“There is Money in the Soil” and Djaka Kope Farmers Want It

“There is money in the soil” sing the joyful groups of men and women farmers gathered for the second annual rural workshop in Djaka Kope, a village in the Maritime region of southern Togo.  This signifies a significant shift of focus from a technology-oriented to a market-oriented agricultural development approach.  Conducted on Thursday, September 15, 2005, the workshop attracted 200 farmers representing 15 farmer-based organizations known as “Greniers Villageois” (GV)–Village Granaries and 6 GV unions.  The Institute of Technical Advice and Support (ICAT), the Togolese Institute for Agricultural Research (ITRA), Campaign for a Sustainable Development (C2D), the Center for Research and Trials on Self -Promotion Models (CREMA), and IFDC jointly organized the workshop.

Through hand-written posters, farmer delegates presented the results of self-managed research-action experiences and option validation, conducted on learning plots.  The farmers showcased their mastery of the various stages of the Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) strategy.  The technical itinerary included mapping the soil and the environment, conducting participatory diagnosis, setting up nutrient omission trials to identify plant nutrient deficiencies, defining performance indicators, evaluating and comparing results, making production decisions, and validating improved options. 

A central component of the ISFM strategy is the use of mucuna, a leguminous plant that provides large amounts of much-needed nitrogen to the plant and retains moisture in the soil.  “With or without rain, mucuna works for us.” This was the theme of a skit composed and performed by the farmers.  This skit relates the true story of a woman farmer who used to curse her neighbor for growing mucuna, a plant that she believed would attract snakes and kill farm animals.  She vowed to destroy every bit of this malignant plant that would cross the boundaries of her farm, until she was forced to acknowledge the value of its use upon seeing the bountiful harvests that her neighbors had received after only 1 year of mucuna treatment on their farms.  

Akouavi Anani, President of the Agbebe Farmer Group, is grateful for the support organizations, which have opened the way for change in his village.  “Life was tough around here; and hope was a mirage.  Today we know how to care for our soil.  We know how to make it more productive.  The real problem is the market,” Akouavi says.  Indeed, as the workshop’s introductory song goes, money—or market—is clearly a key issue.   In their interventions, farmers stressed that their production “should not all end up in the cooking pot.”  Some of it should be used to send their children to school, to cover other family needs, and to invest in their farms.  For this to happen, they need to understand the operation of the market; they need to become well-informed and well-organized players to overcome constraints and avail themselves of market opportunities.

The need for human and institutional capacity building was stressed by Agbo Badougbe, President of the GVs Union of the Southern Vo region: “We’ve passed the stage of subsistence farming.  We need training on how to operate effectively within a farmer group and how to manage a village association.  We especially need to know how to manage our production surpluses so that the largest part of the money does not fall into the pockets of intermediaries.”  

The Djaka Kope workshop gave farmers the opportunity to voice their concerns and pose questions directly to government officials.  This was one of the ultimate goals of the annual rural workshops, in keeping with IFDC’s principle of developing linkages among key stakeholders.  Thus, the senior private secretary to the Togolese Minister of Agriculture, Stock Rearing and Fishery, Kedessa Bouwassi, was interviewed concerning the price of maize, which has reached an all-time high during the past 2 months.  Most farmers could not avail themselves of this situation because they had already sold the largest part of their harvests.  Those who still had stocks available were penalized by the government intervention for artificially curbing prices.    

“I must congratulate the organizers of this workshop, which allowed me to listen to your concerns and understand better the realities you are facing.  This should help the government to assist you more effectively in your efforts.  I was primarily impressed by the mobilization I’ve seen here,” says Bouwassi.  He was also asked to explain the role of the Togolese Observatory of Food Security which, he said, was established to monitor and regulate stocks and prices of cereals in the country.  

How to get the right fertilizers where and when they are needed was also a primary concern.  “For instance, when you need nitrogen, you can find only potash fertilizers.  When the product you need is available, the quantity is too low,” complained a farmer.  In response, Bikpeta Anakoma, Director of the National Fertilizer Service, explained the government’s intervention in this domain and warned farmers not to agree to participate in the game of some private retailers who buy fertilizers at subsidized prices and resell it to the farmers at exorbitant benefit margins.  

In the Djaka Kope development process, IFDC plays an integrative role through this exchange platform, which causes facilitating institutions to coordinate their interventions and their support to farmers in their fields.  Atsu Theophile, President of the Gbanodou GVs Union, appreciates IFDC’s contribution.  “Previously, an organization would introduce something, and later another would introduce something else.  IFDC has caused all stakeholders to cooperate and to communicate better with us.  We all benefit from this interaction,” he concluded.