Finding climate solutions to farming in dry times

Inoussa Sawodogo checks his fruit trees for insects on his farm in central Burkina Faso, an area affected by dry weather due to climate change. Samuel Turpin/Oxfam

In Burkina Faso, a farmer turns to compost and fruit trees to diversify his crops and earn better income as rainfall becomes more and more scarce.

Inoussa Sawodogo spreads compost in his field in Burkina Faso. He produces his own organic fertilizer to make the soil more productive, but lack of rain (one of the effects of climate change in the Sahel region) makes it hard to grow enough cereal crops in this arid region.

“My harvests are growing ever poorer,” he says, adding that reduced yield from cereal crops is “not enough to feed my family for the whole year. I have to buy more food to make up the shortfall.”

He’s found a solution thanks to a project in the area carried out by two organizations fighting climate change with Oxfam, the Alliance Technique d'Assistance au Développement (“Technical Alliance for Development Assistance” or ATAD) and the Association pour la Gestion de l'Environnement et le Développement (“Association for Environmental Management and Development,” AGED).

Faced with poor yields from his grain crops, Inoussa Sawodogo added fruit trees to his farm and is now making enough money to support his family. Samuel Turpin/Oxfam

Their work is helping farmers like Sawodogo, 35, to diversify his crops and earn more money. They teach farmers climate change adaptation: They produce their own compost, and build stone walls to capture moisture around crops and reduce erosion. ATAD and AGED also help improve wells and install pumps in this area of central Burkina Faso that is affected by global warming, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northeast of the capital Ouagadougou. It’s an area where farmers are working to survive an unforgiving environment and climate change.

Fruits of his labor

Facing more and more difficult cereal harvests, Sawodogo began also growing fruit trees. He planted a tree nursery and fertilizes the seedlings with his own compost, and works on building a fence around his fruit trees to prevent animals from wandering in and eating the fruit. He is also concerned about pests infesting his trees.

But the addition of fruit trees is paying off. “Today the income I make allows me to meet all of the family's expenses, such as healthcare and paying for my four children to go to school,” he says proudly.

Inoussa Sawodogo builds a fence around his field to protect his crops. “Today my main problem is water, and the animals that come to eat and step on my crops,” he says. Samuel Turpin/Oxfam

Climate change is making it more and more difficult for farmers like Sawodogo to grow enough food. And when a pandemic hits, movement restrictions and other economic effects are also hitting the poorest farmers hard, increasing economic inequality.

Oxfam and our partners are finding innovative ways to help farmers in arid areas adapt to climate change by improving access to water, and maximize it with erosion control measures that also capture more moisture in their fields. It’s all part of our work to help those most vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change, but who are least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions causing it, to adapt and find long-term solutions to climate change and poverty.

Adapting to dry conditions is hard work, but Sawodogo is ready. “Everything you see here is the result of my own work,” he says. “I did everything myself, with the help of my family.”