A Burkinabe peasant, Yacouba Sawadogo, was able to replant the Zaï, a forgotten traditional cultivation method in his region. Its goal: to restore agriculture in arid lands affected by desertification. 40 years later, the technique flourished and was applied in 8 countries of the Sahel. More than 3 million hectares of sterile Burkina Faso land have been rehabilitated.
When in the 1970s Burkina Faso populations were escaping the advance of barren soils and barren land, this Burkinese of Gourga village had only one goal in mind: to repopulate the region. That is, to achieve the impossible in the eyes of many. Determined to grow seeds in a drought-affected soil, he updated a traditional agricultural technique.
Called Zaï, the method consists of digging holes of about 20 centimeters to deposit manure and compost next to the seeds. After three years of experimentation with various techniques, the stubborn thirty-year-old then firmly believes in the promises of the Zaï. And you will. Since the first rains, the result is evident. Yields are multiplied by two, up to four. Yacouba is successful there where the development aid machine has been struggling for decades. Far from being proud of this success, he takes his motorcycle and goes to walk the roads of Burkina Faso to teach the Zaï to the farmers.
Together with Ali Ouédraogo they had the ingenuity to improve the ancestral method by planting trees. The plants help to maintain soil moisture and favor the natural infiltration of water. "People thought I was crazy when I started planting these trees," says Yacouba.] Sawadogo, "is now when they realize the benefits of the forest."
Like Jean Giono's Elzéard Bouffier, the man now 66 years old planted 30 hectares of forest. A vegetal cover made of local species. Zaï has already crossed the borders of Burkina, and has been an example since then in 8 countries of the Sahel. To date, the improved ancestral method has enabled more than 3 million hectares of sterile land to be rehabilitated in the land of intact men. Improved yields generated higher incomes for farmers, curbed the rural exodus, and strengthened the Food self-sufficiency.
Ref.: http://www.abc.es/tecnologia/redes/20140730/abci-hombre-detuvo-avance-desierto-201407301302.html
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