New water supply systems supported by activities to broaden local market gardening in Burkina Faso have been announced by Australian gold explorer, Middle Island Resources. The projects are part of the Company’s commitment to spend 5% of its annual exploration budget in its three West African jurisdictions (Burkina Faso, Niger and Liberia) on social development initiatives for local communities within the areas where it is exploring. Such is the contribution of the projects that the Perth-based explorer’s initiatives have won further financial support from the Federal Government-backed Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and French-based NGO, Eau Vive, which has been active in the area for more than 25 years, delivering water and sanitation assistance.Following an initial project to improve access to safe water through the construction of a small water supply system in Pouni-Nord in the commune of Didyr, Middle Island has worked closely with the local authorities of the commune of Dassa, and Eau Vive, to develop a second community project.
As a result, actions to improve market garden activities at Dassa are now underway and are expected to directly benefit 1,600 market gardeners organised in 50 co-operatives and indirectly, the 14,000 inhabitants of the Dassa commune.
Although Dassa is renowned for its market garden production, the new program will help overcome Dassa’s lack of sustainable access to water, difficult access to seeds and inputs, and difficulties in marketing and selling local produce.
New infrastructure under the Middle Island, Eau Vive and AusAID partnership includes improving the water supply, installation of drip-fed irrigation systems on four demonstration sites, the training of market gardeners in improved production and water management techniques, the setting up of a revolving fund for seeds managed by the local growers association, and the construction of a fruit and vegetable stand in the new market in Dassa.
Middle Island Managing Director, Rick Yeates, said the company was intensely aware of the importance of building sound working relationships with local communities and that any such projects were consistent with local needs, were locally owned and were sustainable beyond Middle Island’s tenure.
Yeates said it was also important to have partnerships such as those with Eau Vive and the Australian Government to help extend the reach and impact of social development objectives in West Africa.
Middle Island holds a 100% interest in seven contiguous Burkina Faso exploration permits comprising the Reo project, located in the Sanguié and Passoré provinces.
Australia’s High Commissioner to West Africa, his Excellency William (Billy) Williams, this week visited the Reo project, to inaugurate the Dassa and expanded Pouni Nord programs.
“Australian companies are driving the mining boom in Africa, and leading the way on so many fronts, including that of sustainable mining and good corporate citizenship,” Williams said. “A partnership between the High Commission, Middle Island, Eau Vive, and the Dassa community in Burkina Faso is a tangible demonstration of the commitment of the Australian Government and Australian mining companies to mine sustainably and ensure that local communities also reap the economic benefit of mining.”