Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Kader Maiga
Published on 2024-04-07 08:41:35
Tominian, April 7 (AMAP) The meeting room of the Tominian circle hosted a training workshop for 50 rural youth on collecting rainfall data techniques and disseminating agro-meteorological information on 4 and 5 April 2024, as observed by AMAP.
The workshop was presided over by the Coordinator of the Sahel Éco zone of Tominian, Thiery Tandin Keïta, in the presence of all participants.
The modules of the workshop, facilitated by Boubacar Koné from the meteorological agency of San, covered practical planting guides, rainfall usage, climate variation concepts, and climate change impacts.
According to the Coordinator of Sahel Éco, the NGO initiated the “Project for Strengthening the Resilience of Family Farming to Climate Change in the Former Cotton Basins of the Tominian, Koutiala and Yorosso Circles P2REF” in partnership with the NGO AMEDD, as part of its mission to promote inclusive socio-economic development that respects the environment and ensures the needs of current and future generations in the Sahel.
The project aims to promote integrated techniques and practices to improve soil fertility and water management in order to increase agricultural production and productivity of farms. Additionally, it aims to diversify and strengthen income sources for women and youth to enhance the resilience of populations living in former cotton basins against the effects of climate change.
The overall goal of the project is to facilitate access to resilient and sustainable technologies for water mobilization, valuation, and protection to support productivity and create opportunities for livelihood diversification.
Overall, the actions of this project will directly benefit the entire population of the 50 project intervention villages, estimated to be over 72,000 inhabitants, including 35,280 men and 36,720 women.
The project, sponsored by the Climate Fund with the support of the World Food Programme (WFP Mali), will be implemented by Sahel Éco in the Tominian Circle in 25 villages in the Communes of Bénéna, Diora, Mandiakuy, and Mafouné over 36 months.
Agro-meteorology uses meteorological and agronomic data to assist in decision-making in agricultural activities to reduce rainfall risks on production. Introduced in Mali during the droughts of the 1970s, agro-meteorological technology relies on a participatory approach, beneficiary awareness-raising and training, and an efficient communication system for information dissemination.
This agro-meteorological assistance proves to be an excellent contribution to climate change adaptation for Sahel countries, as climate change will lead to an increase in extreme phenomena such as droughts, which agriculture, still a pillar of the sub-region’s economies, must adapt to.
To better adapt to the adverse effects of climate change, producers need key agro-meteorological information such as seasonal forecasts throughout the year, actions to take in response to seasonal forecasts, indirect effects related to climate change such as the appearance of pests like caterpillars, locusts, and other crop pests, and measures to address them, and the types of crops to sow (short cycle, long cycle, etc.) based on their advantages.
To train producers on these exercises, the project aims to provide intervention villages with precipitation collection materials and strengthen the technical capacities of 50 identified youth on rainfall data collection and dissemination techniques.
Finally, kits consisting of a rain gauge, phone, and notebook were handed over to beneficiaries by the Deputy Prefect of the Circle, Amadou Gassambé, in the presence of Sub-Prefects and Sahel Éco’s Executive Secretary Pierre Dembelé.
ST/KM (AMAP)
Read the original article(French) on AMAP
