On January 17, 2025, pupils from the Tindila elementary school harvested tomatoes from their nutritious school garden. The garden was set up with the support of Inades-Formation Burkina as part of the Health Resilience and Community Adaptability to the Impact of Climate Change in the Northern Region of Burkina Faso (RSAClim) project.
With a solar-powered borehole, a 1375 m2 market garden perimeter, advice and motivation, pupils at Tindila elementary school have succeeded in producing their own vegetables. Production began at the start of the school year in October 2025. The pupils were assisted by their teachers and the village management committee. Using agro-ecological practices, they have succeeded in producing tomatoes, cabbages, onions, eggplants and moringa on an initially arid soil. On the morning of January 17, 2025, the tomatoes were harvested under the watchful eye of facilitators from Inades-Formation Burkina, the organization behind the project.
Equipped with buckets and dishes, the students gathered in the garden for the harvesting operation. Grouped around the various tomato beds, they enthusiastically filled the various containers with ripe fruit. Joy and pride could be seen on their faces, not to mention motivation. Once the containers had been filled, in twos, threes or fours, they helped each other to transport the harvest to the weighing area. In all, 12 kg of tomatoes were harvested on the day. Harvesting is expected to continue over the next few days. Around 200 kg of tomatoes are expected in the end.
One of Inades-Formation Burkina’s objectives in the RSAClim project is to improve the food and nutritional security of the most vulnerable populations. The borehole is a source of drinking water for students’ consumption and hygiene. It also serves to maintain the nutritious school garden. Market garden production is expected to improve the quality of school canteen meals. This experiment also provides an opportunity for the students, as key players in this production, to be introduced to the practice of agroecology.
For over 40 years, the Tindila elementary school had been operating without access to drinking water. A situation that made daily life difficult for pupils and teachers alike. Paul BAGRE, a teacher at Tindila school, explains: “Since its creation in 1987, the school has had no water supply. In record time, Inades-Formation Burkina came to our rescue. Not only did we get a borehole, but also a nutritious garden. This will improve the pupils’ canteen and enable them to learn how to farm”. . For his part, Ephraïm BAGRE, a CM1 pupil, confides: “I’m very happy with the garden. We’re learning a lot, and what’s more, the meal at the canteen will be better”.
Thanks to the RSAClim project, food and nutritional security will be ensured at the Tindila elementary school through the agroecology practiced by pupils. This project is being carried out by Inades-Formation Burkina in 10 villages in the Passoré province, with the support of Fondation S, over a two-year period (2024-2025).
Julio YAMEOGO, Patrice DA
