A total 202.36 Kg of carrot seed was distributed to 10,118 participating households in the Kamonia territory during the life of the project. Households planted seeds received immediately in December 2021 working their fields with the tools provided by the BUREKA intervention. Lessons learnt from the various demonstration sites including proper land preparation for vegetable farming, mulching, planting in lines, weeding, timely harvesting were employed to ensure that maximum benefit was from the small piece of land cultivated by participating HHs with the crop-based vitamin A (Kuroda) Carrots.
Household harvested Carrots cultivated from their various fields, even though not in very large quantities, the crop-based Vit A vegetable introduced by the BUREKA project had a positive impact on HHs’ food needs, income, as well as social & community relationships as individual members tend to speak and discuss around the crop (Carrot) which is entirely new to the intervention areas.
Households were seen to have developed a special recipe by combining cabbage and carrots which were all harvested from their vegetable farms to ensure that the entire family, especially the children have access to good, fresh, and nutritious meals. In addition to augmenting household’s feeding needs, some beneficiaries were able to sell the surplus to earn money to support other non-food items/needs of the family.
Elysee Yohan like many other beneficiaries were victims of the inter-ethnic conflict that broke out in the Kamonia Territory in 2017, Elysee Yohan, a native of Kamabwe village, had to make a decision to escape from the erupting violence leaving behind all properties which were lost8 during the conflict. Mrs. Yohan sought refuge in the Luangatshima forest together with her husband and 10 children.
Narrating the ordeal of escaping the conflict and becoming vulnerable to the vagaries of nature brought tears to her eyes. She narrates how they left their home with nothing, except the clothes they wore :
“Life was very hard for us in the forest. My children and I were constantly crippled with hunger, dehydrated due zu lack of drinking water. Die cold freezing nights became a source of horror especially für the children, und life was continuously becoming unbearable”.
Elysee remembers seeking for help from people in neighboring communities but was constantly turned away due to fear and panic. To her dismay, her situation continued to deteriorate as access to daily food was a constant struggle. Elysee remarked that the children were not growing well, falling ill frequently as they had no food to eat.
Elysee and her family after the conflict returned to their village (Kamabwe) to start life all over but retuned to meet nothing. In spite of continued difficulties, Elysee did not give up, together with her husband who is the current chief of Kamabwe, they persevered to rebuild.
Elysee begun subsistence farming9 on a small parcel ofland in order to provide food for her family but faced a lot of challenges ranging from to lack of access to quality seeds and tools, technical knowhow on crop management and as well as extension support services to guide their farming activities.
Elysee Yohan further narrates the story of she is being identified and registered under the BUREKA project in the Mukuandjanga Health Area where she received a number of intervention packages.
Elysee Yohan, one of the several beneficiaries who has never seen carrot in the Kamabwe village of the Mukuandjanga Health Area (Kamonia Health Zone) received 20g of Kuroda carrot seeds, agricultural tools as well as training in good agricultural management practices (vegetables) from ADRA through the BUREKA Project.
Elysee planted the seeds received and applied new agricultural practices learnt during the agricultural training such as planting in lines, timely weeding, and timely harvesting.
Elysee, after her hard work on her farm for 12 weeks harvested her matured carrots. The mother of 10 after harvesting 125 kg of carrots expressed mixed feeling of surprise as she has never seen carrots cultivated in the Kamonia territory at the same time beaming with smiles of hope and self fulfilment as she felt proud of being able to cultivate and harvest carrots with the training, she received from the BUREKA intervention.
“No words can express my joy für this bountiful harvest. My husband and I are now able to procure healthy food for our children”.
When asked about what the benefits of carrots are, she noted that the carrot has brought joy to the household as well as the community as whole. The family is excited to eat the carrot combined with the cabbage recipe with ‘fufu’. Community members/neighbors who have never seen carrots have found interest in discussing about the crop. Some have gone to the extent of asking for samples to cook in their homes whiles others ask how they can get the seeds and training to replicate the joy and happiness being experienced in her home. Elysee also noted that since harvesting the carrots, she has made a few new friends who want to know to cultivate carrots in the Kamonia territory.
Elysee just as many other beneficiaries have become ambassadors in promoting the use of carrots in their diets as they have seen the improvements10 it brings to the family’s diets. She went on to explain that the introduction of carrots has not only aided in preventing malnutrition in the community but has also helped in providing more income to cater for school fees and hospital bills.