Reviving traditions

Farmers in Burkina Faso's centralplateau in Sahel, are turning to traditional practices such as buildingstone lines, pocket-like pits knownas Zaiand permeable stone dams.These increase yields by as much as80 percent in some of the farms bypreventing draining of water,increasing its seepage into soiland by adding extra nutrients.Permeable stone dams built byplacing stones across gullies holdback soil and water. The use of strawand cut-grass mulch also increasesthe output. These techniquesnot only increase productivitybut also revive dried-up wells andtrees (Asian Institute of RuralDevelopment (AIRD) News, Vo114,No8).