When I first landed in Freetown International Airport, I had the honor of being welcomed by Mr. Donald Ola Smart, who's position at Mountain Lion Agriculture (MLA) I was not sure of at that time. However, while we were driving back to Makeni, the capital of the northern province and where MLA's headquarters are, he talked at length about Sierra Leone’s past history and his commitment to the reintegration into society of the civil war’s ex-combatants (a deadly conflict that Sierra Leone suffered from 1991 to 2001). I also soon grasped that he is actually the CEO of MLA...
Continue Reading >>Fellows Blog Posts by Victor Prevot
In a recent report from the Oxford Business School, it was estimated that 66% of Ghana’s rice consumption was supported by imports. This figure might sound almost absurd when one considers the availability and fertility of soil suitable for rice crops or the dedication to hard work of Ghanaian farmers. Part of the endeavour to restore better levels of local rice production - the government-driven irrigation project in the Volta region (East Ghana) - started around 4 years ago on an area extending over more than 5,000 hectares. With a willingness to provide land to a maximum number of...
Continue Reading >>Meeting with Kiva borrowers is a privilege that I have had the opportunity to enjoy multiple times since I have landed in Africa. Oftentimes, their stories, professional or personal, have made me forget the initial reason for my visit. Every single story has something special, and you never know what to expect until you arrive at their home, sit on a wobbly seat and start listening. Whether they are touching, inspiring, heartbreaking or promising, stories always move me deeply. My name is Victor, a Kiva fellow based in Cape Coast, Ghana, and I wish to introduce you to Joyce - a...
Continue Reading >>Today, we are heading off to Morogoro, name given to both the town and its larger district. In fact, our journey ends in a rustic village called Kisemu. Located an eight-hour drive away from Dar-es-salaam, the main economic city that concentrates 90% of Tanzania's wealth, our destination has fair chances to be contrastingly remote and poor. Once we arrive there, not without trouble as the rainy season reaches its peak, we enjoy a delicious meal, a soup made with locally bred chicken, then have a long night sleep to have us ready for the next day: we will have some young women to... Continue Reading >>