RCE Kano - 2022

Location

Nigeria
See map: Google Maps
NG
Agroforestry Training Centers for Improved Livelihoods and Environmental Conservation in Rural Nigeria
CSV
Basic Information
Title of project : 
Agroforestry Training Centers for Improved Livelihoods and Environmental Conservation in Rural Nigeria
Submitting RCE: 
RCE Kano
Contributing organization(s) : 
Centre for Renewable Energy and Action on Climate Change
Bayero University Kano
Focal point(s) and affiliation(s)
Name: 
Fatima Bukar Ali
Organizational Affiliation: 
Bayero University Kano
E-mail: 
ummie492@gmail.com
Format of project: 
Manuscript
Language of project: 
English/Hausa
Date of submission:
Update
Web link: 
https://creaccng.org/ambassade-de-france-au-nigeria-funded-agroforestry-project/
Does this project link to any education and/or sustainable development policy or policies?: 
Yes
National Gender Policy
At what level is the policy operating?: 
National
Geographical & Education Information
Region: 
Africa and Middle East
Country: 
Nigeria
Location(s): 
Sokoto, Nigeria
Address of focal point institution for project: 
Suite 37, Zamfara Plaza, behind Fidelity Bank,
Sokoto Road, Gusau. Zamfara State, Nigeria
Ecosystem(s):
Agricultural, Dryland, Forest
Target Audience:
Community, Youth (Informal)
Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area : 
The main economic activities of the villages are herders and they also engage in subsistent farming, cultivating crops such as corn, cassava and millet during rainy season while they cultivate onions and pepper during dry season. The nearest market is in Sokoto town where they carry their produce to town, they transport their produced on motorcycles and sometimes the produced are transported in cars. However, due to lack of financial literacy, the farmers are being shortchanged or cheated which this project tend to addressed.

The Dundaye area has witnessed significant surge in women led farmers recently, cultivating onions, pepper, and okro. The villages have been practicing dry season farming for hundreds of years in an unskillful method according to the Head of the Association of Dry Season Farmers in Sokoto.
Description of sustainable development challenge(s) in the area the project addresses: 
The over 17,000 people of Dundaye village of Rabah Local Government in Sokoto State were totally cut off from the outside world, they were forced to vulnerable situations such as food insecurity and loss of livelihood, this has caused an increase in multi dimensional poverty in the village which equally resulted to herders farmers unending conflicts.

People of Dundaye have no alternative to cooking fuel which led to habitat destruction; people resort to felling down of native trees that those birds such as vultures and pied crow hang on to lay their eggs and raise their younger ones. Many of these birds went extinct in northern Nigeria due to disappearance of these native trees such as Vitellaria-paradoxa, Balanites-aegyptiaca, Diospyros-mespiliformis, and Acacia nilotica. These trees serve as source of food security and income to many people in villages.
Contents
Status: 
Completed
Period: 
April, 2022
Rationale: 
Through our Agroforestry Training Centre, women’s group participated in a six months training program and were provided with tree planting equipment. Executive members from each village participated in 6 hours of training on organic farming over six days period and were provided with agricultural tools to support the group members. It is expected that these Executives that received training to step it down to their group members, to share what they have learnt so that all farmers in the villages can apply organic farming skills.

Finally, groups were offered with materials to construct tree propagators to improve the current low local supply. The groups will sell propagators to their community to increase revenue. They will also supply propagators to group members, as the trees grown will generate a sustainable income since produce of fruit trees are in high demands locally.
Objectives: 
Expected effects/changes include:
1. Reduce poverty and increase socio-economic activities of the rural populace
2. Increase access to agroforestry, organic farming and financial literacy
3. Reduction of air pollution due to fossil fuel consumption and improvement of air quality.
4. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
5. Socio-economic and gender-sensitive development impacts.
6. Increased socio-economic activities for farmers.
7. Improvement of the health and hygiene conditions of local populations.
8. Improvement of the living conditions and comfort of local populations.
9. Better conservation of ecosystem and food products.
10. Promote use of terrestrial ecosystems, manage forests sustainably, restore native trees, drought, and halt land degradation and also halt biodiversity loss.
11. Improvement of household income levels and creation of income-generating activities;
12. Opportunity for local people to benefit from capacity building actions.
13. Inclusion of all gender and youth will improve livelihoods and other development benefits
Activities and/or practices employed: 
The solar irrigation system installed is located in a strategic place at the Dundaye area and it connects farms in the villages, the solar submersible water pumping machine is providing 12,000 liters of water daily and a water reticulation system that connect farm lands and tree orchards were established.

