Nutrition Project

The National Head of Health Services in Mali recommends for the treatment of acute malnutrition a "pre-mix" of Corn-Soy Blend (CSB), donated by the World Food Program in most cases, sugar and oil made into an enriched porridge. But, I ask myself, why not produce a "pre-mix" locally? A women's group named "Association Naffa Djéfilani" approached me wanting to work. Considering levels of motivation here are generally low, I was intrigued. We put together a project and the Peace Corps posted it on the web. The women will add the super-enriched leaves of the tree moringa oleifera to a blend of rice and bean flours and market as "NafFarine." By installing the machinery to husk rice and pound both rice and beans into flour in a compound near a plot of land with easy water access and opportunities for rich fertilizer to grow the trees, the Djéfilani Association will package the "pre-mix" for the nutrition program at the Centre de Santé de Référence (CSRef) in nearby Ansongo and to sell in the town's market. "Naffa" is a Songhoy word meaning nourishing or beneficial. We hope to fund the machinery, fencing for the trees, tools, and packaging, NafFarine will transform local resources into a product both nourishing and beneficial to the people of northern Mali.