Is there a future to sustainable agriculture in Togo?

What do we see on the project photo?
The collection of images illustrates what life in Donomadé, Togo looks like. We can see people of all ages engaging in different activities that involve farming and food transformation.

How would you explain to a child what the project is doing?
We talk to farmers to identify the difficulties that keep them from achieving their goals. We use this information to find solutions that would improve their lives and the sustainability of farming.

What is the project’s main objective?
The project aims at finding pathways that would allow farmers to achieve their nutritional and financial needs through sustainable agriculture.

Why is the project important?
Farming in sub-Saharan Africa is key to achieving the Sustainable Development goals of Zero Poverty and Zero Hunger. Yet, against a backdrop of land degradation, agriculture cannot meet farmers’ needs due to a series of factors such as population densities, land fragmentation, and low price of crops.

What has been the most positive moment during the project?
Observing how collaborative work between farmers, researchers, students, local youth, and NGOs can contribute to improving people’s livelihood even in situations of extreme poverty and marginalization.

What have been the biggest challenges encountered in the project?
The language barrier and lack of available data are the biggest challenges for this project. Fortunately, with our multidisciplinary team and the employment of local people, we were able to dissolve these barriers while creating an opportunity to achieve locally-relevant environmental, socio-economic, and cultural solutions.

Which is the most important lesson learnt from the project?
Despite hunger and poverty being pervasive and complex problems in sub-Saharan Africa that require immediate solutions, collaborative efforts can help rural communities to identify sustainable pathways for agriculture that could lead to a better quality of life.