Train Primary Teachers in Conservation Agriculture

Following up on the schools progress after the last visit conducted in November 2015, the FfF team travelled to St Michaels and St Johns in February and March 2016 to monitor the state of the crop, plots and the compost pile. The visits were also meant to support the teachers through encouragement and advice in the areas they were struggling with and to assess the amazing results of the adoption of CA during times of drought.

St Johns Primary school

The visits to St Johns Primary school in November 2015 showed very promising results as their two plots had been well weeded and mulched. The February visit saw a definite improvement as the teachers managed to plant their plots even though because of the harsh climatic conditions some areas still needed some improvement. It was very encouraging to see how the Headmaster had begun to show his support of the program by buying a fence to cover the 39m x 16m plot.

The March visit assessed the further progress that had been made by the teachers and their pupils in addressing the areas that needed attention. The results showed that they had made improvement in maintaining their fields and it is also clear that the teachers made an effort to water their demonstration plot using containers. As for the state of the teacher’s personal plots as well as the quality of their crop they did well with room for some improvement when it comes to mulching and weeding: nevertheless it was evident how the teacher’s plots stood out in an area where achieving a good harvest is challenging.

St Michaels Primary School

In November the teachers were very well coordinated and did very good in their plots. The school was very fortunate to have a reliable source of water which ensures a good yield: the crops had emerged and seemed to be growing quite well and this could be used as a learning example for their pupils. The February visit also showed evidence that the school is doing very well in terms of plot and crop management. In November the maize had a 90% germination rate, therefore continuous encouragement to the teachers was crucial to ensure that the plots continued to be monitored up until harvest. One of the teachers gave a testimony of how other staff members at the school are admiring their crops: this increased the number of adopters at the school – now at 10 between the teachers and administration staff – and even within the community.

In March the team assessed whether the areas the teachers were asked to improve on had been attended to: it has been found that the maize crops looked very healthy and well maintained. The major challenge the teachers encountered was that of the community stealing the maize cobs because they were the only crops that had done well in the area.

Please support this project to help the teachers and children of St Michaels and St Johns to flourish in their ability to get better crop yields for their families!