Bazoumana Koulibaly, Senior Scientist, INERA, Burkina Faso, took part in the XXI Infopoverty World Conference during the Third Session from which this interview is extracted.
Can you show us the developments of Ewa-Belt Project in Burkina Faso?
Burkina Faso is the main agricultural country were about 82% of population is involved in farming activities and in the agricultural sector, they contribute for 35% of the country's gross domestic product. Agricultural production is characterized by a low level of access to agricultural input and mechanization. This is a disadvantaged for Miller, Maize and cotton production which are used for family foods and as cash crop (cotton).
To meet the high food demand due to increase in population and soil degradation, there is high pressure on natural resources in Burkina Faso condition. The importance of these problems recommends accurate information on key parameters of farmingsystem for their sustainability, which is sometimes affected by relevant economic aspects. As contribution to food security and farming systems sustainability, the EWA-BELT project is promoting traditional and innovative agricultural practices, improvement of crops and food protection as well as technology-related instruments. EWA-BELT project will also contribute in the promotion of neglected and underutilized species (NUS) for food diversification and soil integrated fertility management for achieving food security goals and the improvement of household income for small farmers.