A Horticulture Project that is Contributing to Households in Gabon

The C&MA of Gabon, the local church, community leaders and people interested in being part of the AWF Development Project have set out to improve their quality of life – and food security.

The horticulture project was located 27 km from the capital Libreville. Project supervisor Martin Mbavu and his staff invested at least 15 hours a week encouraging and actively participating in the implementation of the project.

The pastors and church leaders benefited from motivated individuals who wanted to develop their own food-growing businesses and who were supported by their local pastors and church leaders, who were concerned that the lives of these men, women and children be greatly improved.

The participants received theoretical and practical training. The latter consisted of weeding, planting, cleaning and, finally, harvesting and selling their garden products. As a result, their lives changed, their self-esteem increased, and they learned to be independent.

As part of the project, the beneficiary households learned to clear brush and weeds, and clean and form growing beds. They bought small agricultural equipment and seeds and a motorized pump. They set up a nursery, supplied natural fertilizers, and received training in horticulture production. They also learned techniques for the conservation and processing of garden products. They managed their sales and finances, and they were monitored and evaluated along the way.

More than 200 households bought the products and thus encouraged the producers. The buyers said they would like to try this food crop experience themselves. They said they could taste the difference between organic food that has a natural flavor and food produced with chemical fertilizers.

Through training, the project households increased their food production and contributed to improving the food security of their community. In the future they want to train groups of women in the management of savings and credit associations, as well as in income-generating activities.

Gardeners have also learned and applied techniques and practices such as the use of good seed and composting, creating nurseries and weeding on time. As a result, they were able to begin increasing, managing, and saving their income.

Pastor Silvain Choumbi, one of the beneficiaries, said, “Our agricultural project has created a job bank for some of the local youth who work on the farms. It has also helped combat the high cost of living, because we sell our products at reduced prices, based on the income of an average widow in Gabon.”

“The farm project has in part brought social security to the homes of our destitute widowed mothers who work at the Bon Samaritain Non-Profit Organization (NGO) and at our church,” Choumbi said. “It has also fostered conversions and has consolidated love for others thanks to our visits to their homes to give them spiritual and social support, which are done with our food.”

Through learning and practicing commercial horticulture, households have increased their crop yields, reaching at least 1.5 tons per year. The adaptation of the Gabonese to commercial horticulture is a goal that moves the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA) of Gabon to continue working on projects of this nature.

The garden training went a long way to energize the community and they are now witnessing sustainable changes among households that have adopted the techniques and practices.

Continue to pray for the C&MA of Gabon, for our brothers and sisters and their community. They also ask us to pray for new projects that contribute to improving the quality of life of their homes and families.