The Gambia is a country full of farmers. But most Gambians see farming as a necessity that brings food, not as a potential business and career. Many farmers do sell their produce, but competition is high because there is little variety in the products sold. A project that is trying to change this mindset and diversify the market is MyFarm, an educational farm that promotes the use of alternative, environmentally conscious agricultural techniques in The Gambia. These techniques can improve food security for Gambians, but MyFarm’s main goal is to promote agriculture as a potential business. MyFarm is run by a non-profit organization called Africa Startup Gambia, whose mission is to improve livelihoods in The Gambia by promoting entrepreneurship, the use of innovative agricultural techniques and environmental protection.
Alternative agricultural techniques at MyFarm
MyFarm is located in Sukutu where the project has been active since 2011 when two older projects, a farm and an educational project, merged. The 2.5 hectare site is packed with innovative and environmentally conscious agricultural technologies that can diversify agriculture in The Gambia. The biodigester shows how pig manure and rotten mangoes can be turned into biogas while solar cookers and dryers show how the sun’s heat can be utilized in food processing. Meanwhile, wood is turned into charcoal that is then used as fertilizer that helps the soil retain moisture. The goal is to show that innovation and alternative techniques can lead to income by adding value to produce.
MyFarm also demonstrates different types of hydroponic systems. These systems don’t require soil and so they can be used to grow food even without land or a garden, for example in the city. Instead of soil, nutrients come from a solution of mineral nutrients that is applied regularly. Something is needed to hold the plant and one of the examples at MyFarm is groundnut shells, which are plentiful in The Gambia where groundnuts are a staple food.
Getting more Gambian to visit the site is one of the project’s challenges. Locals are interested in the techniques once they see them but they don’t look for them and they don’t enter the site just because the sign on the highway aroused their interest. One solution to this challenge is MyFarm on Wheels, a truck that goes to villages and brings technologies like solar cookers and hydroponics to the villages where people can see and try them.
Changing mindsets about farming through education
The biggest challenge is changing people’s mindsets. Gambians see farming as something only poor people do, and hence they are reluctant to do farm work. People want to work in offices, but there are very few office jobs in The Gambia. Unemployment is high, especially among the youth, but a large garden next door to MyFarm still has trouble finding labourers. Instead of farm work, many would rather do nothing and live off of money sent by a brother working in Europe.
There are few jobs in The Gambia but there are many entrepreneurs. If you go out in any Gambian town, you will see people selling all kinds of things in the markets and streets. There are also many people selling food products but there is little variety and competition is high when many people sell the same products. Processing food into a larger variety of products would reduce competition and add value, and it could easily fit into this culture of entrepreneurship if people would understand the potential. MyFarm aims to show Gambians this potential of farming as a business through its educational programs that target different groups, including women, children and youth.
One of MyFarm’s educational programs is business training for 20-35-year-old youths who lack education. These courses include both agricultural training and environmental awareness. Business skills are a central part of the course, and the youths are taught how to go from seed to business. By the end of the training the youths should know how to grow and process food and how to add value to produce in order to make a profit.
The easiest way to change mindsets is through children. MyFarm offers alternative education to 7-15-year-old students who attend classes on the farm either before or after regular school. The focus is on learning by doing with older students helping the younger ones. Younger children learn primarily through games and play tools, while older students learn through action and helping out with farm activities.
It is impossible to define how many people a project like MyFarm has helped or how many entrepreneurs it has created. At the end of the day, giving people skills is not enough if there is no motivation to use the skills. What MyFarm is doing is planting ideas in people’s mind. Even many years later, someone could remember these skills and come up with an idea how to use them. It is up to the people themselves to take the step to change their lives.