ReliefWeb

Food security in Mali has fluctuated in recent years due to instability, inconsistent weather patterns and lack of water supplies. The resulting limited food availability at markets has made it such that the price of available foodstuffs was expensive, and sometimes unaffordable, for the local community.

In an effort to improve farmer incomes and increase food supplies in rural Mali, the African Development Bank has funded the Koulikoro Region Food and Nutrition Security Enhancement Project (PReSAN-KL) in the amount of USD 51.8 million.

Dramane Diallo, a 54-year old farmer in the country’s western Koulikoro region says his job used to be draining and difficult. “We had problems irrigating our plots… like any job, you have to make an effort [but] my job today is less painful,” he said while guiding an oxen-led plow through his field.

New irrigation canals have brought much-needed water to crops and has led to increase food production and the availability of more diverse foods at the market. Rice and fresh produce farms, for example, have increased productivity by more than 10,000 tons since the introduction of this project. And, more food supplies at the markets means lower prices for consumers.

PReSAN-KL will benefit more than 175,000 people, notably women and smallholder farmers. It will also offset food shortages in other regions affected by Mali’s security crisis.