Boletim

An exciting milestone:
Launch of Access Agriculture Arabic-language platform

Access Agriculture is delighted to announce the launch of its Arabic-language platform to better serve its Arabic-speaking community. This will expand its reach and resources, especially to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, which is extremely vulnerable to climate change.

The launch of the Arabic platform marks a significant step for Access Agriculture making it more accessible to millions of Arabic-speaking agricultural practitioners. This move breaks the language barriers that prevented easy access to the wealth of information on the platform.

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NEWS

Youths in Madagascar empowered with digital and entrepreneurial skills

Twelve participants from Madagascar, including four newly recruited Entrepreneurs for Rural Access (ERAs) team members, took part in a 3-day programme designed to enhance their skills in providing agricultural extension and rural advisory services using digital tools. The programme was organised as part of the GIZ-funded Knowledge Centre for Organic Agriculture in Africa (KCOA) initiative, 20-22 February 2024, in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

The four ERA teams were selected through the Access Agriculture’s Young Entrepreneur Challenge Fund programme which helps identify, equip and coach young entrepreneurs who provide farming communities with relevant training videos in local languages using a solar-powered smart projector.

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Developing strategies for young entrepreneurs’ business growth in South Africa

The Entrepreneur for Rural Access (ERAs) in South Africa gathered together with Vinjeru Mlenga, Entrepreneur Coach for Southern Africa, on 29 February 2024 in Polokwane, Limpopo province, South Africa, to discuss strategies and plans for ERAs’ business growth relating to screening of farmer-training videos using the smart projector.

The specific objectives of the meeting were to develop strategies for business growth, introduce the coaching toolbox modules to ERAs, specifically the business plan module, and discuss the ERAs’ challenges and find solutions together. Read more ...

DONATE

Your support needed to empower the changemakers

We gratefully acknowledge the generous support of our donors, as two of the six young women entrepreneurs whom our campaign targets, have successfully embarked on their journey to bring knowledge to other women of their farming communities.

Please be one of the wonderful people to make a donation at GlobalGiving and share this opportunity with your friends.
Help us raise funds for our current campaign!

New videos added in February

Editor's choice of video

Community seed banks

Because of our seed bank, we have native varieties again. By using indigenous seed our costs have reduced as we can grow and keep our own seed. So, we don’t have to depend on the market. In our seed bank, we also train farmers how to grow crops organically, free from chemicals. We train farmers how they can be self-reliant, how to keep the environment healthy, and how our body will be healthy by eating traditional varieties.

English | Bangla | French | Hindi | Bisaya / Cebuano | Kannada | Marathi |
Oriya | Tagalog

FROM OUR CHANGEMAKERS

ERAs@work!

Entrepreneurs for Rural Access (ERAs) at work in Eastern and Southern Africa

Kenya

• Elphas Masanga, associated with GIZ-funded KCOA project, is a trainer, who is passionately interested in biodiversity conservation and environmental protection. In February, he screened five videos related to biodiversity and agroecology to 37 participants, including 23 women, at Slow Food Kenya Office. The videos featured were Farmers' rights to seed: experiences from Malawi, Farmers' rights to seed: experiences from Guatemala, Community seed banks, Creating agroecological markets and How to sell ecological food. (See photos in Access Agriculture Flickr)

Malawi

• Brian Thafale Anafi, ERA associated with the USAID-funded SANE project, was featured in an article titled ‘Agriculture is more than culture or tradition’ in Food4Transformation (F4T) newsletter. The article highlighted Brian’s venture into agribusiness, which has made an important impact on young people in Malawi. He is the co-founder of Zafarm Ltd. through which he sells peanut butter, sausages and various spices. Read more ...

