Faces of the Green Revolution

Maimouna Coulibaly

Thanks to the ingenuity and persistence of one Malian woman, Maimouna Coulibably, and AGRA support to allow local, African entrepreneurs a chance to gain expertise in the highly specialized field of seed production and marketing, for the first time ever, poor farmers in Mali can now purchase quality seeds for local food crops. Her independent, private seed company, Faso Kabo, has brought more than 300 metric tons of improved seeds to smallholder farmers so they can achieve high yield crops in key foods such as maize, sorghum, cowpea, rice and vegetables. This is helping to address food security in Africa. 

Mujawamariya Gasirida

Gasirida has become a household name in bean growing highlands of Rwanda. Gasirida is not only the name of one of the varieties released in January 2009, but the name of a 52 year old mother of six living in a village in Northern Rwanda. Farmers named the variey after this woman who donated the seed to scientists at the national research station. Gasirida, the bean, is a unique variey that can yield five tonnes per hectare and has high marketability, selling almost double the price of other varieties. Farmers are breeders and best custodians of crop varieties. Through participatory breeding approaches, AGRA grantees are building on farmers' knowledge, which involves clearly identifying their needs and preferences to develop varieties that are relevant in different agro-ecologies.

Bino Teme

After Years of diligent work, Malian sorghum breeders led by Dr. Bino Teme, the director of Rural Economic Institute (IER), have finally broken the yield barrier of one of the country's most important food crops-sorghum. The hybrids-which stand to quadruple the harvest of this drought-hardy staple-will be released to farmers across Mali. Teme expects up to 50 per cent of farmers to adopt the new varieties within five years. Over the next year, the IER will train seed producers on the breeding techniques and carry out demonstrations to promote the seeds among farmers. AGRA supports the breeding efforts of the IER, extending a tradition of innovation at the institute.

Koptigei Widows Goup

In 2007, 24 women farmers came together to form the koptigei Widows Group and pool their meager earnings through an informal savings arrangement. Group leader Christine Chebii Ngogi tells how the women struggled to generate income as they faced a lack of capital and skill. But their subsistence farming received a boost from AGRA's partnerships with Cereal Growers Association (CGA), the world Food Program's Purchase for Progress (P4P) and equity Bank. Through those collaborations, the women received valuable crop production and business training, as well as financial backing, which eventually led them to win a competitive tender with P4P to deliver 250MT of maize worth 6 million Kenya shillings.

Annet Mubiru

As an agro-dealer in rural Uganda, Annet Mubiru is gratified when farmers benefit from her farm products and advice. One of the farmers she has helped is Sebulega John Bosco, who more than doubled the yield of beans on his diverse farm. Yet, many farmers still don't get the chance to work with well-stocked, well-informed agro-dealers like Mubiru. AGRA aims to train and certify 9,000 agro-dealers by 2011, increasing farmers' access to affordable inputs. AGRA is also making low-interest loans available to agro-dealers through credit guarantees, so they can fully stock their shelves, and to small-scale farmers so they can invest in their farm businesses. Then, like Sebulega, other farmers will be able to boost their yields and incomes. Farms can be small, sustainable and profitable.

Dinnah Kapiza

Dinnah Kapiza transformed her used clothing business into a full-line farming supply store in rural Malawi. Opened with an investment equivalent to just US$310, her agro-dealer shop now turns over US36,800 worth of farm supplies every year. Kapiza got her start with the assistance of AGRA grantee the Malawi Agrodealer Strengthening Program. It trains entrepreneurial men and women like Kapiza in business management and provides a steady supply of farm products. Today her shop serves about 600 smallholder farmers within a 15 kilometer radius, selling seeds, farm tools, crop protection products and fertilizer-and dispensing crucial advice. Kapiza is one of thousands of agro-dealers in eleven countries trained through AGRA support and now serving smallholder farmers.

Leldet

After three years of toil, Janey Leakey, a founding director of Leldet Seed Company in Nakuru,  Kenya, can rest assured that improved varieties of underutilized crops like pigeon pea, sorghum, soya beans, chick pea and ground nut will finally be approved for production by the Kenya Plant Health Inspection Services. Breeders have historically faced many financial and bureaucratic hurdles in getting new crop varieties certified, and in the hands of farmers.  But through an AGRA grant, Leldet has not only surmounted those hurdles, but also conducted more than 600 demonstrations to tens of thousands of farmers across Kenya.  Its sales of small seed packs -- matched to the size of farmer’s pocketbooks and acreage -- is raising yields and spurring demand for high quality, certified seed.  

Geoffrey Kananji

Bean farmers in Malawi have long battled with bruchid beetles which destroy  crops in storage waiting to be eaten or sold.  Geoffrey Kananji, Ph.D., National Research Coordinator for Legumes, Fibres and Oilseed crops in Malawi, has dedicated his research to developing bruchid-resistant bean varieties, a solution that would greatly help the country’s many smallholder farmers.  Kananji is also  inspiring a movement to actively involve farmers in the plant breeding and research process.   AGRA’s support of Kanaji and other African crop breeders has led to the release of dozens of pest- and disease-resistant crop varieties that are well adapted to their local environments.

Maria Andrade

Vitamin A deficiency is a leading cause of blindness, disease, and premature death for the world’s poor, affecting millions of children under age 5 and pregnant women across Africa. In Mozambique, an unusual sweet potato that is coloured orange due to its high content of Vitamin A is making a difference.  It's the brainchild of Maria Andrade, a researcher whose bright orange Toyota land cruiser is used as a mobile billboard for the many benefits of sweet potato. Maria has spent the last few years traveling throughout Mozambique and several other African countries encouraging people to grow and eat sweet potato and   developing markets processed goods like bread and chips which are not traditionally eaten in places like Mozambique, and promoting the crop as a replacement for expensive vitamin supplements for children in Africa.  

 Mildred M'mbasu

Mildred M’mbasu’s flourishing maize is a testament to a new farming practice in Majemo Village - the use of soil lime to counteract acidic soils.  Mildred is eager for her neighbors to take up the practice and proudly shows the results of this simple but effective technique.  Crops like beans, cassava and vegetables as well as maize are flourishing with the use of lime.  Now, lessons from their farms are spreading far and wide.  An initial pilot project is being scaled up to restore the soils and diversify farming for 50,000 farmers in the region.  It is the result of a broad program involving farmers, agro-dealers, researchers, two local fertilizer companies, a local bank, civil society and AGRA.

Paulo Ng'ondola

Paulo Ng’ondola grows maize and groundnuts and raises chickens.  Not long ago, Paulo was a beneficiary of the government voucher system which provides subsidized seed and fertilizer to resource-poor farmers.  The system worked as it was meant to and today Paulo buys his own inputs and markets his surplus through the AGRA-supported “Supermarkets in the Air” program run by the Malawi Agricultural Commodity Exchange.  Paulo embraced new agricultural technologies—improved seed and better soil management—acquired from agro-dealer Dinnah Kapiza and now he owns a new house and holds a bank account. Paulo Ng’ondola, the 2008 winner of the Malawi National Achiever’s Award, demonstrates the indisputable role of persons with disabilities towards food security and economic stability in Africa.