Issue #22

Hello to all!

Welcome back to Farm Radio Weekly! After our two-week publishing break, we are excited to bring you an issue packed with news and resources. We are especially pleased to welcome the latest FRW subscribers from Benin, Burkina Faso (2), Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Malawi (10!), Togo, and Uganda (2). Ibrahima Sory Sano from the organization CIEPEX is our first subscriber from Guinea!

During our publishing break, some readers took advantage of the comments section of the FRW website (http://farmradio.org/english/weekly/) to share their thoughts with the FRW community. We thank Jean Jacques Kabusala from the Democratic Republic of the Congo for weighing in on mining activities that disrupt farming communities, and Lawal Ali Garba for telling us about a food poisoning incident at a Nigerian school. We researched this report of poisoning caused by improper pesticide use and present further information on the topic in this week’s top news story.

We also have a story that takes on great significance as food prices rise – the growing popularity of indigenous vegetables that require fewer expensive fertilizers and pesticides than their exotic counterparts. And from Sudan, we have the uplifting story of two communities where herding and farming groups live in peace and cooperation.

You may recall our notice of a Farm Radio-CTA scriptwriting competition called African Farmers’ Strategies for Coping with Climate Change. Well, the results are in and we’re proud to announce that three of the fifteen winners are FRW subscribers! Three more winners are from organizations where at least one person is an FRW subscriber! You’ll find all the details on the script competition results below, in the Farm Radio Action section.

We would love to hear what you think of this week’s issue of FRW! Which items were your favourites and which topics would you like to see covered in future editions? We welcome your feedback at farmradioweekly@farmradio.org.

Happy reading!

-The Farm Radio Weekly Team

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African Farm News in Review

1. Nigeria: Food poisonings a grim reminder to store beans and grains safely (Various Nigerian newspapers, UN Integrated Regional Information Networks, UN Food and Agriculture Organization)

2. East Africa: Indigenous vegetables make a comeback (New Vision, New Agriculturalist)

3. Sudan: Watermelons a sign of peace between farmers and herders (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks)

Upcoming Events

-July 14-18: International news course for francophone African journalists

Radio Resource Bank

-Harnessing new technologies for Farm Radio (by Mark Leclair, Farm Radio International intern)

Farm Radio Action

-FRW community members among the winners of continent-wide scriptwriting competition

Farm Radio Script of the Week

-Protect Stored Grain from Beetle Damage

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Sacks of stored beans are a welcome sight during the dry season – a source of nutritious meals to enjoy while next season’s crops are growing. But recent reports of poisoned beans in parts of Nigeria were a grim reminder that stored food that has been treated with unsafe pesticides can cause illness and even death.On an April day in Gombe State, students at the Government Girls Secondary School sat down to a meal of beans. The girls became ill almost immediately, suffering from vomiting and diarrhoea. More than 100 students were rushed to hospital. Fortunately, they all recovered.

The beans were tested by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, or NAFDAC, and found to contain high levels of a potentially fatal insecticide. The chemical lindane, also known as Gammalin and many other brand names, was apparently used to protect the beans against pest attack. Lindane is a neurotoxin and possible carcinogen that has been banned in 50 countries.

While the poisonings at the girls’ school were widely reported in the Nigerian media, another outbreak took place in the Bekwarra area of Cross River State around the same time. According to NAFDAC, more than 100 people were hospitalized after eating beans and moi-moi, a steamed bean cake. It was reported that two children died. Again, lab tests were conducted on the food. The beans from homes and markets contained high levels of several highly toxic pesticides.

NAFDAC has responded by banning more than 30 agrochemical products, including lindane. The organization also plans to hold workshops on the safe use of food-preserving pesticides, in conjunction with CropLife, a group that represents pesticide companies.

William Joseph is the Director of Research at the Nigerian Stored Produce Research Institute. He says that many Nigerian farmers will pour any storage chemicals they can find onto their produce. Mr. Joseph suggests that most farmers do not differentiate between pesticides designed for use in the fields, and those designed for food storage. Food storage pesticides are generally designed to last longer and are typically safe for consumption in minute amounts.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization also stresses the importance of using the correct product for the job. When choosing a pesticide, farmers should consult a trusted source such as a government extension officer or known NGO. Farmers should then look for a well-packaged product from a reputable dealer – if a chemical comes with a counterfeit label or in a leaky package, its contents can’t be trusted.

