SG 2000-Helping Farmers Help Themselves "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime."
The philosophy behind this ancient Chinese proverb of helping others help themselves is the foundation of a very successful agricultural program currently being implemented in Africa-Sasakawa Global 2000, or SG 2000 for short.
SG 2000, an effort led by Nobel Laureate Norman Borlaug, is one component of the Carter Center's Global 2000 program chaired by former President Jimmy Carter. Since 1986, Global 2000 has collaborated with the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) and African ministries of agriculture to teach more than 200,000 farmers the value and proper use of improved seeds, fertilizers and farming practices. Its overall goal is to support initiatives to increase food production in Africa by distributing the best available technologies to resource-poor farmers.
One African country in which SG 2000 hopes to achieve a tremendous impact over the next several years is Ethiopia. Although 75 percent of Ethiopia's population is engaged in agriculture, chronic food shortages have plagued the area for many years. In 1992, Ethiopia received another 1 million tons of food aid. According to Andrew Agle, director of operations for Global 2000, there are many reasons for Ethiopia's severe food insecurity. One was the civil war that lasted for more than a decade.
"A successful program," Agle explained, "depends on numerous factors, including a good working relationship among farmers, agricultural extentionists and research institutes, and having supportive governmental policies. But you also need adequate financing, roads and market availability, which in Ethiopia are limited. However, appropriate technology, which is also a necessity, is sufficient to begin the process of agricultural modernization."
Since SG 2000 was established in 1986, it has gradually initiated programs in seven countries, Ethiopia being the latest, starting in 1993. The eventual goal is for Ethiopia to independently produce adequate food supplies for its population of 58 million. "Technically the capacity exists to largely erase the current food deficit in three to five years," said Agle. A key part of making that happen is teaching Ethiopian farmers how to use modern technological and agricultural advances to enhance and maintain crop production. "One very effective way we do that," he clarified, "is through demonstration plots."
These plots are usually a little more than one acre in size. Ministry of Agriculture extension workers help the participating farmer plant a typical crop of corn or wheat, then meet with the farmer and his or her surrounding neighbors at least five times during the crop cycle. As an integral part of the program, the participating farmer agrees to invite 10 of his neighbors to "field days" so that they can observe the methods used to yield a greater crop. Under the old system, farmers were getting about 1.5 tons of corn per hectare, compared to 5.5 tons with methods introduced via SG 2000.
Many areas of the African continent remain in need of assistance, and SG 2000 holds a biannual workshop bringing together researchers, educators and political leaders from around the world. This year's workshop, "Developing African Agriculture: Achieving Greater Impact from Research Investments," was held Sept. 26-29 in Addis-Ababa. Among numerous spokespersons were former President Carter and Yohei Saskawa, president of the Nippon Foundation. Borlaug gave the plenary lecture.
"These workshops allow us to share our knowledge and experience and focus our efforts on improving human nutrition," stated Agle. "We do this by applying improved technologies, providing training and adopting appropriate policies. And in the end, we create national programs that promote agricultural self-reliance."
Ann Carney is publicity associate at The Carter Center.