Mauritanian students grow vegetables in arid conditions

DW (English)

A Nouakchott school transforms dry, salty soil into a thriving garden with eggplants and moringa, showing even infertile land can be brought to life.

Transcript

00:00The first harvest. A small miracle. Eggplants grown in the new garden at the

00:06Sepka II secondary school in the Mauritanian capital Nwakshott. A few

00:11okra pots and even a single tomato. The students proudly post a video on TikTok.

00:17We are in a region with very salty ground because the sea is nearby.

00:24Nothing grows in sandy soil. We had to work the soil before we could

00:32plant anything. We added fertilizer and grasses to get minerals into the soil

00:37that vegetables need to thrive. Sandy saline soil is not the only problem.

00:47It hardly ever rains here and temperatures often exceed 40 degrees.

00:55Three years ago, the NGO Biodiversité founded a green club at a school. Now, it has its

01:01own groundwater pump and hose. Otherwise, grass and vegetables wouldn't grow here.

01:10Green club members water twice a day according to a strict schedule. Every evening, the students

01:16returned to the school just before sunset to water the plants. Every evening, when I go

01:23back to school to water, I take someone from my family with me. It's not just that I want

01:29to show people all the lovely greenery. I also want to show them that it has a purpose, how

01:37nice and fresh the air is when we water the plants.

01:46The school is the only green oasis in the area. It's noticeably cooler in the school yard

01:51than in the neighboring streets. The students enjoy the fresh, pleasant air. And that's

01:57not the only perk of the garden. Awa Mbaegai picks leaves from the moringa tree. And back

02:03at home, she and her mother turn them into a delicious, healthy juice. An additional source

02:11of income for the family. When Awa told me that the NGO had planted

02:18moringa trees in the school yard, I asked her to pick their leaves so that I could make juice.

02:25People love this juice. They really do.

02:31Today, she's not off to sell the moringa juice, but to take it to school. The green club has

02:37been awarded a climate scholarship from the city, and there is a party taking place to

02:41celebrate. Even state television is here. Now, the school can grow more vegetables. The

02:48students who work in the garden, like Safiya Sou, are given a certificate.

03:00This certificate means a lot to me. I have worked a lot for our garden, and we have seen how it

03:06changes the climate here at the school. In order to get ideas for the next phase of the

03:15project, Maimina Salek, the president of the NGO Biodiversity, has invited a few members

03:22of the green club to a bird sanctuary and park on the outskirts of the capital. They get to

03:31explore nature and pick up some tips from gardener Musa Bari.

03:36Have some of your plants died? Yes, a lot's been destroyed by the wind. Yes, it's due to

03:42wind. But over there, behind the director's office, it's a good spot. So we add fertilizer

03:47to the ground. And then we can plant the seedlings. It's down to method and above all, mentality.

03:58Maimina Salek says there are no excuses. It's important to me to show people that things

04:06can grow anywhere. It's not about soil quality. It's a question of motivation and expertise.

04:15That expertise is fostered at the Agricultural Faculty of Rosos Technical University in the

04:20south of the country. There is also an active green club here. Safiya So from Nwakshut has

04:26been invited by the institute to its open day. The students proudly show off their environmentally

04:32friendly solar heating system. A mirror furnace. A mini biogas plant fed with waste supplied

04:46by the Department of Animal Production. And, their pride and joy, a compost plant. Everything

04:55is explained to Safiya So in detail. This sort of compost would help the tomato plants in the

05:01school garden flourish. But she's not crazy about the earthworms. They're so creepy.

05:11In the afternoon, it's time for hands-on learning. The students are visiting the fields of one

05:15of the institute's graduates. They ask onion farmer Ahmed Khairat in Dao all sorts of questions,

05:22eager to learn as much as possible so they can develop new ideas.

05:30They already have a suggestion for the farmers' irrigation system.

05:37The students proposed, I use biogas. I keep goats and cows. They are there. I could use their waste to

05:44produce biogas. I didn't think of that. I'm familiar with biogas, but I hadn't thought of using it.

05:52Safiya So gets the farmers' and students' phone numbers. She would like to study at the faculty

05:58after graduating from high school and would like to stay in touch.

06:06When I go back to Nwakshut, I'll tell the school about everything I've seen and experienced here.

06:11And if I need any more information, I can call the students in Rozo and ask them for advice,

06:19for example, about the worm compost process. I am so impressed by everything I've seen here.

06:31In the evening, the report on the school in Nwakshut is broadcast on state television.

06:36At last, recognition of the project. A few days later, Maimuna Salek receives inquiries from various

06:43ministries, asking whether her NGO could launch green clubs in other schools.

06:50If the project at a school can serve as a model, and other schools want to follow suit,

06:54if you can inspire people, then it will be a revolution.

06:57One school club alone isn't a revolution, but it's sowing the seeds for one.

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