• Pemphero Kumbani, ERA associated with GIZ-funded KCOA project, is the co-founder of AquaLink Services and ERA from Malawi, showed videos on fish farming to farmer youth clubs in Mchinji, Central Region of Malawi. AquaLink seeks to become a leading aquaculture input and advisory service provider in Malawi. (See photos in Access Agriculture Flickr)

• Sam Benedicto Chigamphu, ERA associated with GIZ-funded KCOA project, who has strong experience in education and extension and is keen to help rural youth and women, organised two training sessions with videos for 98 participants, including 21 women, in Kaphuka, Central Region of Malawi. The videos shown included Human urine as fertilizer, Harvesting and storing soya bean seed, Storing and managing maize in a warehouse, Housing for pigs and Insect nets in seedbeds. (See photos in Access Agriculture Flickr)

Rwanda

• Sylvestre Jackson Karara, ERA associated with KCOA project, co-founder of Uruhimbi Kageyo Cooperative (UKC), in Gicumbi, Northern Province, Rwanda, organised a training programme for 35 participants with videos on fodder production. UKC specialises in training of farmers on hydroponic fodder for their animals. (See photos in Access Agriculture Flickr)

Uganda

• Rebecca Akullu, ERA associated with GIZ-funded KCOA project, who is Founder of the Network for Women in Action (NEWA) and Co-Director of the Adyaka Rural Youth Development Initiative (ARYODI), was highlighted by the U.S. Embassy in Uganda for her work on helping vulnerable teenage mothers by training them in beekeeping and other artisan skills. Read more ...

• Umar Bashir Ochen, ERA associated with FAO FFS project, who is the technical advisor for the Slow Food Youth Network in Uganda, conducted a training session on agroforestry using the video SLM08 Parkland agroforestry for 28 participants in Kotido municipality, Northern Uganda. (See photos in Access Agriculture Facebook)

Zambia

• Susanna Phiri, ERA associated with GIZ KCOA project), who has keen interest in agriculture as well as in food and nutrition security, especially of young mothers, facilitated three training sessions using videos in Chewa and Bemba languages, for 57 participants, including 56 young women, in the Mt Makulu Clinic in Lusaka, Zambia. The videos shown included Conserving bean leaf vegetables, Making mango crisps and Making a vermicompost bed.

Ambassadors in Action

Ambassadors in Action

In February, Grace Musimami, Access Agriculture Ambassador for Uganda and Ezra Masolaki, Entrepreneur coach for East Africa, met with Dr Gudula Basaza, Managing Director and Founder of Gudie Leisure Farm, which is helping over 20,000 smallholders to become commercial farmers. They explained to her Access Agriculture’s work and the ERA model and showed her the smart projector. Dr Basaza was awarded the Entrepreneur of the Year in the field of Agribusiness in 2023.

BLOG POSTS

The problem with water hyacinth

In the twentieth century, gardeners innocently spread the water hyacinth to Asia, Africa and elsewhere. Water hyacinth has striking blue flowers and was used to adorn ornamental fountains. But it escaped and was soon clogging lakes, ponds and municipal water supplies.

Water hyacinth is such a survivor that you can drain ponds, let the plants dry out and burn them – then watch them grow again when the pond is refilled. It’s not surprising that control options are limited, particularly in open water, such as lakes and rivers.

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MEET OUR AMBASSADOR

Martha Kyokuhaire

Martha Kyokuhaire is a self-motivated farm manager at Kinano Organic Farm located in Luweero district in Uganda. As a mitigation measure to COVID-19 after-effects, her team sells vegetables produced on the farm via an online shop, Organo Basket. She holds a BSc (Hons) Degree in Agriculture from Makerere University. In 2018, she participated in an International Training Course on Organic Agriculture (ITCOA) conducted by Go Organic in Eastern Uganda. She is a business partner and Agronomist at Farmer Investment Opportunities and Market (FIOM) Uganda, an Agribusiness consultancy and marketing company. Martha is also a focal point person for the Youth Agri-Investment Club (YAIC) project implemented by FIOM Uganda. YAIC project aims at inspiring and supporting the youth to engage in profitable farming businesses that conserve the environment. Martha has been using Access Agriculture videos to train farm workers on how to make vermicompost, among other practices. She is passionate about organic farming and sustainable development.