Growing the Wealth of the Poor - World Resources Institute

T U R N I N G B A C K T H E D E S E R Trole of forestry agents (USAID et al. 2002:42). Their advice wasadopted in the wholesale reforms of the 1990s described earlier.USAID’s involvement went well beyond advice, however. Inthe mid-1990s, the agency was deeply involved in helping Niger’snew democratic government formulate, implement, andpopularize its natural resource management reforms, through aUS$28-million agricultural development grant program. Thisfunded, for example, technical support for formulation of theRural Code and the establishment of the Permanent Secretariatto administer the legislation. The agency also funded all-importantefforts to publicize the code to millions of dispersed farmersand herders. This included translating the text into the eightmajor languages spoken in Niger and communicating thechanges via radio and television (USAID et al. 2002:148).While donors played their part at the macro level, in the fieldit was the committed and long-term presence of NGOs andspecialized agencies such as Serving In Mission, IFAD, and CareInternational that enabled FMNR to take root. By 2008, SIMhad worked with farmers in Maradi for over two decades, whilethe major IFAD projects in Aguié district had begun 13 yearsearlier. “After the food-for-work program ended in 1988, the onlytools at hand were persuasion and persistence,” recalled Rinaudo.“Having staff in the village and giving the same message over andover.” In the early years, he added, the catalyzing influence ofindividual MIDP figures and supportive Maradi forestry staffplayed a major role in fostering recognition and acceptance of thenew farming practices. Without the efforts of such intermediaries,FMNR might not have reached the critical mass thatresulted in its scale-up over much of rural Niger (Rinaudo 2008).A Road Mapfor Greening Africa’s Drylands?The simple process of regenerating native trees, coupled withprogressive policy and institutional reforms, has proved animpressively strong mechanism for leveraging transformationaldevelopment in Niger. The scope of its impact on one of theworld’s poorest societies includes poverty reduction, economicgrowth, agricultural and rural development, and improvedgovernance and health.Niger’s overused farmland and barren savanna are visiblymore fertile and resilient thanks to sustainable managementpractices. And instead of the dire food shortages predicted byaid agencies as Niger’s population boomed, farmers adoptingFMNR have displayed a new economic resilience that hasimpressed development experts. “Although challenges remain,the resiliency, innovations and adaptations of rural producers…inthe face of environmental and economic stresses…provide encouraging prospects for progress,” reported USAIDofficials in 2007 (McGahuey and Winterbottom 2007:26–27).And progress need not be limited to Niger. For other Saheliancountries facing the triple challenges of population growth,desertification, and climate change, FMNR also offers a cheapand effective model to improve farm productivity and reclaimprecious land from the dunes (Rinaudo 2005a:9).More Food for More PeopleYet despite the extraordinary spread of FMNR and the significantbenefits generated, population growth will continue to posea major challenge to food security in Niger, especially against abackdrop of climate change.In the past 20 years, Niger’s population has doubled to14 million people, and it maintains one of the highest birthratesin the world of about 7.1 children per woman (Wentling2008b:1; INS and Macro International Inc. 2007:xxv). By 2015,the population will rise to 18.8 million and the area of cultivableland per capita will fall further—from 1.45 ha to 1.12 ha perperson (Wentling 2008b:6, 7). Yet already, even in the bestharvest years, at least 1 million land-poor Nigeriens need foodaid due to localized droughts or pest infestations (Wentling2008a:5). Similar demographic pressures face Niger’s neighbors,including Burkina Faso, Mali, and Chad.As a result, food production will become an increasinggovernment and donor priority in the region, which makeshigher agricultural productivity imperative. In this context, saydevelopment experts, FMNR has a major role to play in helpingpoor rural populations improve food security and ride out thepresent baby boom. “Niger appears to be a model in buyingtime,” says Mike McGahuey. “FMNR has a track record ofallowing people to (a) get more product and more diverse formsof product from the same amount of land and (b) maintain theproductive capacity of that land even while more is being taken155