Celebrating the first Global Pulse Day in Burkina Faso

Tuesday, February 20, 2018 – On Monday, February 19, 2018, Burkina Faso hosted the first Global Pulse Day in Koumbané, a rural commune of Namissiguima in Yatenga. The celebreation took place in the presence of Roch Marc Christian Kaboré and the Director-General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), José Graziano da Silva, as well as the President of the Global Pulse Confederation (GPC), Huseyin Arslan.

The celebration of pulses produced in Burkina Faso – mainly cowpeas, Bambara groundnut, soybean and peanut – was the first of its kind under the theme: ”Promoting pulses for job creation for the benefit of young people and women and improving food and nutrition security.”

According to the mayor of Namissiguima commune, Amadé Belem, the northern region where the Day was held has a large production capacity for the populations of the Northern region, as evidenced by production of 106,786 tonnes of cowpea, 27,465 tonnes of peanuts, and 5,765 tonnes of Bambara groundnut. The region ranks third at the national level, after the Boucle du Mouhoun and the Centre-Ouest.

In February 2016, Burkina Faso hosted the official commemorative ceremony of the International Year of Pulses. In 2017, it was the host of an international meeting on the topic that culminated in the “Ouagadougou Declaration,” recalled the Director-General of FAO, José Graziano da Silva.

This Declaration was adopted by all the member countries of FAO during their general assembly, da Silva said, as he invited Burkina Faso to present its experience to the next General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) to “institutionalize a Global Pulse Day.”

“The celebration of the Global Pulse Day is not only evident in Burkina Faso. Burkina Faso was a key member of a group that called for the establishment of this Global Pulse Day at the international level. FAO has endorsed the idea; now, it is up to the United Nations to make the final decision,” said President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré.

In Burkina Faso, the cultivation of pulses is practiced by 69.2% of agricultural households; about 46.5% of women responsible for plots derive a large part of their income from pulses, stressed the Minister of Agriculture and Hydraulic Facilities, Mr. Jacob Ouedraogo.

According to him, the formalization of Global Pulse Day will require the support of partners to fund and develop value chains, promote the value and use of legumes throughout the food system, as well as celebrate pulses’ benefits to soil fertility, the fight against climate change, and the goal to end malnutrition.

This formalization also aims, he added, to encourage connections throughout the food chain to promote production, research, and better use of crop rotation, to meet the challenges of marketing, and finally to draw attention to pulses’ importance for sustainable food production and a balanced diet. ” Pulse Day has several objectives, including food and nutrition security and job creation for young people and women. And these goals are major for any government in the world and especially in Burkina Faso,” President Kaboré proclaimed. 

This article was originally posted on Koaci.com