Greening Darfur
All it takes to transform this part of Sudan ... is for someone to give a dam
Rainfall in Darfur has become increasingly erratic, with most of the region entirely arid for 10 months a year. The results have been devastating. Crop failure. Livestock wiped out. Mass migration. Hunger. Conflict - with 2 million people forced to leave home and enter refugee camps.
Aid agencies have been forced to leave Darfur but because we employ local staff Practical Action are still there, still making a long-term difference.
Earth dams can change lives
We are helping to build dams that collect and store the rain that falls in Darfur's brief rainy season, allowing hundreds of local families to irrigate and farm the neighbouring lands. Often for the first time in a generation.
The planning and construction of the dams brings prosperity to the region, with employment among women in particular rising by 300%. With this simple technology, people living in poverty could turn barren deserts into lush, fertile farmland.
The concept of the dam isn't complicated - and for Darfur's people, this could mean the difference between life and death. An earth dam is one of the few ways families can escape a life of dependency on food aid.
Our projects are needed now more than ever. Please make a donation today and help to bring life-changing solutions to families living in difficult circumstances throughout the world.
Practical Action has already made a difference to Darfur's people …
Zeinab was struggling to feed her family. But in 2008 an earth dam turned Zeinab's life around, enabling her to grow crops like sorghum, cucumber and okra. Within months things changed: "Every day I watch my crops grow," she told us. "Never did I think I would be able to provide the food my family needs. How lucky I am … I am starting to see the landscape of my childhood returning."
