.JPG?width=768&height=384)
They live in the village Synah Ballah in Mali’s eastern region Gao. Since her husband’s death, she has struggled to afford food for her family. “I couldn’t meet the needs of my children such as feeding them, sending them to school and accessing health services,” she says. Now, our Mali team has opened a cereal bank in her village where families can buy grain at low cost.
High food prices
Today, Halid is able to put food on the table. The cereal bank has made it easier for her to buy food during the lean season, when grain prices skyrocket.
The cereal bank’s community warehouse makes grain available during the harvest period. It is set up to fund the annual restocking with grain sale proceeds.
“I couldn’t meet the needs of my children such as feeding them, sending them to school and accessing health services,”Hawa Walet Halid
One of two warehouses
Seyna Bellah’s cereal bank is one of two warehouses that we have opened in eastern Mali. Thanks to funds from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, we’re able to provide food at low cost for communities at both the warehouse in Gao and the second cereal bank we opened in the village of Tassirist in Ménaka.
Both cereal banks store 21 tonnes of grain.
Agricultural training and village saving
As part of our operation at the grain bank in Ménaka, we offer agricultural production and processing trainings.
In our programme, we have also trained residents to create and lead village saving groups. The groups allow the residents, who have no access to regular banking, to save money and hand out loans.
