For Mamanding Colley, success at Ndemban Women’s Garden is not measured only by what the women grow. It is also measured by what their earnings make possible at home. With new farming skills and support to prepare for larger markets, the women say they are producing more sustainably, earning more and feeling increasingly confident about the future.
“I can confidently say we have seen a marked improvement in our earnings, and now we use what we earn to pay for the education, health and other needs of our children and family at large,” said Mamanding, President of Ndemban Women’s Garden.
The women are now preparing for another possibility. In the future, some of the food they grow could be supplied to schools in their own communities.
Closing the distance between farms and schools
Agriculture supports much of the rural population in The Gambia, yet earning a reliable income from farming remains difficult. In Foni, changing weather conditions affect production, while post-harvest losses and limited access to buyers reduce what farmers can sell. At the same time, schools need dependable supplies of nutritious food. The distance between these two needs can be surprisingly difficult to close.
The joint programme Empowering Communities for Resilient Food Systems in Foni set out to bring them closer. Implemented by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the World Food Program (WFP) with support from the Joint SDG Fund, it used the Home-Grown School Feeding Program as an entry point to strengthen the connections between local production, school meals and community livelihoods.
More than 200 women across six horticultural gardens learned agricultural practices that can help them respond to changing climate conditions. Training was delivered in local languages through demonstrations, audiovisual materials and a practical booklet. More than 315 farmers also received agricultural inputs, while producers strengthened their knowledge of production planning, record-keeping, food safety, financial literacy and market requirements.
At Ndemban Women’s Garden, the support has helped the women think beyond their next harvest. They are applying new practices on their farms while preparing to meet the standards and quantities that institutional buyers, including schools, may require.
Farmers were also introduced to Jokkalante, a digital platform that provides information on prices and connects producers with potential buyers. Internet access and smartphone ownership remain uneven, however, showing why digital opportunities must be accompanied by support that farmers can also access offline.
Seeing what is possible
For Sheikh Drammeh, a grain producer and master farmer from Fass Chamen, the idea of supplying schools became more concrete during an exchange visit to the Central River Region. Farmers and local representatives saw how WFP’s Home-Grown School Feeding model brings together producers, aggregators, schools and technical institutions in another part of the country.
“The experience broadened our understanding and exposed us to new ideas,” Sheikh said. “We are now ready and committed to supplying schools.”
The programme also worked with the people managing food at the community and school levels. More than 500 Food Management Committee members learned about nutritious diets, sustainable agriculture and reducing food waste. Fifty schools were introduced to SchoolConnect, a digital platform that helps them record food deliveries, monitor stocks and track how supplies are used. Better information can make school feeding more transparent and efficient, while helping schools plan what they need from suppliers.
Together, the two UN agencies connected different parts of the same food system. The International Trade Centre worked with farmers on sustainable production and market readiness, while the World Food Programme linked this work to its experience in home-grown school feeding and school food management.
Moving from an idea to a local commitment
For the connection between farmers and schools to last, it must also become part of local planning. The programme therefore worked with Brikama Area Council, the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, the West Coast Region Technical Advisory Committee, the Gambia Association of Local Government Authorities, Buzz Women Gambia and producer organizations.
Councillors and community representatives explored how home-grown school feeding could be reflected in council plans and budgets. Rather than treating food security, nutrition and rural livelihoods as separate concerns, they considered how one local programme could respond to all of them.
“We are committed to creating a budget line for the Home-Grown School Feeding Programme next year, even if it means starting with a few schools,” said Councillor Tijan Manga of Foni Kanilai Ward.
Brikama Area Council has begun developing a framework that could bring home-grown school feeding into its future plans. Turning that intention into a budget allocation will be an important next step, alongside continued support for farmers to meet school requirements and for schools to use new food-management tools.
For Mamanding and the women of Ndemban, the opportunity is clear. A school can be more than a place where local children receive a meal. It can also become a reliable market for the people growing food nearby, keeping more of the benefits within the community.
Note:
All Joint SDG Fund programmes are led by UN Resident Coordinators and implemented by agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations development system. The Joint SDG Fund gratefully acknowledges contributions from the European Union and the Governments of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Korea, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the Arab Gulf Programme for Development.
