The technology has transformed from subsistence to profitable commercial agriculture as a result; increased productivity and incomes by typically 300% to 1200%; provided new employment to over 120,000 people in rural areas; generated over $90 million per year into local economies and can be used by between 15-20 million families in SSA (i.e. ~10% of the SSA population) because they live in places where the pump can physically work and where it makes economic sense to do so



This technology is well designed and made. The human powered pressure irrigation pump for example, is widely distributed, marketed and sold in Kenya and Tanzania and Mali. The two models - one for $100 and another for $35 are guaranteed.



Smallholder farmers themselves make the decision to invest in them. No government or NGO funds are needed. The farmers themselves have gone on to reap the benefits and make the impacts that are cited above. Currently around 2,000 smallholder farmers per month buy one of these pumps.



Rural people can come out of poverty and into prosperity in as short a time as possible - using market based approaches. There is potential here for 10% of Africa's people to increase their productivity by a factor of 5 (or so) which would mean doubling current food production on the continent. And it would cost them and their governments only a very small fraction of the money that other, less effective, solutions would cost.



We need brain-fed but not rain fed agriculture to turn around the smallholder sector in Africa and transform rural people from 'liabilities' on national books of account, in permanent need of charity and relief welfare, to 'assets' who are using their skills and knowledge to add value and create wealth. It is not rocket science to do so. Just a question of looking critically at our agricultural systems and processes, and identifying where the tightest bottleneck is and removing this first, before going on to address secondary and tertiary bottlenecks.



Right now, I fear that many policies and interventions in this sector can be likened to the non-solution to traffic congestion we are witnessing along Nairobi's Mombasa road. By widening and smoothing this road, as they have done, a whole lot more cars can get a lot more quickly to the Nyayo stadium roundabout and get stuck there, so we now get a 2km long, 4 lane wide, jam instead of a 4 km long, 2 lane wide, jam. The net effect is zero.



By Nick Moon,

Co-Founder; Managing Director,

KickStart International

Driving (and Walking) In Monrovia: Not For the Faint of Courage

Monrovia, Liberia - A major challenge in any large, crowded city is simply navigating the traffic in traveling from one place to another. But that task is decidedly more complicated in a city with no traffic lights, few to no stop signs whatsoever and just a handful of traffic agents on the roads. Imagine if all the traffic signals were disconnected and stop signs removed from, say, Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn or Fordham Road in the Bronx.

That’s the case here in Monrovia, where the impact of nearly 15 years of civil strife is most easily seen and felt in the city’s traffic. For one thing, the sheer volume of the population of Liberia’s capital has soared as rural dwellers moved en masse to seek employment in Monrovia, the country’s lone big city. The population here has more than doubled since the war, with about 1.5 million people in the capital (half of Liberia’s population now lives in Monrovia) Furthermore, the war, which ended in 2003, destroyed the hydro-electric plant in Monrovia, and rebuilding it has been a slow – if steady – undertaking. At the same time, the number of motorcycles has skyrocketed with officials suggesting that they now nearly rival the number of cars here.

All of that has made driving here an enterprise that is best not left to the faint of courage. The best preparation might well be a month of test driving on an obstacle course (or even in downtown Brooklyn, for that matter). Simply driving onto the highways and streets here — and certainly seeking to make a left turn from a major road — takes a combination of boldness, pluck and sheer bravery. Pedestrians cross roads as best they can, calculating whether they amass the speed to outrace oncoming traffic. There is no traffic light to bring traffic to a halt at an intersection and rarely is there a police officer. So, crossing the street is a highly-charged, track-and-field event for pedestrians. And the presence of potholes of every size is an extenuating challenge for Monrovia’s drivers.

There is a distinctive rhythm to creeping out to enter or make a left turn from the road – it’s the driving equivalent of the school girl poising with intense focus descend into the whirl of jump-rope. “You’ve got be very watchful,” said Michael B. Cole, a 20-year-old University of Liberia student who drives his older brother’s Volvo from time to time. “I’ve been driving since I was 13, starting with my father’s car.”

Driving in Monrovia, he added, involves the utmost in concentration, because of the pedestrians, the unpredictability of the motorcycles’ bobbing and weaving, the potholes and the water that can form small lakes in the roads during Liberia’s rainy season. “You have to always watch, always watch,” he said, while blowing his horn to alert a driver who seemed to be on a collision course with Mr. Cole’s car.

And driving here at night is an altogether advanced level of challenge. With few sections of the city illuminated by street lights, averting the scampering pedestrians in the darkness can be a potentially perilous endeavor to say the least, a virtual suicide mission for those crossing by foot. On a recent event here, the streets at one junction seems even more crowded than during the daylight rush hour and pedestrians at every turn seems to narrowly avert catastrophe.

And yet, amid the motorcycle darting, the fearless pedestrians and the incessant blaring of horns, there is an abundance of courtesy that seems to prevail. Some drivers will simply stop at an intersection to allow the elderly or young children cross. It is not uncommon for a driver, seeing the desire of another to make a turn, to slow down and flash his lights, a sign of allowance to make the turn. All of it is acknowledged with the courtesy of a wave in return.

