The Stafford Centre school ‘garden’ is preparing to enjoy a second harvest this year, thanks to the development of a new solar powered irrigation system at the school.

Pictured is a crop of maize almost ready for harvest at the end of the rainy season in Burkina Faso.  This follows an earlier harvest of tomatoes and onions, gathered form land which ordinarily would lie fallow for much of the year, because of the shortage of water.

This has been a challenging year for those involved in agriculture in Burkina Faso, with very high temperatures and rains that finished unusually early.  However, this project has allowed the school and orphanage near Ouagadougou to grow two successful harvests.  The produce is used to help to feed the orphans and pupils at the school, with any surplus sold in the local market to raise money to support education.  Students are also fully involved in the work in the garden, learning vital agricultural skills at the same time.

We are now developing plans for the next phase of the project and please contact us to find out more