• About
  • Our Work
  • Join
  • Partner
  • Media
EMAIL SUBSCRIBE
DONATE
SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER

Sign-up for monthly updates on Winrock's work around the world.

Volunteer Blog

VOLUNTEER BLOG

Tales from a Winrock intern in Mali

  • SHARE:
  • Copy

Posted on June 10, 2011

In January 2011, Justine Lindemann left the US to spend six months with Winrock International as an intern for the Mali Farmer-to-Farmer program. Having previously lived in Senegal and worked as Africa Program Assistant at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Justine had relevant experience -and a lot of enthusiasm- to bring to her assignment in Mali.

She shares her initial thoughts on her rewarding experience in the blog entry below:

“After working in the think tank world in Washington, DC for a few years, I was itching to get out of the office and do something much more ‘hands-on’ in the agriculture sector. Something that could be called fieldwork in the truest sense of the word. A series of internet searches turned up a plethora of pay-to-volunteer programs, or volunteer abroad vacation packages, which wasn’t at all what I was looking for. When I stumbled across Winrock International’s webpage, I knew I had found a unique organization doing really innovative work. Because I have neither an advanced degree in agriculture nor have I spent the last 40 years honing my farming skills, I didn’t know if there would be a place for me within the organization. Nevertheless, I emailed the headquarters office to inquire about their projects in Francophone Africa, and six months later was sitting on a plane headed to Bamako, Mali.

Winrock’s programs in Mali concentrate on small-scale farmers and farmers associations, working from a value chain approach to increase production and productivity. The socio-political and institutional setting in Mali is favorable to investment; and the under exploited economic potential of the land, animal and plant resources here led Winrock and USAID (together with the implementing partner ACDI/VOCA) to target Mali as one of three West African countries in which to implement the Farmer-to-Farmer program.

Farmer-to-Farmer (and the shoot-off program in Mali, MAVEN) brings American technical experts to Mali to work directly with farmers and producers for short-term technical assistance. The projects are extremely focused, and the nature of the program lends itself to an effective targeting of the needs of the producers here in Mali.

Since arriving in Mali in January, I have worked with people across the spectrum of agriculture. Small ruminant (goat and sheep) producers and veterinarians who are themselves experts in the field; generally illiterate women starting their own market gardening cooperative; milk stockists who buy milk from local collection centers to resell it in Bamako; urban farmers who produce everything from beets and strawberries to bananas, cashews, and mangoes; and fish farmers looking to increase their income by raising fish in ponds dug in their land.

The challenges are significant, but not insurmountable. A field assessment is thus essential before the volunteer is recruited from the United States. Without a specific and detailed plan of the problem to be addressed, the two or three weeks that the volunteer consecrates to the project would be spent doing a diagnostic of the problem rather than trying to find ways to solve it. The first month and a half of my six-month internship was spent travelling all over Mali meeting with and talking to people about what they do and the obstacles they are facing. We spoke with rice farmers who struggle with worm infestations; fish farmers whose ponds leak water during the dry season; veterinarians who experience very high death rates amongst new-born goats and sheep; and urban producers who are gradually losing the land they farm on to construction companies and apartment complexes.

The volunteers that have traveled here come from a wide variety of backgrounds, ranging from 26 years old to over 70: a gender specialist, a businessman, a goat farmer/marriage and family therapist, former Peace Corps Volunteers, and the list goes on. Over the four months that I have been here, I have seen first-hand the need for the sort of dedicated technical assistance and capacity building that these volunteers can offer. The thirst for knowledge and the desire to move forward in Mali is insatiable, and the availability of trainings or expertise is inadequate. Infusing a community with fresh ideas for how to move forward in their production or business is not a panacea, but it ensures progress, and encourages innovation for the future.”

–Justine Lindemann

A couple of favorite photos included below:

women's cooperative members take notes during Farmer-to-Farmer training

women’s cooperative members take notes during Farmer-to-Farmer training

winrock-farmer-to-farmer-staff-and-members-of-a-womens-cooperative-in-mali

Winrock staff and members of a women’s cooperative in Mali

Posted in Africa, Mali
ABOUT FARMER-TO-FARMER WINROCK VOLUNTEER ASSISTANCE

SUBSCRIBE TO POSTS

Loading

ARCHIVE

  • December 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • April 2021
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • November 2019
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011

CATEGORIES

  • AET
  • Africa
    • Ghana
    • Senegal
  • Asia
  • Bangladesh
  • Cuba
  • El Salvador
  • Ethiopia
  • Field Staff
  • Guinea
  • Kenya
  • Latin America
  • Mali
  • Myanmar
  • Nepal
  • Nigeria
  • Postharvest
  • Rural Livelihoods
  • Senegal
  • Spotlights
  • Volunteer Feedback
  • Volunteer of the Month
  • Winrock Staff
WinrockIntl
Tweets by @WinrockIntl
Follow @WinrockIntl

204 E 4th Street | North Little Rock, Arkansas 72114

ph +1 501 280 3000 | fx +1 501 280 3090

2451 Crystal Drive, Suite 700 | Arlington, Virginia 22202

ph +1 703 302 6500 | fx +1 703 302 6512

  • Contact
  • E-News Signup
  • Low Bandwidth
  • Code of Conduct
  • Winrock Privacy Statement
  • Site Map
  • Terms of Use
Copyright © 2015- Winrock International
DEV ENVIRONMENT