This lighthouse project, led by ENDA/PRONAT, is located in Mbawane in the Niayes region, Senegal. In this area, garden vegetable production for urban markets is the main economic activity. As the urban demand for vegetables expanded, production methods have increasingly relied on chemical inputs and "improved" varieties. Indigenous vegetable species and varieties are disappearing and agrochemicals are causing problems that threaten the future of vegetable production. Insect pests, having become resistant to pesticides are no longer under control, unacceptable levels of chemical residues are reported on the marketed produce and farmers frequently become sick from exposure to the pesticides.

The economic viability of this system is also threatened. Since the devaluation of the Franc CFA in 1994, the price of chemical inputs has doubled, making it increasingly difficult for farmers to get a return on their investment. With no savings, farmers rely on the "bana-bana", a lender/distributor, for credit to buy their inputs. The loans are paid back with their harvest at prices determined by the bana-bana. The farmers thus lose control over the marketing of their produce and allow much of the profit to go into the hands of these middlemen.

In the initial participatory diagnostic workshops conducted by ENDA and local farmers, the falling water table, drought, and deforestation were also identified as problems negatively impacting the community. However, the combined problems of high cost of production and poor marketing strategy were given priority. To lower or eliminate the need for credit, it was decided that the initial goal of the project would be to develop cropping methods which would decrease the reliance on purchased inputs, pesticides and fertilizers in particular.

Using farmer-participatory techniques and in collaboration with the Center for the Development of Horticulture (CDH), the Senegalese Institute for Agricultural Research (ISRA), and the Institute of Environmental Sciences (ISE) of Dakar University, a range of agricultural resource-conserving techniques were tested.

Most of the pesticides in the Nyaes region are used against two butterfly pests attacking cabbage, Plutella xylostella and Helulla undalis. In spite of the high pesticide use, cabbage suffers high yield losses. Thus, cabbage and its two main pests were selected as targets for developing alternative control methods. The control methods tested included the use of natural enemies such as Bt and beneficial insects, resistant crop varieties, botanical insecticides (neem, red pepper), and diversified cropping designs.

Although reliance on expensive chemical fertilizer was high, a variety of traditional fertilizers were identified and re-introduced. These fertilizers are made from locally available inputs such as cattle and chicken manure, fish residues, groundnut shells, bran, decomposing baobab trunks, and rock phosphate. According to farmers, the traditional organic fertilizers effectively reduce soil salinity, which is a significant problem in that area. In addition to providing nutrients, organic fertilizers also help to conserve water. In order to test the various alternative methods, farmer workshops were organized on:

• Agroecological concepts
• Specific aspects of alternative production methods.

After training, demonstration plots were established and managed by farmers. These activities were designed to help farmers decide, using their own criteria, which techniques are appropriate alternatives to the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

After having gained field experience with the tested techniques, more farmer workshops were organized to assess results and share experiences. Further training allowed 60 farmers to participate in training sessions on low-external input methods for small-scale vegetable production.

The alternative methods were compared with conventional production systems. In the field plots where the new methods were employed, pest populations were maintained below the level of economic damage, allowing between 64% and 91% of the harvested cabbage to be marketable, compared with only 50% marketable cabbage obtained from the conventional production system in which insecticides were applied¹ (Table 6). The use of organic fertilizer also contributed to increasing yields, and according to farmers, improves the shelf life of vegetables after harvest. Farmers in Mbawane are now realizing that it is possible to improve their incomes while at the same time preserving the environment and protecting human health².

* Treatment plots were 5x5 m and replicated three times

D_n : n= number of days after planting

The vegetables produced with the non-chemical methods provided the opportunity to promote organically-farmed produce among consumers. This aspect of developing markets for organic garden products is new in Senegal, and therefore a novel result of the project. A campaign promoting this kind of produce has been launched and ENDA expects to spread this experience to other market gardening areas. The development of this trade can significantly contribute to the widespread adoption and the development of SA systems by urban and peri-urban farmers. In this way, farmers would benefit from both the lowered costs of production and the higher prices in the new market outlets.

The lighthouse activities also benefited the community in other ways. In the many group discussions, it became clear that other environmental problems, such as deforestation are affecting agricultural production. Thus, tree-planting activities have been initiated. Another problem identified by farmers is the price of their produce in the market. Farmers realize that food imports are competing with their products and forcing them to lower their prices. Farmers and ENDA staff are now looking at ways of influencing government pricing policies in favor of locally produced food. Thus, the initial focus on pest control and soil fertility served as a catalyst and attention is now expanding to problems beyond the boundaries of the community.