The next step is to carefully follow package directions to ensure that the pesticide will be effective against the pest in question, but not poisonous to future consumers. The FAO notes that storage pesticides in powdered form are generally the most suitable for small-scale farmers. Gloves and a mask or handkerchief must be worn for protection when applying the product.

Organic options are also available. Ash and cayenne pepper have both proven effective in protecting stored food against pests.

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A traditional leafy vegetable is cropping up in more and more fields and markets across East Africa. On Caleb Bangirana’s family plantation in the Isingiro District of western Kenya, it can be found intercropped among the banana trees. With broad green leaves that are packed with nutrients, traditional African nightshade is emerging from the shadow of exotic vegetables.

Mr. Bangirana explains that farmers in his area used to have a negative view towards vegetable farming. And traditional vegetables such as nightshade, spiderplant, and bitter berries were often overlooked in favour of cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, and other more exotic vegetables.

But attitudes are changing. Now, more than 30 households in Mr. Bangirana’s parish grow vegetables for sale in their district. The ease of growing indigenous vegetables has helped change their minds. African nightshade and amaranthus, for example, are well adapted to the local climate and resist the diseases and pests that can destroy exotic vegetables.

As farmer interest in traditional vegetables grows, consumers are re-discovering their taste for the local foods. In Kenya and Tanzania, the trend is being promoted by a group of NGOs.

Patrick Maundu is a member of the NGO Biodiversity International who is working to promote the production and sale of traditional African vegetables. According to Mr. Maundu, the first supermarket to stock African nightshade saw it quickly move off the shelves. Nightshade, along with African eggplant, is now a regular find in grocery stores and local markets in East Africa.

Mr. Maundu says that these traditional vegetable varieties are more nutritious than their exotic alternatives. African nightshade is a good source of protein, iron, vitamin A, iodine, zinc, and selenium – providing much higher levels of these nutrients than cabbage. These vitamins and micronutrients are especially important for people at risk of malnutrition and disease, particularly people living with HIV and AIDS.

While consumers reap the nutritional benefits of this traditional vegetable revival, farmers enjoy the financial return. Mr. Bangirana’s family has been intercropping vegetables on their banana plantation for three years. His family earns an additional 30,000 to 50,000 Ugandan shillings (up to about 30 American dollars or 20 Euros) per month by selling easy-to-grow indigenous vegetables.

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Farmers in the Sudanese village of Gereigikh have a special reason to plant watermelons. They don’t just grow the sweet melons to enjoy on a hot day. Rather, they hope that the juicy fruit will entice cattle and camels from pastoralist herds.Ad-Dukhri Al-Sayed is a community leader in Gereigikh. He explains that, many years ago, farmers noticed that when herds visited their fields, their dung boosted crop production. Before long, farmers discovered that if they planted watermelons, they had a better chance of receiving free fertilizer droppings.

Gereigikh is located in North Kordofan State, just a few hundred kilometres from the Darfur region where violent conflict has persisted for years. As with many areas where pastoralist and farming groups meet, there was a history of tension over land and grazing rights. Mr. Al-Sayed says that peace between pastoralists and farmers in his village began with the realization that each group could benefit from the other.

Cooperation between the Gawamha, who are traditionally farmers, and the Kawahla, who are traditionally pastoralists, now extends far beyond watermelons. Faisal Eljack studied the relationship between the two groups for the British NGO, SOS Sahel. He explained that herders supply the farmers with dairy products such as milk, butter, and cheese. The farmers, in turn, supply the herders with agricultural products – millet, sorghum, and vegetables.

The beneficial relationship has led the herding Kawahla people to spend more time in the village. Marriages between the two groups have solidified their bond.

International NGOs and the University of Khartoum have taken a keen interest in Gereigikh and Iyal Ali village, another community in North Kordofan State where farmers and pastoralists live in harmony. The researchers note that climate change is putting more pressure on scarce resources shared by the groups, and want to learn how these villages keep the peace.

Conflicts between the Gawamha and Kawahla do arise at times, usually over animals grazing on cropland or shared water points. A strong traditional system has proven successful in resolving disputes. During mediation sessions, known as judiyya, leaders appeal to the wisdom and honour of parties in the dispute. They seek a definition of the conflict that all parties can accept.

