Passingbamba Zoré was still in his twenties a couple years ago when he started a poultry raising business. A hardworking member of the Solomnore village in the commune of Pissila in the Center-North region of Burkina Faso, he soon understood how hard it was for small-scale producers like himself to get access to larger buyers.
Other factors plagued his business efforts – he could not afford an improved chicken coop, vaccinations, or improved feed to keep his chickens healthy. As a result, a lot of the chickens died, making his business less profitable. Furthermore, given his low income, Passingbamba and his new wife rarely had enough food, usually eating just once per day. At one point, he considered moving abroad to Cote d’Ivoire for a better livelihood.
Nevertheless, Passingbamba had potential, and when he learned about a poultry breeding development opportunity through his producer group, Teel Taaba, he decided with the group to apply. Contestant producer groups were judged on their knowledge of poultry production, their legal status, how the group functions, and whether they receive other outside financial support from funded programs or partners in the same field of activity.
Passingbamba and his producer group placed near the top, out of 200 competitors, and were selected to receive technical assistance from the Victory Against Malnutrition Project (ViM). Funded by USAID’s Office of Food for Peace and implemented by ACDI/VOCA and Save the Children, the ViM project is reducing food insecurity by increasing and diversifying agricultural and livestock production, improving farmers’ incomes and household health and nutrition.
ViM trained Passingbamba and other members of the Teel Taaba group in poultry vaccination and organic fertilizer production using the poultry waste. ViM also supported him through technical assistance and provided him with doors and windows recycled from food distribution containers to use to construct a larger improved henhouse. With his personal determination and support from the village, Passingbamba could significantly improve his poultry business. Today he has over 200 chickens at any given time, up from just six birds when he started out.
“I now vaccinate all the chickens in the village, and I set aside a portion of each fee I receive for future activities and purchases.” – Passingbamba Zoré, poultry farmer and ViM project participant
With the money from increased sales, he bought a motorcycle and started raising goats and sheep for additional income. Beyond technical training, ViM also connected the Teel Taaba producer group to larger markets outside of the local area through sales fairs and further linkages to buyers.
Passingbamba’s future is bright indeed. He and wife, Balkissa, now have a small toddler running around and a new baby on the way, and his family eats considerably more often. He constructed an organic compost structure to produce manure and fertilize his crops. Now he manages the composting as well to further increase his production.
Passingbamba now has no plans to move abroad, thanks to his thriving business at home in Burkina Faso. He is planning to build a larger improved henhouse and to continue growing his production and breeding capacity.
Learn more about the Victory Against Malnutrition Project (ViM).
