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After the devastating droughts of the 1970's and 1980's, African farmers in the Sahel region mobilized to reclaim their land from the encroaching desert. Thirty years later, their work has secured 13 million acres of farmland, fed 3 million people, recharged village wells, and supplied useful and valuable tree products. Despite growing populations and the threats of climate change, food security has improved in the Sahel region.
Both the President and the Congress have prioritized US government investment in Global Food Security through multiple initiatives. This discussion will focus on the lessons we can learn from this farmer-managed, agro-environmental transformation.
Keynote
Speaker: Mr. Franklin Moore, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Africa and
Agency Global Food Security Coordinator, USAID
PANEL 1: Voices from the Sahel
Moderator: John Ambler, Senior Vice President of Programs, Oxfam America
- Mr. Yacouba Sawadogo, Lead farmer and natural resource innovator, Yatanga province, Burkina Faso
- Mr. Chris Reij, Natural Resource Management Specialist, Center for International Cooperation
- Mr. Mathieu Ouedraogo, Director, Sahel Re-Greening initiative
- Dr. Mahamane Larwanou, Senior Programme Officer, Africa Forest Forum (AFF)
- Ms. Sakina Mati, Director, village agro-forestry committee, Maradi, Niger
PANEL 2: Practitioner's insights into the Global Food Security Initiative
Moderator: John Ambler, Senior Vice President of Programs, Oxfam
America
- Mr. Chris Reij (see above)
- Mr. Jim French, Kansas farmer, Lead Field Organizer, Oxfam American
- Mr. Issa Martin Bikienga, Deputy ExecutiveSecretary, Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel, former Minister of Agriculture, Burkina Faso
PANEL 3: Getting Development Partnerships Right
Moderator:
Ms Alexandria L. Panehal, Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for
Economic Growth, Agriculture and Trade
- Mr. Gray Tappen, Geographer, Remote Sensing Expert, US Geological Survey
- Dr. Mahamane Larwanou, Senior Programme Officer, African Forest Forum (AFF)
- Dr. Edwige Botoni, Senior Coordinator, "Sahel Study", Committee for Drought Control in Sahel
- Mr. Asif Shaikh, CEO, International Resources Group
- Mr. George F. Taylor II, Former Director of the Office of Agriculture, Natural
Resources and Private Sector Development (ANP), USAID/Niger
Closing
Speaker: Emmy B. Simmons, Former Assistant Administrator for Economic
Growth, Agriculture, and Trade, USAID
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