Nutrition Sensitive Agricultural Intensification for Sustainable Food Security (PIDASAN)

$24 million to improve the food and nutrition security status of vulnerable groups through dissemination of selected high performing agricultural technology and value chains that promote decent job creation in rural areas.

Photo: Dominic Chavez

Challenge

Burkina Faso has been faced with some major challenges over the years that have threatened food security in the country, from a severe drought in 2011 to an influx of Malian refugees in 2012. As a Sahelian country with 86% of its population employed in the agricultural sector, Burkina Faso is vulnerable to climate shocks, which lead to poor harvests yields, a challenging food production system, and a poor rural population, in addition to the pastoralist lifestyle that promotes competition and may lead to conflict.

Solution

PIDASAN supports the second phase of Burkina Faso’s National Rural Sector Program. The project targets nine regions and will reach 125 communes chosen for their high agricultural potential and relatively favorable climate conditions, thereby impacting an estimated 300,000 poor people, including 120,000 women and 30,000 youth. The project helps increase agricultural productivity by adopting improved agricultural technologies, such as drought- and pest-resistant seed varieties, composting and erosion-control techniques, and livestock and poultry feeding technologies that will increase feed production and crop yields. The project also improves the nutritional quality of crops and vegetables, provides assistance for marketing, empowers rural farmers to use various technologies that reduce livestock and feed expenditures, improves the quality of food and dietary intake, and creates jobs.