And for every conflict, there is an example of herders and farmers peacefully sharing resources, even in times of drought. Both groups share the belief that you should help neighbours when you can, because next year could be your lean year, and you may need to turn to your neighbours for help.

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The story of more than 100 students from the Government Girls Secondary School in
Gombe State being rushed to hospital after eating poisoned beans captured the nation of Nigeria’s attention. But as frightening as the situation was, it represented only a small fraction of the number of acute pesticide poisonings that happen every day – in Nigeria and around the world. Estimates of the number of people who die each year from acute pesticide poisoning vary between 200,000 and 300,000. Millions more suffer illnesses from direct exposure to pesticides.

Acute pesticide poisoning is often the result of pesticides being improperly applied by farmers, traders, or other people attempting to prevent pest damage during storage. The wrong pesticides are not only dangerous to consumers – they may also be ineffective in preventing pest damage. Our news story offers some basic guidelines for farmers who use pesticides to store food. For more information on steps farmers can take to reduce health risks to themselves, their community, and consumers, please consult the following guides:
-“Preventing health risks from the use of pesticides in agriculture” (posted on the World Health Organization website)
-“Risks and consequences of the misuse of pesticides in the treatment of stored products” (posted on the UN Food and Agriculture Organization website)

For radio spots on pesticide safety and scripts on organic alternatives to food-storage pesticides, please see the following:
-“Protect your health and the community from agricultural pesticides and fertilizers” (Package 83, Script 4, March 2008)
-“Powder of little pepper protects stored rice” (Package 81, Script 2, August 2007)
-“A local plant prevents pest damage to stored seeds” (Package 81, Script 1, August 2007)
-”Protect stored grain from beetle damage” (Package 72, Script 7, September 2004)

Finally, here are two ideas for radio programs designed to raise awareness of safe pesticide practices for stored food:
1) Contact local hospitals, clinics, or other health organizations to find out how often acute pesticide poisoning happens in your area. What kinds of pesticides cause poisonings in your area and how do victims come into contact with them? Next, speak with representatives from farmers’ organizations, an agricultural extension officer, or an expert on food safety. What steps do they advise farmers, traders, and consumers to take to prevent similar poisonings in the future?
2) Ask farmers’ organizations if any farmers in your area have successfully used organic methods of protecting stored food. Consider creating a program on effective alternatives to food-storage pesticides, modeled on one of the scripts listed above.

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One of the many reasons that food prices have risen so dramatically in recent months is the increasing cost of inputs, especially fertilizers. The high cost of inputs has reduced profits for some farmers, despite the higher prices paid by consumers. In the face of these challenges, easier-to-grow traditional crops are attracting interest. Traditional crops have adapted to local climatic conditions over hundreds of years. They are typically more resistant to drought and pests, and have lower fertilizer requirements. However, many traditional vegetables like African nightshade, spiderplant, and amaranthus have been ignored by the majority of farmers and consumers for years, despite their hardiness and nutritional value.

Several organizations are working with African farmers to help revive these “forgotten” traditional crops. For more information, please visit:
-“Lost crops of Africa: Volume II: Vegetables,” a publication of the National Academies Press
-Global Facilitation Unit for Underutilized Crops, a blog about crops with untapped nutritional and economic value

You may also wish to review the following news stories about traditional fruits and grains, from past issues of FRW:
-“Vitally important wild fruits on the decline” (FRW Issue 12, February 2008)
-“Re-discovery of traditional crops helps farmers cope with climate change” (FRW Issue 2, December 2007)

You may also consider hosting a call-in or text-in show that will get people talking about traditional vegetables grown and enjoyed in your area:
-Which traditional vegetables are grown in your area? Does anyone know if the variety or quantity of traditional vegetables grown is more or less than it was a few decades ago?
-Are there traditional vegetables that were grown by earlier generations, but that are no longer grown? Are there wild crops that were used in the past, but not now?
-Where do these traditional vegetables grow (e.g. in small family gardens, on commercial farms, in the wild)? How difficult is it to produce these traditional vegetables as opposed to non-local or exotic vegetables?
-How do the traditional vegetables vary in taste or use from non-local or exotic vegetables? Do people in your listening audience know how they differ in nutritional value?
-What is the difference in the price of traditional and exotic vegetables in local markets? What is the difference between farmer profit margins for traditional vegetables versus other crops

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All too often, we hear reports of tension between herdsmen and farmers erupting into violence. The source of conflict is generally land or water – two natural resources essential to the livelihoods of both groups. Those who study trends in conflict raise concerns that the growing scarcity of these resources, as a result of population growth and climate change, could lead to increasing conflict. For this reason, the peaceful and cooperative relationships between farmers and pastoralists in Gereigikh and Iyal Ali villages in Sudan’s North Kordofan State are both uplifting and important.

