Scholarships to tackle poverty and the climate crisis
Tree Aid staff and partners awarded Marshall Papworth Scholarships in argriculture development 01st January 2019
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Tree Aid has partnered with Marshal Papworth since 2016 to help deliver sustainable farming techniques to communities in sub-Saharan Africa. Since then, 11 Tree Aid employees from West Africa and Ethiopia and staff from our project partners have taken part in training through the agricultural and horticultural scholarship scheme.
Marshal Papworth’s scholarships are open to African development workers and lead farmers from developing countries. The scheme helps students to develop practical skills and valuable knowledge, which they can then share within their local communities in order to meet future food needs for generations to come.
We identify individuals from our work in sub-Saharan Africa who would benefit from the Marshal Papworth 10-week course so that they can them disseminate the information with their teams.
Our students
In the 2019 course, Tree Aid secured support from the Marshal Papworth fund for five students – three Tree Aid employees and two staff members from long-term development partners of Tree Aid.
Our participants are Ramatu Saaka, Tree Aid’s project facilitator working on our Ecosia project in Yendi, Ghana; Kalifa Traora, Tree Aid’s technical development officer for the Forest Governance project in Burkina Faso; Owen Atindana, Tree Aid's project officer for the Grow Hope project in Ghana; Talato Charlotte Zoungrana Silsha, a project support officer working with women’s groups using almonds and shea butter; and Joseph Nsobila Adonna, an organic certification and monitoring and evaluation officer in Ghana.
Tree Aid technical development officer and Marshal Papworth student, Kalifa talked about why he believes the course is so important: “In an increasingly complex world, with regards to the challenges we face from climate change, sustainable food production and environmental degradation, it is essential that we are technically equipped to be able to bring the most effective solutions to those who we support.”
Practical learning and development
Tree Aid participants have gained an Edexcel validated Level 3 certificate in agriculture from Harper Adams University, a leading agricultural university in the UK.
The course has been carefully tailored to meet the needs of students; wherever possible, learning takes place through fieldtrips and in a hands-on way, rather than in the classroom. There are modules looking at animal and crop husbandry, machinery operations, information technology approaches such as the use of mobile technology in agriculture, post-harvest management and technology and small-scale business management.
Trainees becoming trainers
In turn, the course also benefits from the experience of Tree Aid, with members of our team involved in training the participants. We have delivered training on the contribution of trees and forests in dryland areas, agroforestry and parkland systems; carbon offset projects through afforestation and reforestation (A&R) activities in areas of deforested or degraded land; and how these A&R activities contribute to emission reductions.
The course is as much about “soft” skills as technical knowledge. Training other trainers is vital in order to share skills in isolated rural communities. With each student having a different agricultural background, sharing experiences amongst the student is as important as learning from academia. The course also teaches students how to pass on knowledge in a user-friendly, visual and practical way and how to communicate with, and influence people, to help ensure support for community programmes.
The scholarship programme is as a huge opportunity to help students develop their own skills, access information from a leading agricultural university and, very importantly, have an opportunity to share experiences amongst themselves.
“In an increasingly complex world, with regards to the challenges we face from climate change, sustainable food production and environmental degradation, it is essential that we are technically equipped to be able to bring the most effective solutions to those who we support.”
