(ANS – Shasha) – The workers of VIS, the International Voluntary Service for Development, held a meeting on 15 May last in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The aim of the meeting was to establish a workshop where the farmers of Shasha could meet and discuss how they might set up viable structures for agriculture and at the same time develop a sense of confidence in the people of the community.

The idea of ​​creating an agricultural service centre in Shasha emerged from an ongoing preliminary feasibility study by the project “From the Earth, Life”, funded by the Cariplo Foundation and the Region of Lombardy.   The study highlighted the complete absence of a structure capable of providing minimal but essential services, to improve the profitability of production, and the quality of life and work of farmers in Shasha.

"We strongly believe in the fact that a structure as important as this should not end, as often happens, with the end of the project, but should have a long life."  So says Alfredo Sinatora, an agronomist and a volunteer of VIS in the African country.

For this reason, the associations of farmers and cattle breeders  were asked on 15 May to develop a shared strategy for agricultural development in the area. Over 100 farmers, representatives of rural associations, local authorities and various international organizations are participating in the work, in an effort to identify critical points in the supply chain of agricultural products in Shasha.

"We have given the farmers confidence. They all took part in animated discussions where they presented proposals, goals, ideas, possible solutions to some of the problems and a plan of action to give life to the service centre. With great satisfaction, we can say that the staff of the project is limited only to organizing and moderating the event. We could feel tangibly the trust of the participants and a great deal of gratitude. This encourages us in the work that lies ahead in the coming months," concluded Mr. Sinatora.

At the end of the day one could sense optimism among the people present.  The lively discussions that continued even after the meeting ended demonstrate a clear willingness on the part of the farmers to believe in a project that goes beyond the simple distribution of equipment and agricultural vehicles and creates something that the whole community can recognize as their own.

Published 10/06/2014