Hajnalka PetricsJunior Rural Development and Gender Officer

FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia

Carol DjeddahFAO Gender, Equity and Rural Employment Division

Education on agricultural and life skills knowledge

Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools (JFFLS)an example of social farming

CoP Farming for Health

24-27 May 2009

Pisa, Italy

Contents of presentation

• Objective• Themes

1. FAO and social agriculture2. JFFLS

• FFS and FLS• The concept and first target groups• The JFFLS approach

3. Relevance of JFFLS in Europe and Central Asia• Conclusions

FAO and social agriculture

• FAO’s mandate: alleviate poverty and hunger by achieving food security

• Target group of FAO assistance: rural poor and other disadvantaged rural dwellers (indigenous people,

women, disabled, powerless)

• ESW mission: to empower and create opportunities for the rural poor.

• Target group, final objective – social agriculture-description Di Iacovo and O’Connor (eds.), 2009

JFFLS – what is the concept about?

A response to the increased vulnerability ofchildren and young people, especially those

orphaned due to HIV/AIDS.

Process of empowering

through building of skills andproviding relevant knowledge as tools to

help the children to improve their lives and livelihoods and regain their self-esteem.

The Start: WHEREProject started in 2004 in Mozambique:

4 initial schools

• Mozambique – 58 schools• Kenya – 25 schools • Zimbabwe – 27 schools• Namibia – 8 schools• Malawi – 40 schools• Zambia – 6 schools• Swaziland – 20 schools• Tanzania – 8 schools• Uganda – 36 schools• Sudan – 3 schools

• Cameroon – 5 schools

WHY JFFLS for rural orphans?

Scarce agricultural knowledgeMarginalized – VulnerableHungry and sickIsolated and invisibleAbused and exploited Poor self-esteem No vision for the future

MalnutritionFood insecurity

Risk of HIV infection

Deadly cycleDeadly cycle

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

• JFFLS targets children and young peopleaged between 12 – 18 years.

• Equal number of girls and boys (15-15).

• E.g.: Orphans, demobilized child solders, children in refugee camp, children in post-conflict areas, children of vulnerable ethnic groups (e.g. roma).

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

• JFFLS targets rural youth.

• Most of them will settle in rural areas and derive theirlivelihoods from agriculture.

• JFFLS seeks to provide vulnerable children and youth(also) with agricultural skills to improve their futurelivelihood opportunities /(self)-employment, food selfsufficiency/.

• Combination of traditional knowledge and modern but environment friendly techniques (IPM).

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

• The learning field is a living classroom to provide practical skills

• Participatory learning vs. hierarchical instructional teaching

• Experimenting problems encountered on the field

• Observe, analyse, present, solve problems, share knowledge

• Make informed decisions• Enhanced self-esteem

photo credit@ FAO

East Jerusalem

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

• Crop-cycle Life cycle

As children analyse crop growth-related problems as part ofagroecosystem analysis, they analyse problems face during theirchildhood.

• HOW?Each learning module corresponds to the agriculturalcycle topics: preparation, planning, growing up healthy, diversity,protection, water for life, care and loss, business- andentrepreneurship skills.

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

Art, theatre, dance and songs play a central role in:

• encouraging self-expression • getting to know local

culture, own identity• increase

resilience/sensibilitytowards others

• learn about gender equalityand children rights

JFFLS Facilitators

Source: Djeddah, C., Mavanga, R., and Hendrickx , n.a.

WEST BANK & THE GAZA STRIP

The JFFLS approach is presently used in 12 schools in West Bank and 4 in the Gaza Strip

The programme in West Bank and theGaza Strip was designed tocounterbalance:

• the decline in human and capital

• the consistent decline in socio-economic conditions, which negatively affect employment opportunities for young entrants into the labour market.

photo credit@ FAO East Jerusalem Training of Facilitators in Jenin – West Bank

Relevance of JFFLS to the Region of Europe and Central Asia

• Orphans due to conflict/war (e.g. Western Balkans)

• Children of vulnerable ethnic groups (e.g. roma) in urban slums with no life skills and no any livelihood options for future (e.g. Serbia) –Extending JFFLS target group for urban youth offering them livelihood option in rural area.

• Vulnerable children due to increasing number of death due to HIV/AIDS (e.g. in Central Asia due to fast growing intravenous drug use)

• Vulnerable youth due to impossibility to access education and/or employment; poor quality of education, which does not offer life and entrepreneurships skills (South-East Europe)

• Girls with limited opportunity to participate in vocational training, to acquire agricultural knowledge, which leads to long-term dependence on male counterparts (e.g. Central Asia)

Other aspects of JFFLS

• Selection of field• Development of training material • What is there after for children?

Exit strategies

CONCLUSIONS

Place of social agriculture/farming for health in a wider political agenda

Society withMORALETHIC

EQUITYPARITY

RESPECTSKILLS

HEALTHY SELF-ESTEEM AND CONDUCT OFLIFE

Thank you for your attention!

E-mail: Hajnalka.Petrics@fao.org

Farmer Field School and Farmer Life School

• Farmer Field School (FFS): farmers learn by doing and experimenting the problems encountered in the field.

• Farmer Life School (FLS): Farmers examine the problems that threaten their livelihoods (poverty, HIV/AIDS, landlessness, domestic violence, children’s school attendance) and make informed decisions.

Junior Farmer Field and Life School

Field Structure in one JFFLS in Mozambique

Source: Djeddah, C., Mavanga, R., and Hendrickx , n.a.