Context and Justification
Poor soil quality and unpredictable weather conditions have a negative impact on agricultural yields. To address these issues, several solutions have been proposed, ranging from the adoption of new varieties to soil recovery techniques, including Operation Zero Zippélé. This term responds to a twofold urgency: to halt rapid soil erosion and to provide producers, especially women and young people, with productive land on which to build their future. In 2024, 12,339,726 hectares of cultivated land were classified as having 49.9% mediocre suitability and 5.9% unsuitable for production. Of the 10,084,891 hectares that could potentially be developed, 50.7% are of poor quality (MARAH, 2024).
Challenges
Becoming aware of this possibility of recovering dead soil using “Zippélé” is already half the battle:
- Technical challenges: mastering the technology and logistics
- Land challenges: conflict of uses, no guarantee of ownership
- Economic challenges: initial cost of the operation
- Social challenges: community involvement, consideration of young people and women