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 The food situation in Senegal and throughout the world is in a dire state. Rising food prices combined with a limited availability of food has led to misery and malnutrition, rapidly hitting the world's poorest and developing populations the hardest.
In Senegal, with nearly half of all families considered "food insecure" by the World Food Program and half the population living in large towns and cities, there is a growing need for individuals and families to produce their own food.
Through the integration of traditional gardening techniques with the needs and available resources of Senegal's urban community, Peace Corps-Senegal's Urban Agriculture program has become a respected leader and advocate in micro and urban gardening in Senegal for the past 5 years. From working with individual households and farmers to some of Senegal's largest hospitals, Peace Corps-Senegal's Urban Agriculture program has greatly impacted the agricultural expertise of those we work with but also the nutritional and income-generating needs of many throughout Senegal.
What We Do
 Urban Agriculture Volunteers across Senegal work in an array of micro-gardening, seed extension, fruit tree promotion, and small animal husbandry projects, focused on increasing the standards of living of the communities we work with, improving food security, providing a source for income generation, and creating jobs.
Volunteers work hand in hand with host country nationals in various settings and capacities, such as:
Demonstration gardens, where new agriculture techniques and technologies can be demonstrated, researched, and trained.
Fields, where Volunteers work with local farmers, implementing improved seed varieties, provided by the Institut de Recherches Agricoles (ISRA).
Homes, where micro-gardens can be implemented on rooftops and yards, using alternative and low cost gardening methods to provide for the nutritional needs of the household and act as a source of income.
Hospitals, where the nutritional and therapeutic needs of patients can be more greatly fulfilled through micro-gardening.
Schools, where Volunteers work with students and teachers to develop gardens as an educational tool as well as provide for the nutritional needs of the community.
Trainings, where Volunteers provide hands on demonstrations on micro-gardening techniques and alternative containers.
Achievements
 Gardening: In order to promote urban agriculture techniques focusing on micro gardening, improved traditional gardening and ornamental plants, Volunteers in collaboration with local work partners, have created demonstration, training and adaptive research gardens in the cities of Kolda, Kedougou, Tamba, Sokone, Mbour, Thies, Louga, Saint-Louis and Linguere. Volunteers assisted several families develop home gardens.
At least 200 individuals have been trained in micro gardening and improved traditional gardening techniques.
With the assistance of Volunteers, 18 local gardeners are currently managing demonstration sites, generating income and training other gardeners.
Health & Nutrition: In collaboration with the Department of Infectious Diseases at Hospital Fann and the Department of Horticulture in Camberene, this project successfully developed and implemented a garden at Hospital Fann to produce large quantities of diverse vegetables to improve the nutritional status of inpatients living with HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases. In a few months, the garden was able to produce 400 kg of vegetables per month. The success of this model crosses Senegal's borders. Currently, the model is being replicated by Peace Corps and other organizations in the Senegalese cities of Ziguinchor, Kolda, and Richard Toll and in Uganda. Also, a garden has been developed and implemented at the Department of Psychiatry at Hospital Fann to act as an alternative therapy for those afflicted with mental illnesses.
 Fields: Over the past 4 years, approximately 30 Volunteers extended improved variety field crop and rice seed, along with improved farming practices to over 1000 farmers in at least 12 urban and peri-urban areas, in the Fatick, Thies, Saint-Louis, Louga, Kaffrine, Tamba and Kolda regions, enabling farmers to adopt improved varieties of which beans (Melakh), corn, upland rice and sorghum are respectively the most popular.
Case Study: PCV Justin Land's Microgarden at Hospital Fann
Presentation: Creative use of recycled/reused materials for microgardening
Brochure for the Urgabn Agriculture program in English and French
Urban Agriculture Volunteer Blogs
Maya en route: Maya Lau, Kolda
Overseas with the Senegalese: Richard Ross, St. Louis
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