Photo Caption: The CRS is teaching those around the world how to manage their own farmland. The young woman Carmelina, is one of the many people the CRS is helping. Carmelina is using her new water-smart agriculture skills to take care of her soil and increase her produce.
In the world that we live in, there are still families who are still depending on farmland. The farmland is what many people use to grow their food and generate an income. However, there is a vast majority of people in different countries who have degraded land. This land cannot produce or sustain crops. In the last 40 years, more than 30% of farmland in the world has become unproductive. The soil in these lands is being lost at a greater rate than it is growing. If this continues at the rate that it is going, in time, conflicts will arise, and the unemployment rate will follow. Knowing this may occur, the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has decided to step in and avert this growing catastrophe. In the next 10 years, the Catholic Relief Services will restore 4 million acres of land to help 1 million people overcome poverty
The CRS will work with farmers and other partners to restore the unproductive farmland. While working together, the CRS will restore watersheds, promote water agriculture, and build agroforestry systems. In addition, the CRS will use farmer-centered approaches that will focus on restoring the soil, water, and trees. These approaches will be able to be adapted to different regions across the world. With this project, countries like Ethiopia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Madagascar will be able to create great farmland for its people.
To find out more about the CRS Transforming Livelihood, please visit their website.