* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Alima is in her fifties. She lives with her children and husband in a village called Molia around 37 miles from the centre of Tillaberi, in northwest of Niger. The harvest hasn’t been good this year and there isn’t enough to store in the family granary. The rains have been scarce and birds have spared nothing in her field.
However, because of child rights and community development organisation Plan International in Niger's support Alima has regained her smile. She is now growing vegetables in her back garden to supplement her family’s food and income.
Plan is supporting people, mostly women, living along the river Niger and dams built along its course to cultivate fruits and vegetables in the off-season for the major crops.
"I think I should have my first harvest soon. The vegetables will allow me to have provisions at home, and I will also be able to help my relatives and friends in need. If I still have a small quantity left, I can sell them and buy cereals with the proceeds and so try to improve my working conditions," says Alima.She has planted lettuce, carrots, cabbage, corn and potatoes in her garden.
This particular project benefits about 2,000 women farmers, often helped by their husbands and other family members, in 20 villages in Niger. For part of the year, water needed for cultivation can be drawn from the river and Plan Niger has provided seeds and motorised pumps to facilitate access to water as well as agricultural expertise.
To irrigate their crops, Alima and the other women who are sharing a common garden, take water from a pond located just 100 meters away. A dam, located near the gardens, retains the water that helps the women in the dry season.
The World Food Summit of 1996, defined food security as existing when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.
“Women are important as food producers, managers of natural resources, income earners and caretakers of Household food security. Increased production of fruit, vegetables, would in part make these foods affordable to the poor and increase their protein, vitamin and mineral intake. Consumption of fruits and vegetables is negligible in the Sahelian zone,” said Berenger Berehoudougou, Disaster Risk Manager for Plan in West Africa.
“Food and nutrition education plays a vital role in promoting food security, as it is especially important for poor households to make optimal use of local foods and practice healthy eating patterns. This is what Plan is doing by raising awareness among mothers of children to understand the good health care and by training them on feeding practices for children.” he concluded
Producing food of greater quantity and diversity to ensure that all population groups, have secure access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food all year round continues to be a major issue, especially in the Sahel, taking into account climate change and water stress.
"We take turns to fetch water for our gardens. Our concern is that the pond will soon dry out but we hold out hope and we use the precious water as best as we can,” Alima said.
