Location
DRC
Province of eastern Kasaï
Beneficiaries
1,000
households
Period
2024 - 2026
24 months
Context:
Since its independence from Belgium in 1960, after more than 75 years of occupation, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has had to cope with numerous internal conflicts, inheriting a fragile colonial structure that left a highly diverse population, fragmented both ethnically and regionally. Added to this are external influences, such as the funding of militias and armed groups by neighboring countries, power struggles between different political elites that have led to periods of severe instability, and the country's wealth in natural resources, which arouses intense covetousness and fuels the race for control of these resources. Despite this wealth, the DRC remains one of the poorest countries in the world, with a very low GDP per capita and a largely informal economy.
From an economic perspective, the province of Kasaï Oriental possesses significant potential in the agro-pastoral sector. It has vast expanses of arable land suitable for food and market gardening crops, as well as plains and plateaus conducive to livestock farming, both large and small.
The province’s economic life is also strongly influenced by the mining sector, particularly diamond extraction. The artisanal exploitation of diamonds has led to a massive movement of populations towards mining areas, resulting in the abandonment of agricultural activities. Consequently, the province has become dependent on other provinces and foreign sources to meet its food needs (Source: UNICEF).
Project description:
This project aims to improve the living conditions of farming households, in particular by helping to ensure their food security.
To achieve this, CARE is focusing on a number of complementary areas: climate resilience and sustainable development, gender equality, and community training to bring about long-term change.
Specific objectives:
• Improve the resilience and autonomy of vulnerable agricultural households in the face of economic, environmental, and climate shocks. This objective is achieved through increased incomes and enhanced food and nutritional security, using an integrated approach that combines collective and individual actions at the farm level.
• Strengthen farmers’ capacities by promoting the adoption of innovative and sustainable agricultural practices in order to reduce their economic and food vulnerability. This involves improving the sustainability of production systems through tailored advisory support and technical training, enabling farmers to adopt at least one innovative and sustainable agricultural practice (e.g., crop rotation or intercropping, use of biopesticides, improved fallow systems, composting, green manures, improved varieties, or agroforestry practices).
• Develop beneficiaries’ economic and financial management skills while encouraging greater participation of women in decision-making processes within agricultural holdings.
• Strengthen the economic and financial management capacities of the most vulnerable farm managers, and promote women’s leadership as well as their involvement in both strategic and operational decision-making at farm level.
• Provide training and support to direct beneficiaries to enable them to maintain simplified accounting records of their activities, both at individual and cooperative levels.
• Deliver transformative gender training, including the engagement of men in promoting positive masculinity and preventing gender-based violence, in order to enhance women’s participation in decision-making related to farm management and household-level decisions.
Key Themes:
Food security
Sustainable development
Equality
Project by CARE Belgium, commissioned by Enabel.