But things are due to improve, said Miekee S. Gray, the chief of traffic for the national police. “We have plans to get many more traffic signals placed in the busy intersections,” Mr. Gray said, in an interview. “Right now we just have about 150 traffic officers on duty during the course of the day. In two years, I think you will see a big difference in the traffic in Monrovia.”

For one thing, he said that the increase in traffic signals will make it possible to reduce the number of traffic agents on the streets, freeing them to do other police activities. He said there are also plans to set up video monitoring systems that will enable the police to watch traffic around Monrovia from a command center and dispatch agents as necessary. Also, the police will conduct widespread training to better acquaint drivers with standard international traffic signs.

Also, Mr. Gray said, police officers have cracked down on enforcing seat belt regulations so intensely that most drivers now understand the importance of wearing them. And the department plans more public awareness campaigns, he said. “We are making progress and we will be making a lot more progress in the next few years,” he said. “You'll see street lights in bigger numbers and a better flow of traffic” (To be completely accurate, there is one functioning traffic signal here now, at the Port of Liberia).

In the meantime, drivers have to make the best with conditions. “I think things will get better in time,” Mr. Cole said. “It’s a pain driving in the city. But you have to make the best of it for now.”

By Jonathan P. Hicks

Amaranth

One of the things we will look at in the future is introducing where applicable, new varieties of food and fodder.

This project in Uganda can be duplicated in other parts of Africa?

New Year...New Gig

Happy New Year!

How's those resolutions doing? Geez...it's the ninth already and I haven't even made any.

I've thought about creating a list...so how bout making it public?

So here's my top ten list of things to work on in 2010.

1. Being a better Dad-Husband-Brother-Son-Friend- This is a challenge we all struggle with. But, being aware of this every day is my hope and desire.
2. Memorize a bible verse a week. It is what it is. This will take discipline.
3. Keep up with exercise and whole foods diet.
4. Simplify life...I'm already making strides here...need to keep the push.
5. Learn French...Oh my, this one scares the heck out of me! Let's see if I can blog in French by years end!
6. Establish a ministry...this means too many things to post here. But, let's look back at years end and see what God does here.
7. Clear out my idols closet one by one and make God the center of my life.
8. Use Time wisely-when you realize that you are about to turn fifty...time starts to matter a bit more? I'm not just talking about little things you waste time in the day, but I'm talkin about the big picture. You know each day is a gift...I'm going to try and make each day count.
9. Reading more. Watching Tv less and less frivolous internet searching...e.g. Facebook
10. Not make any promises I cannot keep. I'm one to put myself out there. I've had too many irons in the fire and it just adds unwanted stress. Can I get an amen?

Kenya: Maize Shortage to Affect Four Million Citizens

Kenya: Maize Shortage to Affect Four Million Citizens

Mark Kapchanga

3 January 2010

Nairobi — More than four million Kenyans will face an acute shortage of their staple food, maize, as early as April this year.

Egerton University's research arm -- Tegemeo Institute -- says the country's food security situation is precarious. It adds that there is a potential food crisis occasioned by erratic rains during the long rains season.

Kenya will depend heavily on neighbouring countries for maize imports.

Tegemeo maize researcher Francis Karin says the maize reserve will last up to the first quarter of 2010 only.

"From April, Kenya will have to import maize to save its people from starvation. The situation will improve only after major harvests are realised towards the end of the year in September and October," Mr Karin said.

The thinktank says the situation has been worsened by the failed El Nino rains, which many farmers had pegged their hopes on.

Continuing export bans in neighbouring Tanzania and Uganda have worsened the problem. They are likely to reduce cross-border maize inflows by approximately 46 per cent.

The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) says other issues affecting Kenya's maize outputs include inefficient market competition, lack of enough agricultural extension systems and poor infrastructure.

Production from the long rains usually accounts for 85 per cent of the national output, which is currently estimated at 30 million bags. As a result of the intermittent rains this year, this production level is set to fall below last year's.

Estimates by Tegemeo place the long rains production at 18 million bags. This represents 65 per cent of the Ministry of Agriculture's target of 28 million bags.

Crop performance analysis by the ministry shows that the country's major production zones will record massive declines in maize production.

South Rift, Eastern and Central and North Rift Provinces have an annual crop performance rate of 50 per cent. Nyanza's lowlands recorded a 60 per cent production decline while the highlands had a 35 per cent decline. Western and Central registered 30 per cent and 70 per cent decline, respectively.

On average, out of the country's 1.3 million hectares of land under maize, only 18.2 million bags were achieved, representing an average 14.3 bags per hectare. This is 65 per cent of Kenya's target of 28 million bags.

The ministry estimates the short rains production at 6.5 million bags, with 2.6 million bags coming from Eastern province. Another 1.6 million bags is expected from Nyanza province.

This is quite optimistic. Ukambani and upper Eastern have already lost their maize crop due to the failed El Nino rains. Nyanza has not fared any better.

Copyright © 2010 The East African. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).