Women and girls in Mali are challenged by access to land, water and electricity which directly affect local food supply. AGILE International creates access to land, water, and off grid electricity for rural women. This project provides income-generation opportunities through agriculture, allows rural women to gain access to education, achieve economic autonomy, feed and shelter their families. AGILE will train women to drill wells, maintain them, and manage water resources.
Women and girls in Mali are challenged by property rights and access to land. Traditionally, only men owned land. We believe that our relentless focus on land rights for women is a critical factor in addressing diminished food supply, unemployment, and local and sustainable development. AGILE's most important next step is to develop a drip irrigation system that involves drilling a 263-foot deep hole and installing a water pump and irrigation lines throughout the field.
This ambitious project is critical to our mission to advance food security and to empower local women farmers. This is a well plan that is scalable and practical for areas where resources are limited, but longevity is critical. With this drilled well, we hope that this water will be pumped out to feed our proposed modifiable irrigation system and generate a consistent supply of water to the crops twelve months a year.
By increasing land ownership among women to generates revenue through food, they will gain access to capital, education, achieve economic autonomy, feed and shelter their families, increase bargaining power at home and in the market place, and move toward gender equality. This is a shift away from traditional land ownership in West Africa, toward building a legacy for generations of women to come.
