Condor Climate Contribution

In Europe, less than 10% of agricultural land still hosts traditional agroforestry systems; the name given to the type of land use that brings together trees, agriculture, meadows and pastures. Agroforestry benefits nature in countless ways: fruit and deciduous tree species draw CO2 from the atmosphere, groundwater is safeguarded, soil is protected against erosion and the areas become valuable habitats for a wide variety of animal species.

However, successfully establishing these agroforestry systems requires high initial investment costs and continuous maintenance costs, the cost of which farms will only recoup in the medium to long term. This is why there are only a few hundred farms in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein that have established modern agroforestry systems.

This project aims to change that. The multinational program provides funding for the planting and growing of trees on agricultural land. Costs for seedlings and growing the agroforest environment are compensated by grants from this project, one tree at a time.

This project set up a community savings and loan group for the rural communities of the Siaya region in western Kenya. These savings groups are important because people in the countryside are typically not able to get a loan from normal banks that require a fixed income as collateral. Women in particular benefit from the savings and loan group because the secure financing options enable them to become independent. On average, 15 women meet two to four times a month. They join together to form "financial institutions" that make decisions together and strengthen each other. For example, many of them can afford medical health care, school fees, high-quality seeds or an efficient cooking stove.

Traditionally, cooking is done on open fires in rural communities, which consumes vast amounts of firewood. The locally produced stoves lead to a reduced demand for firewood, which protects local forests and reduces CO2 emissions. This saves households money and the time it takes to gather firewood, plus the more efficient combustion process significantly improves the air quality inside the houses.

The project helps to subsidize half of the price of each cooking stove. An interest-free loan is granted for the remaining 1,000 shillings, equivalent to around 8 euros. The women must pay off this loan within two years.