Subsistence Agriculture

Agriculture in Burkina is life. Most of my neighbors are 'unemployed' in the sense of having no documented job. They feed their families and survive by raising crops (millet, corn, black-eyed peas and peanuts) also known as subsistence farming. Their methods are rudimentary (not differing far from our ideas of medieval farming methods). To further complicate the matter, my region lies on the edge of the Sahel where rain only comes for three months during the summer (and often only once a week). It is a short window in which every member of the family must work the fields each day (all day) in order to grow enough food for the coming year. Even school takes a backseat to cultivation, as students will not start coming to class until the harvest has finished around the beginning of October.

While villagers in Rambo have been blessed with sufficient crop production and adequate rainfall, most are still malnourished as the variety of crops grown are void of vitamins and minerals necessary for healthy living. Children, while having enough to fill their bellies for the day, will still suffer from malnutrition causing them to have large bloated stomachs, hair loss, stunted growth and any variety of health complications.

Currently, my village is applying for grants via US government aid programs. These grants will go towards developing a larger variety of crops and introducing irrigation systems to Rambo. While my expertise is nowhere near agriculture, I have been able to assist by translating their grant applications from french to english and helping them to refine their program objectives, as the application has to be submitted in english and are thoroughly reviewed.

for a little more info check out wikipedia:

"Subsistence agriculture is self-sufficient farming in which farmers grow only enough food to feed their family. The typical subsistence farm has a range of crops and animals needed by the family to eat during the year. Planting decisions are made with an eye toward what the family will need during the coming year, rather than market prices. Tony Waters[1] writes: 'Subsistence peasants are people who grow what they eat, build their own houses, and live without regularly making purchases in the marketplace.'"

Thomas' Field Guide to Burkina Farming

In daylight, Rambo is almost a ghost town. The rains have come, washing away all thoughts but cultivation, pure subsistence farming. Thus, I have been out in the fields toiling away with my neighbors, planting peanuts, corn, millet and the eggplants cousin (less tasty cousin at that). Having earned the callouses on my palms and the ache in my back, I thought it would be nice to put together a field guide for all those interesting in farming here in Burkina.

Thus, click below to check out Thomas' Field Guide To Burkina Farming: