By RICHARD SITLER
Indiana Correspondent MASERU, Lesotho, Africa — In the South African Kingdom in the Sky, Nicholas Hopchak bent down and picked up a handful of soil and sifted it through his fingers, studied and smelled it.
The soil came from the garden of a woman who asked him to come to her home to give her recommendations about how she can improve the yields of her crops that are her main source of food for her family and also a source of income. Hopchak is dedicated to his work and knowledgeable. A Community Health and Economic Development Peace Corps volunteer, he works in the rural district of the African nation of Lesotho in the area of food security.
Hopchak said food security “looks at the access people have to food. How regular it is throughout the season, not just the harvest but also low season.”
Hopchak met the woman while passing through a bus stop of the capital city where he often chats with locals while waiting for his bus. When he learned of the struggles of one of the vendors to eke out an existence on her small plot of land for herself and her family, he agreed to go take a look. While surveying the property, he gave her some pointers concerning better methods of planting and maintaining the crops. Before he left he promised her that he would return and give her a written plan on how she can make improvements. Hopchak, 27, a Radford University graduate from Evningont, Va. focuses on these agricultural issues in his service in Semonkong, which is located in the highlands of the Maseru District of Lesotho.
A political science, philosophy and Chinese major who entered the Peace Corps in June 2008, he lives in a town of 2,000 that has one road in and out. He works with farmers around the far-flung district, and he often rides a horse to get to the various farms where he works.
Hopchak was placed in the region to work on projects specific to agriculture and income-generating projects. According to Hopchak,
“That focuses on primarily helping subsistence farmers to produce enough to first feed families through extending crop yields and then to sell any extra produce,” he explained. “I find markets for that or mechanisms.
“If you do not have access to food through your own farming or gardening, how do you maintain the necessary nutrition?”
The main crops in Lesotho are wheat, corn, peas, beans and potatoes. Since Lesotho is in the southern hemisphere, they plant from September to November and harvest between March and May.
According to Hopchak, the challenges are pests.
“For the most part, its large amounts of cutworms for one particular pest,” he said. “A distorted amount of cutworm because all farmers are growing a similar crop. Even if you rotate in your own fields, others are not - fields are very close to each other (given by the chief) - not only do you have to get management on one field, you have to get participation from the other farmers.”
He reported the level of skill and know-how on a technical level for the farmers is a challenge. Hopchak said farmers need a more long-term outlook to their management style. They need to see their farm as a system. He stated the rotation of crops has only been introduced as recently as two years ago.
“Since then, we are working on how they are going to get access on research done on crop rotation,” Hopchak explained. “That will make it readily available for them to utilize on a regular basis.
“For the most part farmers are doing their best to farm where they can, when they can - it is not always maintained long-term.”
Livestock is also important to farmers in Lesotho - mostly sheep and goats. Some of the more profitable farmers can have up to 200 head of sheep for shearing They shear in the beginning of the summer - September. Goats are sheared in March and April. Lots of farmers are using that as a major income source.
Farmers use cattle as an investment - dowries – and are used to plow fields or pull carts. Donkeys will haul long distances. People ride horses throughout Lesotho because everything is far away.
“Right now one of the other projects I am working on is working with a group of single women - single parents,” Hopchak said.
“It started right before I got there. I learned how to spin mohair to make yarn. It’s a cool machine made with a bike wheel - wash it, spin it and dye it.”
The group is called Katleho ‘Moho Assoc. He works with them to develop organization skills and customers. He handles the marketing and bookkeeping. He is trying to help them improve quality and find local markets and also to benefit from tourist activities.
He has encouraged them to “make smaller things like cup cozies, table mats - simple things - develop a relationship with the community and diversify. Lots of people make beautiful weaving, but not a lot of people buying.
Hopchak pointed out that in Lesotho “farmers are selling the same thing - their markets are saturated because a number of people selling the same thing.”
Although the farmers he works with do not have organic certification, he encourages them to focus on the natural aspect and to emphasize that in selling to others to distinguish their product.
“The biggest thing I’ve worked on - for me - it was all about the cycle, looking at food security as food sustainability,” Hopchak said. “How are they going to access this on a regular basis, more than just a season?
“Extending the length of time that they can utilize the same crop is important. Trying to get them to think about utilizing a succession crop for some crops, radiant heat for other crops, smaller crops closer to the house - herbs, Swiss chard and other vegetables used regularly.”
He said many items can be reused to cheaply add to farmers efforts.
Hopchak summed it up that he works to “Make local solutions to local problems. I look to my community.” |