This news story explains that the two groups in these villages came to understand each other and value the products and services each other provides. It also describes the traditional mechanisms used to resolve conflicts that arise. The following scripts describe fictionalized – though realistic – community conflicts. They suggest the reasons why conflict over land and water resources can become so contentious, and some ways that such conflicts can be resolved:
-“Conflict over natural resources: A short story” (Package 67, Script 7, June 2003)
-“Dispute over a sacred stream: Villagers describe the conflict” (Package 67, Script 6, June 2003)

Whether the communities in your broadcast area are experiencing a violent conflict, or are simply subject to tensions that can occur anywhere that resources are shared, you might consider the role your radio organization can play in reducing conflict. The following resources, taken from previous instalments of FRW’s Radio Resource Bank, may help you to get started:
-“Using radio to help communities talk” by the Straight Talk Foundation
-“A checklist for conflict-sensitive journalism” by the Institute for Media, Policy and Civil Society and International Media Support

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The Reuters Foundation is offering an international news course for francophone African journalists, in Dakar, Senegal, from July 14 to 18. Using practical exercises, the course will cover a variety of topics in journalism, from writing briefs and analyses, to covering economic and international news.Scholarships are available for transportation, housing, and a modest allowance for living expenses. The deadline to apply is June 2.

For more information (in French only), visit: http://www.reuterslink.org/courses/Techiquesjournalistiques_dakar_july08.htm, or e-mail: foundation@reuters.com.

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While radio is by far the most accessible and available form of information and communication technology (ICT) for the majority of people in rural Africa, new ICTs present an opportunity to extend the reach and interactivity of broadcasts. This article presents some new ICTs that could be of use to broadcasters.Text messaging (SMS)
The overwhelming popularity of mobile phones in Africa offers a direct link between broadcasters and their audience, which can enhance interactivity. Short message service (SMS), also known as “text messaging,” can be a very useful tool to build two-way communication with an audience. Similar to phone-in shows, texts can be used by farmers to ask questions about previous broadcast topics. Broadcasters in some countries can even make use of internet-based bulk text message services (http://bulksms.2way.co.za/, http://www.eztexting.com/) to send information about radio broadcasts to the listening audience. Imagine sending out alerts about market prices for crops or warning audiences of severe weather events!

Wikipedia and Blogs
Wikipedia has been taking the world by storm, showing what is possible when people collaborate to post and edit information on the web. A wiki-based webpage offers opportunities to learn from and adapt the wealth of information held by farmers and radio broadcasters. Blogs can be used to keep listeners updated on information already broadcast, and provide access to radio scripts used on air. To see an example of a blog with local agricultural content, visit: http://celac.wordpress.com/.

Digital Broadcasting Technologies
Airing a digital audio file such as an MP3 is technically straightforward and allows broadcasters to use radio broadcasts that are available online. Similarly, portable MP3 players with voice recording capabilities allow the production of in-the-field interviews, which can be easily transferred to computer and broadcast on FM channels. “Pod-casting,” downloading, and audio streaming have become popular ways of creating lasting content for the listening audience by making radio programs available online. The following organizations have audio files on various topics on their websites:
1) Panos Institute West Africa (PIWA)
2) West Africa Democracy Radio (WADR)
3) CTA – Rural Radio Resource Packs

If you have an example of a new ICT helping you with your radio work, we’d love to hear about it and share it with other radio organizations through FRW and upcoming issues of Voices. Please send your stories to Blythe McKay at bmckay@farmradio.org or Heather Miller at hmiller@farmradio.org.

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Three FRW subscribers and three members of organizations with FRW subscriptions won prizes for their entries to a continent-wide scriptwriting competition on climate change adaptation strategies for African farmers, while a broadcaster from Radio Salus in Rwanda has won the grand prize. In October 2007, Farm Radio International, in collaboration with the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), launched African Farmers’ Strategies for Coping with Climate Change, a radio scriptwriting competition for African radio organizations.

