The project aimed to promote methods of farming and breeding livestock that have a positive impact on the lives of local producers and on the environment. It planned to train small producers in new ecological approaches to farming, focussing on poultry breeding, gardening and bee keeping.
During the three years of the project, 3,037 small producers (including 1,430 women) were trained in new ecological approaches to farming, focussing on gardening, bee keeping and poultry breeding. Soap-making and improved fish farming methods were also included as income generating activities. Poultry breeding was the most lucrative activity; it enabled an 80% increase in the producers’ income. The project’s success lies in its holistic approach, which entails, for example, using faeces from the poultry and fish farming activities to fertilise the gardens, and favouring local products as poultry feed.
The Centre Ecologique Albert Schweitzer – Burkina Faso (CEAS-Burkina Faso) is a local NGO belonging to the Centre Ecologique Albert Schweitzer (CEAS), which has its international headquarters in Neuchatel (Switzerland). It strives to combine ecology and economy by developing technologies with little environmental impact.
Centre Ecologique Albert Schweizer (CEAS)
Population
19.1 million (2017)
Per Capita Income
USD 590/year (2017)
Poverty rate *
40% (2014)
Literacy rate
35% (2016)
Human Development Index
183rd country out of 189 countries (2018)
Following the popular uprising in October 2014, Burkina Faso democratically elected, in November 2015, its first civilian president since its independence. The country’s new political stability and fiscal and budgetary reforms have led to improvements in public finances; however, it remains one of the world’s poorest countries. Sustained efforts and investments have generated positive human development trends, although access to basic services remains an important concern due to poorly developed community-based services. Despite progress in gross primary school enrolment Burkina Faso has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world. Access to secondary education remains low (13%), as is the quality of the system.
Sources: World Food Program, UNICEF, World Bank, 2016 Human Development Report, Human Development Indices and Indicators (2018 Statistical Update)
*The percentage of the population living below the national poverty line.