Solar PV system helps restore indigenous trees through tree propagation which are resilient to climate change and bio-intensive food production to restore, protect and promote use of surface-dwelling ecosystems, manage farmlands sustainably, combat desertification, drought, and halt land degradation and also halt biodiversity loss as well as better conservation of ecosystem and food products.

The number of trees planted will help absorb thousands of kilograms of CO2.
Size of academic audience: 
565
Results: 
- Number of 565 women, youth and disabled trained on agroforestry, and home gardening.
- Substantially increase afforestation; reforestation of the villages’ degraded lands.
- Numbers of native/fruit- producing trees planted to improve biodiversity and conservation
- Numbers of economically excluded disabled people engage in backyard/home farming
- The degree of soil regenerated quickly to improve food security and mitigate climate change
- Numbers of degraded natural habitats reduced, halt the loss of biodiversity, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species in the area by 40%.
- Provide 12,000 liters of clean water every 6 hours as the solar submersible auto refills its tank.
- Fruits producing trees help stunted children, increase their health and wellbeing
- 10,000 numbers of trees planned to plant every year taking into account nature conservation and wildlife-needs through tree propagation.
Lessons learned: 
By assuming 100% ownership of the project, the local communities tend to protect the equipment. Sustainability of the project is of paramount important that is why we established Village’s Elders Committee to be the overall managers of the project, the community made sure that security of the project equipment is guaranteed.

There are also opportunities for the project to be extended and implemented in other effected areas especially in the Sahel and other sub Saharan African countries at large, to shift thinking and engage the locals to take actions that will help reverse desertification and mitigate climate change.
Key messages: 
Rural communities are the best actors to tackle climate change through the Agroforestry Training Centers of this nature, it enhances critical thinking, improve their immediate environment, encouraged sustainability paradigm.
Relationship to other RCE activities: 
We will work with RCEs of Zaria to scale up the project in their respective RCEs.
Funding: 
Centre for Renewable Energy and Action on Climate Change and RCE Kano received grant funding from French Embassy in Nigeria to carry out the project.

Pictures:

File Name Caption for picture Photo Credit
Image icon Agroforestry Training Center.jpg (217.06 KB) The Agroforestry Training Centre CREACC-NG
Image icon Women Receiving Training at the Agroforestry Center.jpeg (149.08 KB) Women Receiving Training at the Agroforestry Center CREACC-NG
Image icon Agro2.jpg (383.68 KB) Woman Looking after her Plants after the Training CREACC-NG
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs) and other themes of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
SDG 1 - End poverty in all its forms everywhere 
Direct
SDG 2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture 
Direct
SDG 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages 
Indirect
SDG 4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all 
Direct
SDG 5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls 
Direct
SDG 6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all 
Indirect
SDG 8 - Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all 
Direct
SDG 10 - Reduce inequality within and among countries 
Indirect
SDG 13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts 
Direct
SDG 15 - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation, and halt biodiversity loss 
Direct
Theme
Disaster Risk Reduction 
Indirect
Traditional Knowledge  
Direct
Agriculture 
Direct
Forests/Trees 
Direct
Plants & Animals 
Direct
ESD for 2030-Priority Action Areas
Priority Action Area 1 - Advancing policy 
state: 
Indirect
Priority Action Area 2 - Transforming learning and training environments 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 3 - Developing capacities of educators and trainers 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 4 - Mobilizing youth 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 5 - Accelerating sustainable solutions at local level 
state: 
Direct
Update: 
Yes
I acknowledge the above: 
Yes