Just One Fish Farming Success Story
61-year-old Abou Baker has a family of 14 to support on his small farm in an area burdened by water shortage, high production prices, and poor marketing. With NEF support, he's learned fish famring. "This pond is easy to manage. It does not require much work and generates $400-500 on average each season, as well as providing fish for my family and my neighbors all year round," he says. Last November, a traditional down-season, the family earned $700 fish farming, an increase of about 15-20%.
May Look Simple But....
Proper fish farming requires 3 basics; the Jordan Valley meets them all. Temperatures permit growing summer crops into spring and fall. It's the only place on earth where crops can grow in winter without greenhousing. Water level cannot go below one meter, otherwise fish ponds get too warm and fish die. Also okay since government-maintained reservoirs provide irigation water to farmers twice weekly. Most important are well-managed fish farms, which NEF training assures.
Attracting orphans off the streets, into school
Like the legendary Pied Piper of Hamelin--only with the lure of delicious desert dates, Mohamed El-Tayeb ventures into the dusty streets of his neighborhood of Dar-al-Salam-Taiwidat on the outskirts of Sudan's capital Khartoum. This is his way of attracting boys and girls, mostly orphans, off the streets, into school, and away from a gloomy future at best.
A community effort
From its beginnings six years ago, the Tagwa Centre school has been a community effort the moment Mr. El-Tayeb went to the community's Popular Committee on which he serves, and presented his idea. It's their only school and a community enterprise, hand-made brick by brick, and built with local labor provided freely. That accounts for the community's evident sense of ownership, pride, dignity.
The students
Total school enrollment is 250, most under 10 years of age. Tuition is $5 a year, plus $20 for books and supplies. There are eight volunteer teachers, usually college students receiving a stipend of $25 a month.