The competition was timely, as smallholder farmers in Africa are already experiencing the impact of climate change. Weather patterns are changing, extreme weather events are becoming more common, and the threat of food shortages, crop failures, and growing deserts are real and immediate.

While African farmers are developing and adapting coping strategies on their own, they need new information about farming methods that minimize the negative impact of climate change. A major challenge is providing such information to large numbers of people at a low cost. Radio broadcasts can help address this challenge because they are spoken-word, often in local languages. Because radio builds on Africa’s oral culture, it is not constrained by illiteracy. The technologies for broadcasting and receiving broadcasts are widely available and affordable in rural areas.

Contestants were invited to submit a radio script on themes related to local adaptation to climate change. Fifty-one entries were received from 20 countries across sub-Saharan Africa. Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda impressed the international panel of judges with his script on managing rainwater to prevent soil erosion and provide water for crops. This is an important adaptation practice for farmers who face extremely heavy rains on some occasions and droughts on others. Other winners focused on a variety of topics, including the importance of manure, water-conserving irrigation practices, drought-tolerant rice, preventing deforestation, and livestock management.

The FRW Team sends special congratulations to our winning subscribers: Mariama Sy Coulibaly from Afia FM in Senegal, Kwabena Agyei from Classic FM in Ghana, and Joshua Kyalimpa from Opsett Media/African Farm Radio Bureau in Uganda; as well as the winners from The Story Workshop in Malawi, Abakwa FM in Cameroon, and Radio Sapientia, organizations with at least one FRW subscriber!

All 15 winners will receive digital audio recorders, which will assist them with their work – for example, by enabling them to produce programs in the field highlighting local farmer voices. Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda will receive a farm radio training/internship sponsored by the German Organization for Technical Cooperation (GTZ). Winners will also work with Farm Radio International’s managing editor, using feedback received from contest judges, to improve and finalize their scripts. The winning scripts will then be published in French and English and distributed by CTA and Farm Radio International to approximately 500 radio organizations across sub-Saharan Africa. They will then be transformed into a wide variety of programs and shared with rural audiences.

The winners and script titles are:
• Jean-Paul Ntezimana from Radio Salus in Rwanda: Rainfall retention protects soil
• Pius Sawa Murefu from Radio Sapientia in Uganda: Sekedo, a drought resistant sorghum for Karamoja
• Gladson Makowa from The Story Workshop in Malawi: Effect of manure in crops during erratic rain season
• Frederic Takang from Abakwa FM in Cameroon: Endangered Raphiales: An environmental threat, a danger for the culture and the economy of the grassfields
• Adama Zongo from Radio Rurale du Burkina in Burkina Faso: Organic manure at your fingertips
• Mariama Sy Coulibaly from Afia FM in Senegal: Fissel farmers don’t pick up straw after harvesting, a method that protects land from heat
• Kwabena Agyei from Classic FM in Ghana: A tale of two changes and movements: Mangoes to the Rescue
• Sachia Ngutsav from Radio Benue in Nigeria: Forests shall heal the land again
• Lamine Togola from Radio Fanaka in Mali : Natural phenomena and their consequences on the life of rural communities
• Savitri Mohapatra from WARDA in Benin: Growing NERICA is a farming solution for coping with climate change
• Rachael Awuor from Ugunja Community Resource Centre in Kenya: Getting ready to meet different weather patterns
• Dominic Mutua from Radio Mangelete in Kenya: Drip irrigation
• Félix Houinsou from Radio Immaculée Conception in Benin: How to modify production systems in Africa to cope with climate change
• Joshua Kyalimpa from Opsett Media/African Farm Radio Bureau in Uganda: New rice variety for Africa to save wetlands
• Andrew Mahiyu from NASFAM in Malawi: Livestock Management Practices

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In this week’s news story from Nigeria, we learned about two separate incidents in which more than 100 people were poisoned by beans that contained dangerous pesticides. Beans are among the most vulnerable crops to post-harvest pest damage; so, naturally, farmers want to do what they can to protect them. Safe pest management practices are key to minimizing loss while ensuring that the food remains safe to eat. The Notes to Broadcasters section provides some resources on safer pesticide use. This script describes two organic methods of controlling a pest that attacks stored beans.

You can also find this script on-line at:
http://www.farmradio.org/english/radio-scripts/72-7script_en.asp.

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