Women's Community Gardens in Niger

 Sustainable food – Sustainable income – Sustainable lives.

Climate change increases variability in rainfall, resulting in extreme droughts and floods. This variability significantly impacts Niger’s fragile soil, crop production, and access to potable water– exacerbating pre-existing issues in a country already prone to food crises.

• 80% of Niger is covered by the Sahara Desert and temperature increases are expected to be 1.5x higher than the rest of the world.
• Just 12% of the country’s soil is naturally suited for agriculture.
• 80% of families rely on crops for livelihood.
• 2 Million people are chronically food insecure; 4.5 Million are at risk of becoming food insecure.
• 64% of rural Nigeriens lack access to clean water and waterborne illness is the second biggest killer of children in Niger.

In the face of all these challenges, these gardens are more important now than ever.  RAIN’s Sustainable Agriculture program has provided access to safe drinking water through the installation of 22 wells; increased the variety of nutritious foods available to over 11,000 Nigeriens through the implementation of over 20 community gardens; and helped communities across Niger to turn subsistence agriculture into a business through 3-season drip irrigation and financial literacy.

Sustainable Agriculture Model

• Deep wells & 3-season drip irrigation ensures limited water resources are used efficiently to maximize harvest outputs.
• Introducing a healthy mix of grains, fruits & vegetables improves nutrition.
• Lessons on irrigation, diversification, crop rotation, etc increase yields. Lessons on basic business principles increase profits.

Program Reach

• Last year, 60 gardeners in 3 gardens produced 7160 lbs of harvest.
• Lessons on organic agriculture produced
• 3x the harvest of the previous year.
• Lessons on basic business principles produced 5x the profit of the previous year.

In the words of one participant:

Before RAIN came to our village, I didn't know anything about gardening. Now I know how to prepare the soil, transplant seedlings, and use drip irrigation with organic pesticide. I work to produce my own vegetables.

Across over 20 communities in the Sahel and the Sahara, Nigeriens are growing a better future.  Thank you for supporting RAIN in these efforts.