Ending Extreme Poverty in the Congo

They Are Happy and Showing A Big Smile

Some of us can smile when we work.  But I think if these Congolese young women could whistle, they would whistle while work.  They would probably be better than Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, too.  

Why would they whistle while they walked home from a hard day in the fields?  Their basket of full of produce and food to feed their families.  In Congo, food comes from the field and goes directly to the pot for cooking. 

In a poor country like, refrigerators or ice boxes are rare except in some commercial establishments.  Corn is only saved until it is dried to make flour or meal for cooking.

So these young women are happy.  They are smiling and proud of the food they are carrying from their distance farm fields.   

The Poor Women and Girls Phenomenon

 
The population of Congolese children are equally divided between girls and boys.  But when you in a village, you will see mostly boys.  So, where are the girls?

This phenomenal is same for men and women.  It is probably the same for most African and developing countries.  You can call it the "Poor Women and Girls Phenomenon."  Women and girls living in poverty are the domestic and agricultural workers. 

Girls and women are typically working in the fields performing farm duties.  Also, they gathering water and firewood. 

Why Palm Oil May Be Good?

Palm oil is one of the few vegetable oils that is high in saturated fats.

Palm nuts produce palm oil.  It is traditionally used cooking in Congo.  Also, palm oil can be used to make soap.  The majority of the palm oil consumed is imported.  Can Congo become a major palm oil supplier?

There is a lot between the importer and net exporter of palm oil.  One of the bumps (problems) is tall palm trees.  There is no means to get the palm nuts down from the tree except someone climbing up the tree.  That bump may be on its way out.  A midget palm tree seems to grow well in Congo.

However, there is a downside of the midget palm tree.  Anyone can get at the palm nuts.  Theft of palm oil is a real possibility.

Is the high saturated fats content of palm oil, good or bad?  Probably, it is not problem now since the Congolese poor are not high fat or calorie consumers.  So, palm oil may help Congolese alive.

From Wikipedia: Palm oil is naturally reddish because it contains a high amount of beta-carotene (though boiling palm oil destroys the beta-carotene, rendering the oil colourless). Palm oil is one of the few vegetable oils relatively high in saturated fats (like palm kernel oil and coconut oil). It is thus semi-solid at typical temperate climate room temperatures, though it will more often appear as liquid in warmer countries. 

Where Is The Water?

When you want to water your lawn or your garden, where do you get the water?  You walk connect your hose to the near water faucet.  Probably your water faucet is within 50 feet of the area that needs watering.

In the Congo, there is no water faucet nearby.  So where do you find the water for your garden?  In rural areas, your water source could be 3-5 miles away.  It would take over an hour to walk to the water and more than an hour to walk back.

 The lack of water forces farmers to grow crops only during the two rainy seasons.  And, since crops are not stored, food shortages routinely occur during the two dry seasons.

Preparing A Demonstration Garden

 
Demonstration projects are better than trying to explanation a new technique.  It is especially useful when you are trying to explain the new technique without the benefit of pictures and models.  Also, it is helpful when you believe the procedures are getting lost in translation.

The student body came out to watch the preparing of the demonstration garden.  The garden was to demonstrate how to grow vegetables during the dry season.  In Congo, there are two dry seasons and two rainy seasons.  During the dry seasons, farming activities come to a halt.  No food such as vegetable is grown.  Therefore, there is less food to eat.

We prepared the garden demonstration.  The soil beds were prepared.  The drip irrigation system was installed.  The seeds were planted.  The project was complete and ready for mother nature to do its magic.

Fresh Produce On Its Way To The Market

Fresh produce is a good source of nutrients.  Congolese, especially the poor, do not eat a lot of fresh produce.  Why?

Fresh produce spoil quite fast due to lack of refrigeration.  In a country without reliable transportation, it is impossible to move large quantities of fresh produce from the farms to the village or city centers.  Congolese women must take the fresh produce to the market by foot and on their heads on a daily basis.

As a result, farmers grow less fresh produce.  They grow more sturdy items such as rice, corn, beans, and cassava.  Accordingly, the price of fresh produce demands a higher price.  So the poor people eat less fresh produce.

It's Beautiful, Healthy, Tasty and Nutritious

As I drove across Kansas twice in the past week, I thought it was only favorite for the Wizard of Oz.  A number of billboards played up this Kansas' connection.  Also, I begin to notice the publicity about its official state flower, the sunflower.  And, I saw strange crops growing in their fields.  One, I incorrectly identified as hops.  But the other was the familiar sunflower.

I saw a sunflower plant going in village of Bulape, Congo this summer.  I thought it was beautiful and provided a unique foreground for a picture of Mama Sylvie, Mama Rose, and Mama Jackie.  I never thought about the sunflower as an agricultural crop.  BUT now I know better.

I will do some followup work to find out if these Congolese women know about the other attributes of the sunflower and its seeds.  The seed oil is healthy.  The seeds are a tasty and nutritious snack, too.

Sunflower could can help fight the poverty.

Kansas Sunflower Commission.

While the vibrant, strong sunflower is a recognized worldwide for its beauty, it is also an important source of food. Sunflower oil is a valued and healthy vegetable oil and sunflower seeds are enjoyed as a healthy, tasty snack and nutritious ingredient to many foods.

Sunflower is an important agricultural crop choice for US producers in the northern plains of the Dakotas to the panhandle of Texas.

Is Commercial Farming Good or Bad for Congo?

Congo imports the majority of its processed food.  Subsistence farming can not supply the country's food needs.  The poorer rural area where subsistence farming takes place survives without too much imports.

For example, the majority of the palm oil is imported.  Palm oil is used for cooking on a daily basis by every Congolese family.  Although palm trees are plentiful, the mechanisms and knowledge to produce large quantity of palm oil is missing.

However, the farming landscape may be changing.  It was reported that the union of South African farmers signed a 30-year renewable lease of 10 million hectares of land.  Commercial farming may be around the corner.

What going to happen to all the poor rural subsistence farmers?  How are they going to make a living now? 

A Planned Palm Tree Plantation in Bulape.  What's its future? 

Good Fences Could Help Reduce Hunger

Fences in rural Bulape are a joke.  I am sorry but that's the truth.  They are needed to keep goats out of the gardens.  Goats are the primary meat source in rural Congo.

Fences are built with sticks and bamboo.  Therefore, they barely last a year before they need to be replaced.

Goats roam freely around the village.  As a result, very few families grow gardens in the village or near their homes.  Good fences could help reduce hunger especially among older people who are too frail to go long distance to the bush farms. 

Chickens Enjoy A Great Meal and What Do They Leave in Return

In Congo, fresh corn must be dried in the sun.  Then it is grind or powdered in flour or meal.  While it is being dried, the corn is sometime just put on a mat and laid on the ground.  When on the ground, chickens and goats help themselves to a delicious and nutritious meal.

What about diseases transmitted from the goats or chickens?  Are they leaving anything behind for the humans?