Zacaria Kambou

““With small resources to begin with we can do great things”

Zacaria Kambou is a farmer in the Burkina Faso. While he was in Israel he worked hard and managed to save some money to send over to a good friend at home. This friend is also an agriculturalist and this allowed him to lay the ground work even before Mr. Kambou returned home. Since then they have been working hard on their hectare of land where   they are nurturing 2,500 banana trees. “Agribusiness is Burkina Faso is not easy at all, especially if you are a beginner and lack financial means. We are in the embryonic stage but our strength remains and we remain determined with unwavering courage and optimism” says Kambou. On the farm there are currently three workers, Kambou himself, his good friend and partner and another full time workers they have employed.

One of their advantages as they grow is the techniques that Kambou has learned while part of the Agrostudies program, particularly in irrigation. His banana farm is located near a large river which is a favorable location in terms of irrigation. Still, he uses a pump to pump water from the river and send it through pvc pipes to the plants that are separated exactly 2m from each other in each direction. One of the first things they want to do with the profits of the harvest is invest in a more advanced irrigation system, seeing water as a catalyst for efficient farming, but also due to the impending water crisis the world around is worried about.

Zakaria Kambou and his friend feel prepared to face this with technology and experience they are building together right now. “With small resources to begin with we can do great things because our model of success is the great agribusinesses that we saw during our rich stay in Israel. My stay in Israel has forged my personality and I gained a lot of experience, even if things have not always been easy”.