Sandbondtenga: As part of a tour to encourage local initiatives promoting food self-sufficiency advocated by the Burkinabe authorities, the president of the special delegation (PDS) of the commune of Barsalogho, Chief Warrant Officer Mathias Sansan Pale, said he was impressed by the appearance of an 8-hectare wheat field in the village of Basma, commune of Barsalogho.
According to Burkina Information Agency, 153 producers, mostly women, cultivate this 8-hectare wheat field. The "Dire" and "Kanz" varieties are being tested there. The overall condition of the field particularly impressed the local authorities.
Agricultural technical services have indicated that the condition of the crops is satisfactory and suggests a yield of approximately twelve tonnes per hectare.
During the visit, students from the village of Basma and those from surrounding localities also came to discover this cereal. Amazed, the students pleaded with the PDS, Mathias Sansan Pale, for the introduction of wheat cultivation in their school gardens. Expressing their satisfaction, they also expressed the wish to grow wheat in their school gardens from the next school year.
'We consume wheat-based products, but I had never seen a wheat field,' said Andrea Prunelle Ouedraogo, one of the students present at the site.
According to the head of the Basic Education District (CEB) of Barsalogho, Jean-Marie Ouedraogo, this visit has an educational character. A little earlier, the delegation led by Chief Warrant Officer Mathias Sansan Pale had visited the village of Tamasgo, where they visited the Pengdwende cooperative garden as well as that of the public primary school.
At each stage, the PDS commended the remarkable work of the producers and learners, highlighting their contribution to the promotion of local agriculture. He also encouraged the dynamics of women and students, which is in line with the government's vision of promoting food self-sufficiency.
Faced with concerns raised by both sides, the municipal authority highlighted the importance of endogenous solutions for sustainable community development.