African Press Organization, Modern Ghana and All Africa are among the news agencies to report on promising work to improve Swaziland’s agricultural productivity.

Swaziland has suffered years of drought, economic slowdown and an aids pandemic that virtually wiped out a generation. FAO estimates that almost 20 per cent of the population is undernourished.

The Swaziland Agricultural Development Project (SADP) aims to improve nutrition and stimulate economic growth. It is a joint effort by the government and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and supported by the European Union,

The project is focusing on connecting farmers with markets and improving the environment in which the agricultural sector operates; two key challenges that can help to lift smallholder farmers out of poverty. Already, over 2 000 farmers have received trained in practices such as conservation agriculture and agroforestry.

According to Nehru Essomba, the project’s Chief Technical Advisor: “You cannot tackle rural poverty, if you don’t put the smallholder farmers first.”

Read the full story: Putting Swaziland’s smallholders first / EU and FAO’s efforts to revitalize Swazi agriculture pick up steam