Agriculture and food security

Our Agriculture and food security programme seeks to address the underlying challenges that inhibit farmer’s access to natural resources, productive inputs, financial and advisory services as well as market opportunities. Our interventions in this area involve capacity business and networking of farmers, promoting women in Agriculture in their communities, and Agriculture value chain development, we also facilitate linkage of farmers to other value chain actors such as financial institutions, input dealers, mechanization services providers, marketers, and transporters. Hope for Women and Children, adapted food systems and vertical farming for improved crop production in rural communities in Sierra Leone.

TO ACHIEVE THIS, HOPE FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN CONTINUES TO:

● Train farmers and farmer-households on vertical farming for innovative sustainable on-farm production of low carbon vegetables for food and income.

● Assist rural farmers to identify and develop the suitable farming best practices.

● promote and support group farming demonstrations for experimentation at community level.

● Strengthen farm management systems as well as promote innovation and adaptation of practices for food security in rural communities.

● Protect farmlands and preserve natural ecosystems.

● Help farmers thrive by promoting regional/local economy and transformational activities.

● Promote the use of organic waste to build soils on farms.

● Adapt new technologies like vertical farming to increase agricultural productivity

in rural communities.

● Strengthen farmer’s capacity through promoting skills and knowledge necessary for managing their businesses.

● Improve farmer’s capacities in adapting their activities to climate variation crops.

EMPOWERING WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE IN THE RURAL SETTING OF SIERRA LEONE

25th August, 2021

Agriculture is prevalently the back bone of Sierra Leone nutritional and a food value change for better life expectancy all over the world. However, in Sierra Leone, our socio- economic status in terms of good dietary to feed our people, most especially amongst the rural people, is becoming a crisis because of some basic factors listed below: example,

A. Non affordable mechanize tools.

B. Low standard of soil fertility. Example, a degeneration to higher soil yield (crops)

C. Lack of chemical to kill pest diseases that prevent crops yield.

D. The low productivity of viable seeds.

If all this things mentioned are available to our rural farmers, then Sierra Leone is expected to produced higher crop yield (Bumper Harvest).

In Sierra Leone, we need to diversify our feeding habit by predominately taking rice as our staples food, whereby vegetable crops, eg: potatoes, yams, millet, banana, sorghum. etc., all this crops listed have nutritional value them even our staple food (Rice). Meanwhile, the cultivation of rice is more tedious work for Women, as it is historical known as work for (MEN). Women need to engage in the cultivation of other crops that do not create difficulties or hamper crop production.

Our organization is looking forward to embark in the cultivation of some of this annual crops and biennial crop, etc. in other to engage our rural women farmers in short term crops cultivation, that do not only reduce poverty in their communities, but also

serve nutritional change in their feeding system. Example, yams can be pounded into flowers for bread making .And potato can be used as porridge, for household mean. Our organization, look at the future in the typical feature of the situation of small farmers basically comprising women in our rural setting for a change in our goals in the development.

Because of stagnating of declining economic, agriculture provide safety net for survival for all those who cannot find work or who lose their outside agriculture are the majority of people suffering from hunger and malnutrition are rural poor because they do not have access to sufficient cropping of seeds that are viable to start with. Also the stagnation of financing the cultivation of land, that is already available. Finally, we are kindly requesting from International NGOs with other Donor partners in development of funding our projects for continuity.

EMPOWERING WIDOW'S IN THE CULTIVATION OF GROUNDNUT FARMING IN SEMBEHUM NANCY TUCKER IN THE MOYAMBA DISTRICT.

The rural community women as grouped themselves to be actively involved in the better of their lives for cultivation of groundnuts. The organization gave some seeds of groundnut to these women. They were instrumental and ready to engage in farming, and the results was positive, as the yield of production was great.

The photo above shows the old women plucking the groundnut after harvest.

15, December, 2021

The organization has been very vibrant in capacitating, and helping the needy women, especially the widow's as demonstrated by Madam Kadiatu Kamara ,a single parent women who decided to joined the organization at Kpetewoma Village, Kargboro chiefdom, to do has owned inland swamp cultivation of rice farming. A pictorial evidence showed her in great joy at the first day of harvest.

