Josephine Francis (Libéria) : « L’agroforesterie est une solution qui a fait ses preuves »
For nearly 20 years, Josephine Francis – vice-president of the Liberian Farmers Union Network (producers' organization) and the ROPPA – raises animals and produces cocoa, coffee and palm oil on his farm. After participating in the regional seminar on the future of forest soils in West Africa, our interlocutor from Liberia shares her vision of agricultural issues and her convictions.
About ROPPA
The West African Farmers' and Producers' Organizations Network (ROPPA) has 3 million farmer members, including many women. It positions itself as a tool for promoting and developing family farms. The network is supported by 15 national producer organizations in West Africa. For example, in Liberia, the Farmers Union Network brings together 55,000 farmer, livestock, and market gardener members, spread across the country's 15 counties.
FARM Foundation: You participated in the international seminar on forest soil protection in Abidjan. Why is this topic important to you and to farmers in West Africa?
Josephine Francis Soil health is an important issue for all farmers. First, many don't know how to protect the soil they cultivate and depend on. For example, slash-and-burn agriculture is still widespread and causes widespread soil degradation. This practice involves regularly moving crop areas as soon as they are no longer fertile enough by cutting down and burning patches of forest.
Farmers need to be trained to understand the negative impact of certain practices on the environment and their natural capital. When we explain to them that they can adapt their practices by using crop rotation on the same plot and thus cultivate it for several years, without deforesting new areas, they remain skeptical. But when they try it or when they see that it works for other farmers, they change their minds.
In Liberia, we reach out to small producers in isolated rural forest communities to train them in crop rotation and forest protection. We also show them that they can derive multiple benefits, as well as income, from forest exploitation and conservation: using bamboo to make baskets, harvesting pharmaceutical products or spices to sell, etc. They can therefore find varied livelihoods there.
We are fortunate to have good quality soils that have been little exposed to imported synthetic fertilizers. However, their fertility must be maintained by adding organic matter. With ROPPA, we show communities how to make compost with residues from cereals and market garden crops, manure from the small animals they raise, etc. Economically, it is also much more interesting for producers to make their own compost than to buy imported fertilizer which is very expensive.
FF: What are the key messages you took away from your participation in the Abidjan seminar on the protection of forest soils?
JF : First of all, we need to invest more in research in West Africa, especially in my country Liberia, to find solutions to farmers' problems and help them implement them!
We also need better legislative protection for farmers. We need to strengthen our laws, particularly regarding the definition of agroecology and agroforestry, to guide small producers and help them transform their practices. This can be complicated because we need to help them become aware of these issues. This requires using the right communication channels, in local languages, via local media.
But I fully believe that action speaks louder than words, especially when it comes from other producers. When you talk about agroforestry, you have to show a demonstration plot within the communities. After the first harvest, and then another, they will see the difference and start following suit. The key to transforming agriculture is concrete proof.
FF: Precisely, have you identified solutions that seem within the reach of producers to resolve this problem of soil fertility?
JF : Agroforestry provides an interesting solution because it limits deforestation. We experienced this in a project where the Farmers Union Network of Liberia helped establish 1,000 women cocoa producers. It's important to know that in Liberia, women are very active in the cocoa production and processing sector, but they never own their land. As part of this project, each woman started her own plantation on a small area.
As soon as the cocoa trees were planted, they also planted large forest trees, as well as cereals and vegetables like peanuts and peas, which provide nutrients to the soil. This provided them with an income while the cocoa trees grew and produced. This system is now well established, and the producers continue to benefit from this diversity of crops in their fields.
FF: What levers can you activate, at the regional and via producer organizations, to facilitate the dissemination of these practices?
JF : At the ROPPA level, we are working with ECOWAS to facilitate these changes, adjust regulatory mechanisms and public policies. It is very important to disseminate all this knowledge and implement these practices in different countries. For example, in Liberia, we are working with the land authority to facilitate the settlement of women by allowing them to acquire plots of land to cultivate. The law allows them to do so, but traditional customs and a lack of resources prevent them from doing so.
FF: In terms of government resources and priorities, what are the results of the commitments made by African states to agricultural development? in Maputo in 2003 and in Malabo in 2014. Are they up to the challenge?
JF : No, they are disappointing. Only 7 or 8 African countries have met their targets. In Liberia, for example, we only produce 25% of our food needs, and imports come at the expense of supporting local producers. The country is ranked 113th.e out of 121 according to the Global Hunger Index. How can this be explained when we still have arable land and enough to produce? It is important for ROPPA to be able to reaffirm the essential role of African farmers in addressing these food security challenges. They are the ones who hold the solutions to meet our needs.
