Energy and Environment

Food Security & Livestock Development

This category with a more sectoral orientation concerns support to agricultural or agro-pastoral production. In general these projects were formulated to respond to problems of areas with a significant productive potential, but subject to degradation, reduction of soil fertility and falling productivity due to over- exploitation of the available resources. The agricultural projects included a variety of interventions mainly on an institutional level. Projects focussed on seed multiplication, manufacture of agricultural tools and equipment, pre and post harvest crop protection, storage facilities, hydrological and agro-meteorological capacity building, development of agricultural statistics and agricultural planning in general. Similarly, projects in livestock development covered pasture development, rangeland management and rehabilitation, animal health protection and other livestock services, livestock management, including camel management and fisheries.

By improving techniques, agro-pastoral practices, the diversification of the production, and institutional strengthening of related services, these projects contributed to reducing the vulnerability of the population to climatic variations and to improve food security. Compared to other project categories UNSO's involvement in this area was relatively limited and has essentially complemented efforts in areas most relevant to combating desertification.

The experiences with these projects focussing essentially on the agricultural and agro-pastoral environment corroborate those in forestry and sand dune fixation. Projects need to converge with the immediate needs of the rural populations in terms of production and income. The institutional framework and the related capacities need to be supportive. The project approach has thus changed over time to reflect foremost the interests of the target groups by integrating factors for securing agro-pastoral production and income in the overall framework of activities to combat desertification.

The following projects may illustrate some of the interventions in this category:

• Karamoja Women's Project
  (UGA/91/X02), Uganda
  
  
• Développement agro-sylvo-pastoral dans la Préfecture de Kanem
  (CHD/89/X03), Chad
  
  
• Approvisionnement en semences pour le développement agro- sylvo-pastoral et la protection de l'environnement
  (DJI/88/X01), République du Djibouti
  
  
• Aménagement des terres semi-arides et des forêts naturelles
  (NER/87/X04), République du Niger
  
  
• Rangeland Development and Protection of Land Around Livestock Watering Points at Niamina, Dankunku and Niamina West
  (GAM/82/X03 & GAM/86/X06), The Gambia
  
  
• Plantations d'arbres à buts multiples
  (BEN/82/X01), République du Bénin