Integrated Agrotourism for Food Security and Economic Empowerment (AFSE)

 

ECOWOODS FARM

Tel. +256 783403792 Email ecowoods2023@gmail.com

 

ECOWOODS FARM to be developed as an Agrotourism site with a lot of love and dedication, to provide people with a place where they may have peace and relaxation from city life. The ECOWOODS is set on beautiful afforested land and organic Farm where you are guaranteed to enjoy and appreciate the pure, calm and beautiful & green days of your life on Mother Earth.

I.      INTRODUCTION

Agrotourism for Food Security and Economic Empowerment (AFSE) is a project of ECOWOODS FARM with a focus on climate smart agriculture as an approach that helps guide actions to transform Agri food systems gearing towards green and climate resilient practices. 

The project shall involve both individuals and households with a closer look at livelihood programs.

Targeting People living in extreme poverty struggling to earn enough to ensure that their families have enough to eat, get adequate health care and an education for children. Our livelihoods programs aim to give the beneficiaries tools to ensure they are able to earn a sustainable living, helping them to learn new skills, improve the productivity and nutritional value of their crops and set up small businesses to generate more income.

Our ultimate aim is to move from 'gender-sensitive' to 'gender-transformative' on all programs. This means working with individuals and households at community level to develop programs that transform the root causes of gender inequality at many layers of society – from the individual to the household and community.

ECOWOODS FARM is partnering with the Community Development Office of Kinyamaseke to provide technical support and capacity building to our staff on approaches to gender transformation.

 

II.    Goal: To unlock the potential of smallholder urban Farmers for food security, enabling value chain, value addition and services.

III.  Objectives:

1) Having personal or household financial means to acquire food for an adequate diet at a level to ensure that satisfaction of other basic needs are not threatened or compromised; and that adequate food is accessible to everyone, including vulnerable individuals and groups.

 

2) Having a quantity and quality of food sufficient to satisfy the dietary needs of individuals, free from adverse substances and acceptable within a given culture, supplied through domestic production or imports;

 

3)  Having an adequate diet, clean water, sanitation and health care to reach a state of nutritional well-being where all physiological needs are met.

 

4) Reducing and/or removing greenhouse gas emission, where possible.

 

IV.    Our approach to Climate Smart Agriculture techniques

The ECOWOODS FARM main techniques and areas of focus for Climate Smart Agriculture are:

1. Conservation Agriculture

Conservation agriculture is a soil management practice based on three principles: crop rotation, minimal tillage, and mulching and soil cover. In other words, it involves planting seeds in small holes (instead of furrows), using the stalks from last year’s crops to cover the ground, and alternately setting plants like legumes to replenish the nutrients sucked out of the soil by a crop like maize. We shall also introduce the use of organic fertilizers. In the end, this preserves fertility. For busy women, it also means less labor during the planting season and a new supply of alternative crops which just happen to be a good source of nutrition for young children.

Our approach is different in the way women lived then and now. Women used to depend on men to do everything. But now women are going to be empowered to be independent. So that they are able to support their own needs.

 

2. Improved crop variety & diversification

Diversifying crops is, as mentioned above, a great way to not only diversify a family’s diet, but also gives the soil some nutritional benefits. But we can also improve the quality of the crops already being planted. 

To increase harvest yields and make Farmers more resistant to the effects of climate change, we shall focus on crop varieties that have improved traits, such as tolerance to crop disease or shorter growth cycles. We shall use short-cycle crops in response to natural disasters, when crops are washed away between planting and harvest. These crops are also more drought resistant since they mature early. 

3. Soil & water management

Another tried-and-true climate smart Agriculture (CSA) method uses a special hole and pit-digging methods, or, on the opposite end of the spectrum, raised mounds of earth, to collect, diverts, or slows down the flow of water during seasonal rainfalls. These simple interventions can reduce water loss as well as soil erosion. By 'hacking' the ground (in some cases literally), we can keep moisture in the soil for longer periods of time, ultimately increasing harvests in dry lands.

4. Irrigation

Likewise, in the off-season we can extend the use of water for livestock and crops. In Somaliland, this method was developed by Farmers to collect rainfall with a plastic-lined basin. This has allowed Farmers to successfully grow in the off-season. 

Previously in Nepal, the WASH program installed sprinklers that are used for irrigation, while in Kinyamaseke an easy and most abundant natural resources — the sunlight is available to run solar-powered pump systems. These shall allow families to thrive, nutritionally and financially, with high-value vegetable crops.

5. Agroforestry

In consideration of the landscape and clean energy approach, some fruit and forest trees will be added on every Farmer land to make a big difference in fruit production and clean air supply.

Agroforestry shall involve planting trees and shrubs on gardens. Depending on the species and the goals, this can improve soil fertility and stability, produce firewood, and grow new crops like fruits and medicinal plants. 

6. Post-Harvest Management

The world currently produces enough food to feed all of its inhabitants, but crop loss and spoilage is one of the main causes of food insecurity. As such, we shall work with Farmers to improve harvesting techniques, and the storage, handling, transportation, processing, and packaging of their crops. 

The goal with this is to reduce crop losses and spoilage at each step of the supply chain, which ultimately improves food security. We shall promote the use of hermetic bags and drums for transporting crop harvests. These containers minimise oxygen in the crops, which reduces food loss due to insects or fungi. 

We shall encourage beneficiaries to participate in Farmer Field Schools to learn new crops and growing methods, so that they improve yields significantly and increase family income.

7. SUMMARY

ECOWOODS FARM shall encourage the Farmer Field School to offer enough Techniques and tools to guarantee the success of Climate Smart Agriculture.

We believe that, True empowerment in agriculture happens when Farmers have the skills, knowledge, and well-being to evaluate and make their own informed decisions about their Farming practices. 

This is why ECOWOODS FARM approach to CSA also focuses on extension programs that place education and knowledge-sharing in the hands of Farms. Generally, most techniques don’t need to be followed to the letter, and we encourage Farmers to conduct their own experiments at household level after taking part in experiments at ECOWOODS FARM. This is also a key way of making sure that this is something that they can continue without ECOWOODS COTTAGES continued support.

We are aware that Climate Smart Agriculture won’t 'fix' climate change. But will make life better for many of the families hit hardest by the climate crisis, giving them a simple and effective way of coping. Those who have learned the techniques passing them on to their neighbours — and there shall be no shortage of food and people who have seen the impact for themselves and want to replicate it.

8. ACTIVITIES

1) Fish Farming

2) Vegetable growing

3) Fruit tree planting

4) Black soldier fly

5) Banana plantation

6) Poultry keeping