During the month of October, Africare held several field visits for interested partners: other NGOs, donors, the Mali Government agricultural service, and most importantly, for the farmers themselves. Intra-village visits were held in each of the 12 SRI villages, where villagers observed all five SRI and control plots, and discussed SRI with the test farmers and the Africare field agents. Africare also organized three two-day inter-village visits for groups of 20 SRI farmers from four neighboring villages. During each visit, all 20 SRI farmers visited 20 SRI plots in the four villages the first day, and used the second day to share their own experiences and put together their own recommendations to better do SRI. This blog entry provides an overview of SRI performance in different villages during the field visits.
October, 2008
Farmer Exchange Visits and SRI Field Performance
SRI Timbuktu Blog
Bouba Boureima of Morikoira village in his test plots, holding up two randomly selected plants, one from his control and one from the SRI plot. Notice the greater root biomass of the SRI plant.
Hamadou Toure (left in blue) of Morikoira village explains to the group how his plots have developed over the season. Hamadou has transplanted his SRI seedlings with a spacing of 30cm x 30cm, compared to his four village colleagues who used a closer 25cm x 25cm spacing. Farmers observed that SRI plants with a 30cm spacing show increased tillering compared to plants with 25cm spacing.
Sidi Mido of Bourem village also planted his SRI plot with a spacing of 30cmx30cm. At first very skeptical about SRI, he is now convinced that it works, having observed it in his own fields.
Aroufaya Sideye’s SRI plot in Bourem village is clearly distinguishable from the adjacent control plot: plants are higher, greener and have more tillers.
Discussion among SRI farmers from the villages of Findoukaina, Morikoira, Bourem and Hara Hara (first picture), and enjoying lunch under a shade tree (second picture.) The third picture shows the SRI farmers’ meeting from the villages of Horogoungou, Douegoussou, Katoua and Adina-Koira.
Firhoun Elhadji of Bourem village (one of the most successful farmers in the region) explains vehemently that he has been growing rice for all his life and has used every improved technique that's come along. He was determined to show us (although not admitting it at first) that he could out-compete SRI, and did everything to his control plot to make that happen. But even early in the season he had to reluctantly admit that his SRI plot was doing much better, and during the farmers' visit, standing in his rice field, he declared openly:
"SRI is the best technique I have ever come across in my entire life."
Group photo from inter-village SRI farmer exchange visits with SRI farmers from Findoukaina, Morikoira and Hara Hara villages and Africare field agents.
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