Slow Food
  • Donate
  • Join us
  • Italian
  • English
Slow Food Foundation

Search

  • Home
  • About us
    • What is the Foundation?
  • What We Do
    • Slow Food Gardens in Africa
    • Slow Food Presidia
    • Ark of Taste
    • Slow Food Cooks’ Alliance
    • Earth Markets
    • What is the Narrative Label?
    • Slow Food Travel
    • Food is Culture
    • Slow Food Resilience Fund
  • Our Themes
    • Biodiversity
    • Slow Bees
    • Slow Cheese
    • Slow Meat
    • Slow Fish
    • GMOs
  • Get involved
    • Why Support Us
    • Slow Food Foundation Sponsors
    • Italian Slow Food Presidia Sponsors
  • Multimedia
    • Publications
    • Video
    • Gallery
    • News archive
    • Photo archive
  • Contacts
Slow Food Foundation Slow Food Foundation
  • Home
  • About us
    • What is the Foundation?
  • What We Do
    • Slow Food Gardens in Africa
    • Slow Food Presidia
    • Ark of Taste
    • Slow Food Cooks’ Alliance
    • Earth Markets
    • What is the Narrative Label?
    • Slow Food Travel
    • Food is Culture
    • Slow Food Resilience Fund
  • Our Themes
    • Biodiversity
    • Slow Bees
    • Slow Cheese
    • Slow Meat
    • Slow Fish
    • GMOs
  • Get involved
    • Why Support Us
    • Slow Food Foundation Sponsors
    • Italian Slow Food Presidia Sponsors
  • Multimedia
    • Publications
    • Video
    • Gallery
    • News archive
    • Photo archive
  • Contacts

Search

Home » 10.000 Orti in Africa » Veterinary Technical Institute School Garden, Kindu

Veterinary Technical Institute School Garden, Kindu

Back to the archive >

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Maniema

The Veterinarian Technical Institute (VTI) is found in the northeast if Mikelenge, a town that sits to the west of Kindu, in Maniema province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The VTI is a sparsely frequented school: it has only 30 students and 12 professors. The school is an authorized Protestant establishment under the 8th Community of Pentecostal Churches. This church has a community development branch and was founded in Bukavu in 1922, where the social headquarters is found, and arrived in Kindu in 1990 thanks to the efforts of Reverend Pastor Lukika.
The garden project was joined by five families, with a total of ten children ranging in age from 13 to 20 years old. As far as the site’s management is concerned, the garden has a president, a secretary and a treasurer, while the funds are managed collectively. Indeed, all of the members consult and decide upon the management of the money: 50% is paid to the school, where it is managed by the school committee; 30% is divided among the families; and the remaining 20% is reserved for the garden’s coordination efforts. The garden itself is 0.1 ha and has soil that is both sandy and loamy, with a part that is found in a swampy area.
The garden is found in an area dominated by soft-stemmed flora of secondary forest growth, with such plants as: imperata grass, Guinea grass, benth, sugar cane and papaya. All of these plants help to fertilize the soil as they decompose.
As far as the climate is concerned, the garden is found in a tropical area that has two seasons: the rainy season lasts nine months and the dry seasons lasts three.
The school has been in contact with the President of the Ngo Action pour la Promotion Rurale, or APR, which is a non-profit organization. This group is associated with the platform known as “Integral Development Consultation Framework of Maniema” (whose acronym is CACODI-MANIEMA); beginning from the technical supervision of the Ngo CARS the association put the members of the garden in contact with Slow Food International.
Some of the products found in the garden are: cassava, eggplant, majano, tomatoes and spinach. During the dry season the site is relocated, as water is found quite far away.
The members of the garden project work together with the students and everyone shares the harvest.

Area
Mikelenge, Tokolote neighborhood, Brazza block, Maniema province

Coordinator
Kumba Kibakubaku

Slow Food in Democratic Republic of the Congo

The immense Democratic Republic of Congo in Central Africa is characterized by significant natural biodiversity, with one of the largest equatorial forests in the world, an Atlantic coastline, rivers, mountains, hills, lakes and volcanoes. The country is also distinguished by its exceptional mineral wealth, though this has led to tension, exploitation and constant violent conflict between militias and the local people. Despite this extremely unstable political climate, the Slow Food network is very active in the country, and has been coordinated by national organizers since 2011. Taking the creation of many community and school food gardens as a starting point, other initiatives have been launched by the country’s convivia: national gatherings, forums for reflection on the management of fishing and forestry resources, projects to support the Kivu pygmies and traditional food mapping.

Garden Informations

Type:School Garden
Slow Food Convivium:Kindu-Maniema Convivium
Coordinator:Martin Misako Milangilwa
Sibling with:Slow food Gorgonzola e Martesana Convivium, Italy

Subscribe to the newsletter

  • Hidden
Slow Food gratefully acknowledges funding support from European Union. The contents of this website are the sole responsibility of Slow Food and the CINEA is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein.
Slow Food - P.IVA 02743970044 - Privacy Policy - All rights reserved
Powered by Blulab