A project in the Mayana community in Kavango East trains smallholder farmers to grow protein-rich legumes and improve soil. The work is led by researchers from the Namibia University of Science and Technology and is funded by the Science Granting Councils Initiative (SGCI).
The project, called FOODSECBIO, began in 2021 and will finish by July 2025. Researchers developed five biofertilisers from bacteria that help plants take up nitrogen. Around 30 farmers have been trained to make and apply these biofertilisers and to use better crop production methods.
Training also covered how to produce protein-enriched pearl millet flours for infants. Farmers report better harvests and higher incomes after the training.
Difficult words
- smallholder — a farmer who manages a small farm
- legume — a plant grown for its edible seedslegumes
- biofertiliser — natural product with bacteria to help soilbiofertilisers
- nitrogen — a chemical element plants need to grow
- pearl millet — a small grain crop used for food
- harvest — the crops people collect from their fieldsharvests
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Do you think biofertilisers are useful for small farms? Why?
- Would you grow legumes to improve soil? Why or why not?
- How could protein-enriched flours help families with infants?
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