by NTADY Séraphin, from CNOP Congo

Description

In Congo, unpredictable weather has led producers to be afraid of engaging in agricultural production because of the lack of meteorological warnings on rainfall and consequent decrease in production.

As a consequence, farmers suffer from low income due to loss and poor quality of production. In this context food prices have risen, exacerbating the food security problem and causing the decline of the agricultural sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP.

The use of green manure, farmyard manure and vegetable seed for the production of improved plants adapting to climate disturbance as well as the mulching system for maintaining soil moisture are some of the solutions adopted by farmers to tackle climate change. All these processes are environmentally friendly. For example, production of organic fertilizer by processing Echinochloea for market gardeners. This practice makes it possible to increase soil fertility and crop profitability through the production of organic fertiliser of sufficient quality and quantity and to meet a need expressed by market gardeners. In response to the effects of climate change on the soil, farmers have opted for traditional fertilisation techniques. These techniques are based on the indigenous knowledge of the farmers as well as their experience in agricultural activities.

Other techniques used by farmers include the use of chicken manure for soil fertilisation as a healing measure to amend soil leached by flooding and erosion. Chicken manure helps to supply the plant with major nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Nitrogen promotes vegetation, accelerates plant growth and gives the leaves a good green colour. Phosphorus promotes the development of roots and bulbs and accelerates the ripening of vegetables. Potash makes the plant vigorous, which makes it more resistant to drought and disease attacks. Manure is also a source of microelements such as magnesium, zinc, copper, sulphur and boron. Chicken manure does not only provide nutrients. Its decomposition produces humus, which is very useful for the consistency of the soil, which becomes loose and permeable to air and roots.  Farmers have also adopted the use of certain plants as fertiliser or pesticides: tobacco and chilli.

Lastly, in response to the effects of climate change, some farmers are collecting household waste to make their own compost. Every morning, when they leave their houses for the fields, each farmer carries the rubbish to the field. This rubbish is stored in a corner; it will be transformed into organic fertilizer and used to fertilize the soil. Organic fertilizer is more recommended to farmers because it is natural and free. It contributes to the preservation of the environment.

Results

  • Development of market garden crops using organic fertilisers.
  • Increase in market garden productivity for 269 farmers by increasing the quantity of organic manure produced by 45 pig farms made available to market gardeners.

Climate smartness*

There are several elements that make this story meet the CSA outcomes. First of all, ensuring the food security of the community against the adverse effects of climatic conditions has been an essential objective, however, the achievement of food provision and access was designed in such a way as to integrate sustainable management practices that ultimately avoid any health risks for farmers, consumers and the agroecosystem. Thus, the proper use and processing of animal manure and biomass in general, constitute an alternative source of nutrients compared to synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. A key element that enhances the resilience of the agricultural production systems (that also applies in other contexts and sectors) is the possibility of recirculating the available local material/biomass. In this case, composting processes are central to generate interesting opportunities for producers, since it enables the configuration of cooperation and innovation networks, which empowers farmers and make them active agents in the process of transforming the conventional production model. The above, through the scaling of truly sustainable business models that are capable to incorporate circular economies in value chains and that represent alternatives with lower energy demand in their processes. This directly affects the mitigation outcome, since the correct preparation and application of organic fertilizers —and in this case the short distance of transport of inputs and products— has the potential to reduce GHG emissions, while contributing to the enhancement of soil´s fertility characteristics, including its capacity to preserves the carbon pool, along with other benefits above mentioned.

*This is done in the framework of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) approach. Climate-smartness in agriculture means understanding impacts of climate change and variability along with the agricultural activity, which includes the planning of what crop to plant, when to plant, what variety to plant and what type of management practices are needed to reduce the impact on the environment (e.g. emissions reduction), maintain or increase productivity (e.g. yields) while increasing resilience and improving livelihoods.