The organization wish Madam Kadiatu Kamara to continue her farming practice, as the organization expect for Bumper Harvest next growing season. Madam kadiatu Kamara a widow lost her husband some years back was

sponsored financially by Hope for Women and children - Sierra Leone to do the above farming. Through that farming, she takes care of her two children and two grandchildren, interns of schooling and other issues. Photo of madam kadiatu kamara of two children and two grandchildren shown in the middle of the farm.

The Recent harvested Groundnut sponsored by Hope for Women and Children just this last raining season.

10th July, 2022

In our bid as organization, Hope for Women and Children gave some seeds of groundnuts to the women, which has proved positive as they are at the action of cultivating a large scale of higher yield.

There is still a need for sponsorship as both the country, and at large need food substance for the enhancement of increasing food productivity to feed our nation, and to even export in other to generate foreign exchange so that it can

capacitated more women to engage in farming.

WETLAND/ECOTONES CULTIVATION OF ACTIVE RICE FARMING, BY YOUNG WOMEN IN THE KARGBORO CHIEFDOM MARTHYN VILLAGE MOYAMBA DISTRICT

5th October, 2022

The organization undertake agriculture with their women in acting agricultural development in using a four acres of land, to cultivate this wetland. The process was tedious as the organization lacks with financial constrain to buy implement in other to cultivate this large portion of land. The organization is looking for assistance so as to embark on large scale farming.

THE KPETEWOMA COMMUNITY IN THE MOKOBO VILLAGE AND THE SALEMA COMMUNITY (BOTH VILLAGES COME TOGETHER FOR THE CLEANING AND BURNING OF THEIR FARMER FOR THE CULTIVATION OF CASSAVA FARMINGFARMING

13th March, 2023

A notable feature is showing and demonstrating a pictorial evidence with the caption of women actively working to enhance their living in the process of cultivation a large scale of cassava farming. However, they intended to use their proceed to locally prepared gari making, and also foo-foo processing. This can accelerate their earning power financially to seek their demand for better living and socio-economic structure.

However, the organization is looking forward for support to buy some of these items in great demand. Example,

A. Cassava milling machine

B. A power tiller machine for the transportation of cassava from the farm, to the processing site. Picture showing women digging holes to plant cassava in newly burn farm. Women working hard to cultivate cassava and other crops in the upland farm

WOMEN IN ACTIVELY SERVICE OF WEEDING, THE YOUNG RICE GROWING UP AT THE UPLAND GROWING SITE OF KAYAMBA CHIEFDOM MOYAMBA DISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICTDISTRICT

22th june, 2023

The organization six (6) months ago visited our Women in one of our operational centers in the kayamba chiefdom, moyamba District. These are the women in active weeding services as their engaged in removing stumps of shrubs of grass from the demonstrating farm. Support is needed to capacitate this women in terms of feeding, supply of fertilizer, chemical to kill weeds, and herbicide etc.

THE HARVESTED RICE IS LOCALLY TRANSPORTED TO OUR TEMPORARY STORES FOR SAVE KEEPING.

25th September, 2023

Our organization, Hope for Women and Children has envisage the need of the women in their subsistence agricultural farmers, and want to generate themselves in the large scale of farming. As a result NGOs are encouraged this challenged women to get an agricultural store's, where all produce and materials for the farm implantation should be kept. A pictorial evidence showing a locally made wheelbarrow carrying harvested rice to the final destination.

HWC-SL lakes mobilities in terms of transportation and other administrative equipment. Therefore, the organization is pleading with international NGOs /donor partners for in that areas. See photo of local wheelbarrow transporting seeds rice to final destination for save keeping.

OUR CHARLADY MADAM ISATU BARRIE AT KPETEWOMA VILLAGE IS IN ACTION AT HER FARM AT THE LAST PLANTING SEASON 2023. (A DEMONSTRATION OF PLANTING SEEDS OF GROUNDNUTS ON THE FARM)

27 September 2023

Madam Isatu Barrie, a subsistence farmer was given a three (3) Bushel of groundnuts to be cultivated. She is here demonstrating her action on the farm. A picture depicts her Wright on the farm working. More support is needed to help most of women that single parent.