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In the village of Léna, Fulani women are about to start producing yoghurt , dégué and gapal
It all started barely two years ago. I had gone to see my friend Mesmin Millogo in Léna. I told him about his fellow Fulani herders in Nyassan, and those in Diébougou and Pa, who had now set up their own dairy plants. He told me that an organisation running a project had paid a study tour for some of the Fulani of his village. They had gone off as far as Bittou to visit the dairy there. But since then, nothing more had happened. I took him along to see some of the Fulani in Léna and the neighbouring Kofila.
 During our talks with some of the men and women of these villages, it was decided that the dairy project should go ahead and that the women would be in charge. For this it was necessary that they learn to read, write and calculate. Already at the very beginning of our meeting, the woman at the head of the Fulani Women’s Association of the village impressed me with her determination.
 Thus, at the begin ning of January this year, two Fulani teaching centres were started, one in Léna and one in Kofila. Later in January these centres provided a further training course. At Kofila there was a 100% success rate. This meant that we could move on with the setting up of the dairy plant. The herders of Léna and Kofila agreed that the plant should be built in Kofila, where most of the herders live, 3 km from Léna.
 They also agreed on the location of Kofila because the supply of milk is greater and the local herders would take responsible for the construction, but would then receive support for material and training. 3 weeks ago we learnt that the building was now in place, a very basic one, with a 21 corrugated tin plate roofing (the number of standard plates is often used as an indication of size, translator’s note*).. A week later I went to Kofila to deliver the required material, a deep freeze, large pans, ice containers … and even bicycles for the delivery of the finished products , yoghurt, dégué (yoghurt mixed with sorghum grains ), and gapal, a popular drink with the Fulani tribes, consisting of milk, sorghum flour and sugar, the production of which will start this week.
Indeed, at the time of writing, the lady who is president of the dairy in Koudougou is in Kofila to give the women of the new dairy an initiation course and another teacher is there to talk to all the herders and give advice on the management of a dairy herd, hygiene precautions at milking and harvesting and storage of animal feed.
 At this moment in time, during the Moslem lent, Ramadan, the products of the new dairy plant will most certainly be much appreciated, at the moment of breaking the fast! (after sunset).
To see more pictures of the new dairy plant, we refer you our Photo gallery, n° 42.
Koudougou, August 25th 2009
Maurice Oudet, Director, SEDELAN |
