Gorongosa National Park, Organic Farming and Integrated Pest Management Programs

The below projects are to be implemented in the rural communities around Gorongosa National Park, in Sofala, Mozambique;

Main Lines of the Organic Farming & NIPM* Programs

Introduction

It may appear, as you read this document, that some subjects are repeated. This is true, but necessary if a clear picture is to be drawn; the systems we propose are very diverse simply because nature is diverse, and it is natural systems that we are proposing to introduce into the ‘GNP’* buffer zone. In nature, everything interacts either directly or indirectly with everything else and as such, everything has a place. The term ‘mono-culture’ has no place here because it is not natural and creates an imbalance and as a result has become an expensive way to farm and has placed massive demands on the natural resources of our planet, and the industry that has grown around this ‘modern agriculture’ continues to pollute our river systems, land and atmosphere. Thankfully, we are becoming more aware of what we have done and how we can reverse the damage. Here, our responsibilities are to help the farmers in the ‘GNP’* buffer zone to farm in a more sustainable manner, given the conditions they live in, thereby securing the future of generations to come. We understand that this will take time to achieve, and so, drawing upon our experience of the region, we have developed a model in which we aim to support interactive and demonstrative initiatives, within the communities of the ‘GNP’ buffer zone.

Glossary of Terms (*)
GNP- Gorongosa National Park
NIPM- Natural Integrated Pest Management (Uses only indigenous resources)
OF- Organic Farming
CA- Conservation Agriculture
Soil Communities- Living soil organisms such as earthworms, grubs, bacteria, nematodes, moss algae etc

The ‘Why’ & the ‘Wherefore’

We wish to introduce the use of Organic Farming and Natural Integrated Pest Management into the buffer zone of Gorongosa National Park, in Sofala Province, Mozambique, because;

Traditional ‘Slash and Burn, Moving’ agricultural practices have become obsolete;
Increased human populations living within de-limited boundaries.
This has placed land under ever increasing pressure, and periods of fallow have become shorter as the demand for land has increased, resulting in soils that have become increasingly less fertile.
Moving agriculture is no longer sustainable because of this demand for land, and our goal is to introduce more sustainable farming practices that progressively improve soil fertility.
Sustainable Alternatives;
Making use of existing, albeit, dormant ‘soil communities’* by introducing practices that provide ideal conditions for those ‘soil communities’* to thrive and become active once again. These ‘soil communities’* will provide growing crops with all of their nutritive requirements, thereby negating the need for expensive fertilizers.
Markets; Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of how what they eat is grown, so the market for organic produce is the market of the future.
‘NIPM’* offers an alternative in the management of crop pest infestations using indigenous plants and predatory insect life. Effective pest management will increase crop yields and improved produce quality.
Healthy soils; we wish to re-establish active ‘soil communities,* to reduce crop yield loss and improve produce quality. Healthy soils will result in healthy crops which, as a result will also be less prone to disease, another contributing factor to improved crop yields and produce quality.
Nutrition; Improved produce quality will raise the nutritional value of the produce, and additional crops will be planted in community with the traditional crops, thereby improving the diet of subsistence farmers and their families through diversification. Diversification is an integral part of our plan to create micro ecosystems, the array of plants chosen to play specific roles within that system.
Commerce; Improved crop yields will increase the excess that the subsistence farmers sell and the improved produce quality will raise the value of their product.
Increased production capacity; The introduction of ‘OF’* conserves water and as such there will be more moisture retained in the soil and vegetables can be grown even after the rains have finished, without the use of irrigation, thereby making it possible for farmers to grow fresh vegetables for the household at times usually considered too dry.
Chemicals; The introduction of ‘OF’* and ‘NIPM’* negates the need of any chemical input, thus eliminating the possibility of accidental poisoning etc and resulting in ‘clean’ produce.
‘NIPM’ research will lead to the use of indigenous plants and predatory insects, to manage pest levels to an acceptable level, and will reduce the need to import exotics for this purpose.
Potential ‘spin-offs’ resulting from the introduction of ‘OF’* and ‘NIPM’* that will benefit the communities in the ‘GNP’* buffer zone;
The marketability of organic produce.
Tourism;
Restaurants at tourist lodges in ‘GNP’* can advertise organic food.
Tourists can visit the organic farms and ‘NIPM’* research plots.
Cleaner rivers, increased fish populations, bird life etc.
How do we propose to spread the use of ‘OF’* and ‘NIPM’* in the ‘GNP’* buffer zone?
Demonstration; traditional practices are deeply ingrained and previous attempts for the introduction of ‘CA’* (not the same as ‘OF’*) have been only partially successful. This we believe is because orthodox educational methods are not sufficient to convince people that there are better ways to farm. Demonstration has proved to be a more effective method.
We will assist selected farmers and schools of various communities to convert to ‘OF’* and to use ‘NIPM’* practices, and encourage the farmers in those areas to attend interactive ‘field days’ where they can see for themselves how to practice ‘OF’* and how beneficial the system is. We believe that an interactive approach should also be used at schools to teach the next generation of farmers, useful skills and practices.
Why ‘OF’* and not ‘CA’*?
‘OF’* is a more holistic approach. ‘CA’* encompasses some ‘modern farming’ practices, such as the use of chemical pesticides when pest levels reach specified thresholds, or the use of synthetic fertilisers, whereas ‘OF’* promotes the introduction of natural controls and an integrated relationship between man and nature through a diverse micro ecosystem of which man is a part.

Grant Norvall
11th March 2008