West Africa: UN project boosts farmers’ lives

The $2.4 million UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) project involves helping the beneficiary farmer groups meet the necessary requirements in terms of certification and methods to grow and export their produce to the growing organic food market in the industrialized world.

 

According to the UN food agency, the German-backed project has also resulted in improved living conditions and food security for the various people involved as additional income generated as part of the scheme is generally spent on food, clothing, school fees and medical bills. It has also led to new job opportunities in the production of certified products as well as supportive services.

 

Additionally, new organic production methods have also been reportedly adopted by farmers who are not members of the producer groups.

 

“Some farmer groups had never exported products before – at best they offered them to the local market at a low price,” the statement quoted Pascal Liu, described as FAO’s trade economist. 

 

“Most of them had a very low level of institutional capability, technical capacity and financial resources. Now most of the groups have legal status, meet regularly, keep records and are now made up of ‘real members’ who pay dues.”

 

Organic farming involves the use of purely organic products to maintain soil facility and enhance plant growth. It works purely devoid of the usage of synthetic products, with the use of farming methods such as crop rotation, application of compost, green manure, as well as the use of biological pest control and mechanical cultivation.

 

The UN food agency predicted a growth in the organic and fair trade market in developed countries by about 5 to 10% a year, over the next three years, thus offering new opportunities for smallholder farmers in poor countries.

 

FAO acknowledged the debilitating factors involved in limiting the chances of poor farmers from the developing world to access the market in the developed world, which it says requires ‘‘a conversion period from conventional to organic agriculture – including changes from production and harvesting to packaging, certification and marketing – during which farmers incur higher costs resulting from new techniques without initially benefiting from the higher prices associated with the organic label.’’

 

However, as a result of the improved structure and organization, the UN food agency noted, farmer groups are now in the position to draw up and negotiate contracts with an exporter, with some pineapple growers from Ghana and Cameroon seeing their exports growing despite the economic crisis.

 

“One group in Cameroon, for example, not only found a buyer for their organic pineapples, but thanks to the cost analysis we did with them, they were also able to negotiate better terms with their long-term conventional buyer,” Cora Dankers, an FAO project officer, stated.