The village of Jakadee

This is the village of Jakadee, 15 miles out of the town Makeni (in central Sierra Leone). This is the village that we are working in to try and transform the lives of the villagers...and all through rice! Currently, the villagers grow rice in the traditional method, which is over 2000 years old. This method is based on the random scattering of seeds by hand and often expensive fertiliser had to be added to help productivity. Sometimes this method has a lucky year and provides for the village but more often than not, if the harvest is poor it can leave the villagers in a position where they literally run out of rice to eat before the next harvest is ready. The System of Rice Intensification is a method of growing rice that has been tried and tested in many countries around the world. It essentially aims to give the best possible yield for a given area of land. The basic principles are very simple: 1) Do not over water the area 2)Plant individual seeds by hand with plenty of space 3) Weed the plot regularly 4) Be very attentive to the development of the seedlings An educational guidance booklet has already been prepared to start work in the area with a trial plot of land. Below are pictures of the Jakadee village...this is how they farm currently. The current method of growing rice: vast, unmanageable and with an unpredictable yield. A woman separating the rice from the chaff.  There is so little money to spare she does not get paid to do this. She works for about 10 hours per day and is only allowed to pic up the bits that fall on the floor. A bird scarer's shelter - A villager literally sits there all day and when birds land they shout and scream to chase them away.