Agriculture is vital in Cameroon. In rural
areas it seems that everyone grows crops in order to feed their family and also
to get enough income to live and to send the children to school. Men and women
farm, the women concentrating on food to feed the family and them men
concentrating on cash crops. MRDF has been partnering YDC who have been working
with youth and with women, helping them to improve their agricultural skills
and so increase their crop yield. They also train them to rear pigs or poultry
and even cane rats, a bush animal.
Groups of people are formed and they work
together on demonstration farms, here they can learn new techniques, experiment
with different crops and then apply their learning on their own farms. We
visited such a group on Saturday and went with them to their group farm, up in
the hills, it was a muddy but beautiful walk through the abundant green
vegetation that is a feature of this part of Cameroon in the rainy season.
The group on their farm |
It was on the farm that I met and talked
with Grace ad she gave me permission to share her story.
Ruth, Grace, Mirabelle and Maurice Adams (Director of MRDF) |
Grace grows tomatoes on her land and also
cassava. Cassava is an essential food in Cameroom and can be eaten in many
ways. One of the most popular is to grind it (usually by hand) and cook it with
palm oil to make garri which is used to make paste or mixed with oats or other
cereals.
Grace has paid for her children to attend
school but only until they were 13, she couldn’t afford to support them in
education any longer. She attends the Presbyterian church and told me that her
faith is very important to her.
Grace looking at the view from the farm |
Like all those we have met, Grace was not
complaining, she was hoping that with God’s help her farm would continue to
develop. And Grace is a skilled farmer, her enthusiasm and determination shone
from her. Her smile was so welcoming that she drew you to her for conversation
and from her I received grace.
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