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Publié le : 09-11-2022
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Type : Projet
As part of the ALIMENTERRE festival, which takes place every year from 15 October to 30 November, Agrisud co-organized with the Institut de Géographie Tropicale (IGT) a screening-debate in Côte d'Ivoire entitled "Promoting sustainable family farming: concrete actions!"
35 master students at the University Félix Houphouët-Boigny of Abidjan actively participated in this event, which was an opportunity for some of them to present the work they conducted with Agrisud on the PROFIT project (Promotion of territorialized agricultural sectors).
Sustainable family farming in Côte d'Ivoire and elsewhere
Côte d'Ivoire is an agricultural country based largely on export agriculture. Food-producing agriculture, on the other hand, is faced with several problems: lack of supervision and structuring, challenges related to climate change, pressure and insecurity of land tenure, etc. The development of sustainable food-producing agriculture, through the strengthening of family farms, the structuring of sectors and support for territorial dynamics, is therefore a major challenge to ensure the country's food security.
In order to raise awareness of possible actions in this direction, two capitalization films produced by Agrisud were shown. One on sustainable agriculture and environmental protection in Vietnam, the other on multi-actor collaboration and agricultural development in Senegal.
The students were struck by the climatic difficulties faced by the producers living in the Hoàng Liên National Park in Vietnam. They were able to make the connection with the climatic hazards in Côte d'Ivoire, such as floods or sometimes drought, which have become more frequent in recent years.
They were also able to see the diversity of actors that need to be mobilized to remove the obstacles encountered by farms, as for access to water in Senegal. This example particularly echoed their own context in the Autonomous District of Abidjan, which is marked by strong land pressure linked to the urbanization of the city of Abidjan, which considerably reduces the space dedicated to agriculture.
Actions implemented in the Autonomous District of Abidjan
The PROFIT project, implemented by Agrisud and its partners in the Autonomous District of Abidjan, aims to develop family farming and the attiéké sector on the outskirts of Abidjan.
Camille MOULENE, representative of Agrisud in Côte d'Ivoire, presented the partnership with IGT and then two of the students, Irie Ferdinand DJE Bi and Ayenon Jean-Junior Adon YAPO presented the work of elaboration of the Agricultural Development Plan of the village of Adattié to which they contributed within the framework of the project PROFIT.
It is an action plan based on a participatory territorial diagnosis that establishes the strategic orientations and priority actions to be carried out in the village to preserve and enhance sustainable agriculture. The work is carried out by a village committee representing the different communities of the village, with the support of Agrisud, the IGT and the Autonomous District of Abidjan.
The debate with the students was very rich, and they were particularly curious to know how land issues were dealt with. The discussions made it possible to better explain the territorial approach as a means of responding to issues that go beyond farms, such as access to land or access to markets. It is therefore necessary to work on multi-actor and multi-sector projects because the issues are cross-cutting.
The students present showed a keen interest in the chosen subject and were able to appreciate the role they have to play in the development of sustainable agricultural and food systems in Côte d'Ivoire. Indeed, agricultural development projects must include a territorial approach that mobilizes various skills. In the case of the elaboration of the Agricultural Development Plan, cartography, surveys and analysis of the relationship between man and his space were necessary, subjects that are at the heart of the studies at the Institute of Tropical Geography.
Discover the other Agrisud events of the Festival ALIMENTERRE :
