by Irvine Syazyombo
People all over the globe strive every day in search of money. The world knows that money is the answer to most problems.
With money people can secure shelter, put food on the table and buy clothes. However in Africa the formula of making money has been elusive.
The continent is sinking into more and more poverty despite waterfalls of aid and loans from the first world.
According to the current Foundations For Farming (FFF) newsletter, in the past fifty years, Africa has received over $2000 billion aid yet the number of poor people is growing.
FFF which was founded in Zimbabwe a few years ago said in a newsletter that while world grain production has been increasing, Africa’s production has been stagnant.
The newsletter shows in a table that in 1961, the USA produced 4.5 tons per hectare before recording 10 tons per hectare in 2005.
The NGO which has tentacles in several Southern African countries also said Asia in the same period increased production from 2 to 4.5 tons per hectare.
The newsletter observed that in the same period, Africa was generally stagnant at 1 ton per hectare while Zimbabwe allegedly plunged from 1.5 to 0.5 per hectare.
The newsletter attributed Africa’s stagnation to the use of what it described as traditional farming methods which extract from the soil without protecting the natural resource.
“With the use of traditional methods Africa has seen a decrease in yields and an escalation of costs over many years…ploughed land is washed away and only a small amount of the available moisture is retained,” says the publication.
The newsletter said FFF had come up with principles to conserve the and ensure high yield.
The publication said according to the principles, there is no ploughing and that only holes are dug with a hoe.
The newsletter said on clearing land, trees are cut off at the roots , there is no burning and that purposeful mulching reduces soil erosion and retains ground moisture for plants.
“This greatly reduces soil erosion and captures and transfers the precious water effectively to the plants, reducing the risk from drought, pests and disease,” the publication further said.
“We have testimonies of farmers who, by adopting Foundations for Farming methods, have increased their yield over tenfold i.e. 0.3 tons to over 3 tons,” the newsletter further said.
The newsletter also advised farmers to plan, prepare well, be honest, honorable and start farming early in the rainy season.
The newsletter also advised farmers to utilize opportunities, be faithful and to conserve soil, sunlight, seed, nutrients, labor, and energy.
The advice from the FFF needs to be taken seriously if Africa is to pull itself out of poverty .With business as usual mentality, the continent will continue to sink into abject poverty despite cascades of international aid.