"Un orto nel deserto da realizzare nei campi profughi Saharawi” (Algeria)

Project financed by the Italian Presidency of the Council of Ministers with the 8x1000 IRPEF quota.
Rif. Prat. FM 111/2019 CUP D15B23000310008
PLACE OF INTERVENTION:
Sahrawi refugee camps - Algeria
Città: Chahid Hafed
District: Tindouf
AREA OF INTERVENTION:
"World Hunger" Category

LEADING ORGANIZATION

Associazione “Luciano Lama” O.D.V.: it was established in 1998 in Enna (Italy). Since 2005 it has been recognized as a suitable NGO by the decree of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and since 2022, it has been regularly registered in the National Register of the Third Sector, in the section of Voluntary Organizations.
The Association is a non-profit one and it aims to pursue goals of social solidarity to people in vulnerable conditions.
Since its establishment, the Association has carried out many projects, both in Italy (locally and nationally) and abroad, especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Saharawi refugee camps in Algeria.

PARTNERS

Media Luna Roja Saharawi: it is a humanitarian institution of aid and collaboration with Saharawi Public Administrations with the aim of preventing and alleviating human suffering, following the humanitarian philosophy of the International Red Cross Movement.
Associazione culturale Innova Civitas: it is an Association founded in 2011 in Enna (Italy). It operates in the field of valorisation of cultural and artistic heritage, promotion of tourism and entrepreneurial development, contributing to the economic and social growth of the local area.

General objective

Improving the quality of life in Sahrawi refugee camps.

Specific objectives

  1. Improving agricultural production capacity in refugee camps.
  2. Enhancing knowledge of sustainable agricultural practices, water management and the use of hydroponic crops.
  3. Improving knowledge about the living conditions of the Sahrawi people.

Expected results

R1. Realization of a system for hydroponic agriculture in a desert environment and teaching materials for training.
R2. Implementation of a network of gardens installed in refugee camps, with an increased agricultural production.
R3. n. 30 local people trained with technical skills for the development of hydroponic agriculture systems.
R4. Information events on the situation of the Sahrawi people.

DIRECT BENEFICIARIES

Sahrawi families residing in the refugee camp participating in the project; families who will benefit from the products of the gardens.

INDIRECT BENEFICIARIES

The locals of the refugee camps near Tindouf (about 187,000 people according to the UN census); partner organizations, local associations, political stakeholders.

PROJECT SUMMARY

The project aims to support rural development and food security for the Sahrawi people. A people who, in order to safeguard their own identity, have been forced to take refuge in the Algerian desert.
The project was born from the need to ensure, or in some cases increase, the availability of fresh and healthy food in an area where normal agriculture is practically impossible. The hydroponic agricultural system, with minimal use of the soil, allows you to grow in arid, not very fertile areas, with limited or in some cases no water resources.
In fact, the system allows, by controlling the normal parameters of cultivation (pH, EC, etc.), to maximize yields obtaining healthy food as it is free of any type of soil pathogen. As a result, hydroponic system makes so-called "soilless crops" from soilless cultivation systems possible. The use of water becomes a vehicle for transporting nutrients ("water work", from the Greek "hydro" water and "ponos" work).
This experience will also be very important for the other camps as, having similar conditions, they will be able to develop a network of hydroponic gardens, improving their economic and technological independence.