SOBBA

Summary of successes

 

SOBBA in the last 6 years under the dynamic leadership of its team has experienced rapid growth with the following notable achievement:

 

• NACOR (a youth co-operative  based in Makeni, Sierra Leone with over 1000 extension farmers and workers) was sponsored by SOBBA to enable a successful 2017 farming season that saw yields of 10 Tonnes of Cassava and 5 tomes of maize. SOBBA provided training seeds and cassava stems for multiplication. 

• Re-engaged youths and students in the agriculture discussion and successful held a one day symposium titles "Re-think; Agriculture as a Career Choice in May 2016. 70 schools around the Freetown vicinity honoured the request with 140 students and 40 teachers, including the Country's Chief Agriculture Officer and Chief Education officers among the panelist.

• In 2015, during the EBOLA Epidemic (which forced SOBBA to abandon our 2015 farming season) that raged in  Sierra Leone, SOBBA conducted sensitization tours benefited 520 households of approximately 8 people in each household.

• Since 2014, SOBBBA was chosen as one out of seven founding partners of Sierra Leone Seed Certification Agency-(SLESCA) which is charged with is helping the governemnt of Sierra Leone, research institutions and other bodies to craft a seed certifiation policy fir the nation.

• SOBBA successful implemented and financed 100% the first & second phase of its No-Angri seed project without the help of any donor or investment funding.

• Sold and credited seeds (to the tune of 8MT) in 2013 and farming inputs (much needed resources) to the farmers at a much-reduced cost.

• Leased and renovated a store located at one of its farming locations, where improved seeds and agricultural inputs, seed multiplications information and other agricultural resources were sold and provided to the community. The current store and its operations serves as the blue print for the sale of seeds and agricultural inputs as well as an avenue for the dissemination of agricultural information to farmers, clients and the community. This store model will be replicated by 2015 in all of the communities that SOBBA is/will be operating in.

• Developed a strong network with Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute (SLARI), and the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security- Seed Quality Control Unit (MAFFS-SQCU). Members of these bodies are responsible for monitoring and evaluation and quality control of SOBBA’s operations.

• SOBBA has a network of farmers and hired help including 50 contract farmers that are provided with improved seed and farming imputs to help cultivate SOBBA seeds on their farms.

• SOBBA resources includes 170 acres of arable land, an organizational structure, an experienced team which will allow SOBBA to immediately and directly undertake expansion projects. Future resources will not be utilized to purchase farming land, recruit a technical team, or for start-up purposes. 

• SOBBA has two standing lease options which can be exercised to cultivate over 500 acres of farming land for at least a 20 year period in two local communities.