Empowering rural women through agroecological activities

Fetom is a locality in western Cameroon, in the Ndé department. This area is very suitable for agropastoral activities thanks to the biodiversity that allows animals to feed naturally. However, due to the poverty of the inhabitants, the production of high-quality small livestock, which is highly valued and in demand, is rare because of a lack of farms.

A project to train women in organic market gardening was launched in 2018 by the French association Keur Kamer and the Common Initiative Group (GIC). A training room was built, and a community garden was established. More than 800 women from the village were trained and developed their own farms thanks to this project.

However, general production difficulties have been observed: the non-use of chemical fertilizers within the project's ecological context significantly limits productivity. The residents and the Fetom GIC (Groupement d'Intérêt Communautaire - Common Interest Group) therefore shared their concerns with the Keur Kamer association, with the aim of establishing a new collaborative project.

Two solutions were proposed in Keur Kamer by the residents and the GIC (Group of Common Initiative) to address these difficulties. First, the transformation of the community field into an agroecological farm, through the creation of a sheepfold, allows for the use of animal waste as natural fertilizer for crops. Second, training women in goat farming aims to improve the income of village women and bring rare and highly sought-after breeds to the market.