We first became involved with Plan International UK whilst arranging our travels across Africa. We wanted to organise a trip in Togo to visit a child sponsored by Stephanie Kidby (Harry’s/My Mum). Through this we were able to develop a relationship with Plan that has allowed us to volunteer our experience as well as visiting and promoting their projects across the continent on our website. Plan is an international NGO that works with children to benefit them and their communities. After attending a supporters evening in London before we left we were impressed by the versatility and sustainable ethos of their work. Seeing, however, is believing and we are interested to discover for ourselves how Plan operates outside of the UK and if lasting results can really be achieved.
Plan Senegal is our first location and we couldn’t have been welcomed more warmly into the team. Abdou Diof, Head of Communications and an absolute legend, introduced us to the entire office which took nearly an hour! Our programme with Plan included a trip to Kaolack to see projects in action and two days in the office in Dakar to help with social media. After sharing lunch we were whisked off in the Plan 4×4 to begin our expedition!
We had come to visit three communities where agriculture initiatives had become successful and the people self sufficient. The projects were focused around an ethos of strong community based development and the sharing of knowledge. 15 years ago the communities only farmed peanuts and millet, rainy season crops. When drought came it lead to repeatedly poor harvest and therefore poverty. Elhadji Malick, a front line Plan employee, recognised the potential for change; farming in the dry season and the diversification of crops. Plan set up an initiative whereby a member from each village was taken to learn market gardening in Camberene, an area where it was already thriving. The farmers came back with new knowledge that allowed them to make better use of their resources and formed farmers associations, sharing their skills throughout their communities and transforming life in the region.
In every village we drove through in rural Kaolack we were greeted by an excited chorus of smiling and waving children shouting Plan! Plan! Plan! Plan! Plan! This was our first indication of Plan’s impact on the area. The landscape in rural Kaolack is a huge flat expanse populated with sparse grasses, woody shrubs and lonely trees. A distinct difference from the bustle and crowding of the city. Occasional enormous Baobab trees make for the only natural landmarks. Leaving the main road was marked by the abrupt stop of the tarmac, then dirt tracks and the occasional off road detour lead us to our first market garden.
Neat rows of jostling green shoots cover roughly four acres of land. Each family have their own plot and enough is grown to provide for the whole community. Onions are grown as a cash crop due to their long shelf-life, however carrots, tomatoes, ocre, mint, hibiscus, aubergines, potatoes, sweet potatoes, lettuces, cabbages, and turnips are also grown to feed the villagers. It is possible to grow these crops in the dry season because of the high water table, water is only 2-3m below the ground. Shallow wells are dug near each plot and easily provide sufficient water. The vegetables are set in trenches of earth with built up sides to protect the crops and so no water is wasted. New rainy season crops have also been introduced, corn and rice. The land is organised so lower lying, wetter ground is used for thirsty rainy season crops and higher drier ground for dry season crops where watering can be controlled. Rainy season land still plays a role in the dry season by providing pastures for the live stock and thick rushes for thatching huts.
Market gardening has given the communities economic security allowing villagers to meet the needs of their households and provide the resources for their children to attend school. Long term investments are also part of the project. The farm is dotted with small cashew trees that will in time reach maturity and provide a large annual injection of cash into the community. One farmer likened this to a pension plan.
We saw this idea in its full maturity at the second project, a mango orchard belonging to another community. This was one of Plan’s first initiatives in the area, they provided the saplings and horticulture training. Now there are 200 full grown trees which produce enough fruit to healthily supplement the activities of market gardening. Before the trees were large enough to shade the ground, like the cashew trees in the previous project, this land was also used for growing vegetables. Apart from a mango shepherd and the work that goes into a joyful harvest there is little maintenance involved. This makes the bountiful rewards all the more sweet!
All of Plan’s initiatives are based around the idea that helping the community to help itself is the best way to create sustainable change. This is embodied in the concept of micro-finance which runs parallel with the farming activities. Plan initiated financial services that have allowed those who did not have access to banks the ability to save money and take out loans. The micro-financing facilitates the communities to insure themselves in times of need, to invest in school supplies, education and farming, and to cover emergency medical costs. This has offered the villages a sense of security they have never had before.
The last project we visited farmed banana, mango, papaya, grapefruit and lemon trees as well as other vegetables. Here we sat down to talk, under the shade of a mammoth tree in the middle of the plots with some members from the community including the Chief of the village and the Head of the Farmers Association, who had accompanied us all day. Throughout this discussion women and men agreed that Plan’s activities in Kaolack had sparked a revolution in this regions farming methods. From what we had seen, one that had consequently changed the lives of everybody involved. Women have taken a lead in this revolution as it has allowed them the opportunity to provide for their own families. A role that has given them pride, greater independence and one that has helped changed traditional social attitudes. They have been active both in the fields and within the farmers organisations. A recent initiative trained young women in micro-finance giving them greater influence in decision making. Both the treasurers we met were women.
With great successes behind them the farmers are excited about the possibilities of tomorrow. By increasing efficiency and productivity through new technologies such as improved methods of irrigation, and store houses, they are envisioning a future of even greater prosperity and one that wouldn’t have been possible before Plan’s intervention. As well as farming projects, they have also worked to secure basic needs such as building wells to provide clean running water. What struck us most about these projects was their simplicity. Plan’s strategy is not about yearly hand-outs but initiating long term solutions which the communities take control of. The all Senegalese Plan team have taken knowledge found throughout the country to places that have needed it. The concept is uncomplicated, inexpensive and effective. Using local knowledge and tried and tested methods ensures these projects are successful.
Another important factor in their success is the dedication of the Plan Senegal team. The staff are a community themselves, sharing lunch daily, and often visiting projects to keep in touch with what’s going on in the field, even if their job is office based. The two days we spent in the Dakar office working with Abdou were an absolute pleasure, he enjoys a laugh, you can ask him anything, and his belief in sharing knowledge makes the internet his perfect tool. Helping Abdou access social media has given him the platforms to showcase everything that Plan Senegal are achieving, including his own videos. Like the projects social media is simple, cheap and effective. (Check it out here) Plan have a played a fundamental role in transforming the fate of thousands of children’s lives by responding to the problems their communities face. They told us “knowledge is key to sustainability, freedom and the dignity of decision making” and in Senegal it certainly seems to be working. Find out more about Plan International UK on their website.
