By Mathew Kanu
Women farmers in two chiefdoms in Bombali district have called on the Ministry of Agriculture “to do more” in the area of building their capacity to enhance their skills to be able to attain food security in the country.
Kadiatu Kamara, a farmer at Makumpbana said that even though they had received some training from some civil society organisations that enabled them to now weed and harvest on time, they still needed government intervention in providing additional training and capacity building.
She said that before this time they were late for the planting season but that following those training sessions by NGOs they had overcome some of the challenges.
“I am a member of the Tawopaneh Farming Group and we have come together to practice agriculture for business” she said, adding that with those skills she had acquired she wanted to get involved in “commercial farming as a business for us as women”.
A member of Tamaraneh Farmers’ Group based in Konta Section, Margaret Conteh, told Politico that they had three women farming groups but that their challenge was meeting the farming calendar and best farming practices. She also asked for more intervention to further sharpen their skills so “we will improve our farming methods”.
About 70% of Sierra Leone’s workforce is in the agriculture sector, mostly engaged in rural farming especially in the Northern Province where most of the farmers lived in villages.
Extension Officer in the Ministry of Agriculture, Bombali District said his ministry faced with the task of changing the behaviour of farmers in farming methods and farming practices. Amadu Sesay however said that this was a challenge they would “overcome with time especially when the ministry is now open to agro-based organisations and civil society groups” which he said were complementing the efforts of the ministry.
“When the time comes for harvesting the men take charge and control everything” said, adding that their interest was also to promote women in commercialised agricultural practices through a series of community engagement”.
Coordinator of the human rights organisation women centre for democracy and human rights, Emilia Kamara said the organisation had trained more women farmers in MakumpBana in the Bombali Sheborah chiefdom and Kamakwe in the Sella Limba chiefdom on farming calendar, food crop production practices and vegetable production. “We also did a series of training for women farmer groups on seed bank management, post harvest management, techniques in planting cassava and other viable crops” Emilia said.
© Politico 06/11/13
