Service d'Appui aux Initiatives Locales de Développement (SAILD)

Before Service d'Appui aux Initiatives Locales de Développement (SAILD) began operating in Cameroon, farmer organizations, including cooperatives, were non-existent. In part this was due to the country's lack of legislation regarding civil society organizations. SAILD initiated a new model of practice for Cameroon, supporting the creation of organizations allowing farmers to express themselves, exchange information, help each other, take responsibility, and negotiate. As a result of SAILD’S work, strong, well-structured farmers' cooperatives exist today at both the regional and national levels, positively transforming the lives of thousands of farmers.

SAILD introduced and popularized various agricultural products in Cameroon, including papaya, watermelon and soybeans, and helped build a market for these products throughout the country. In various regions of Cameroon, SAILD introduced maize, coffee and cocoa, enabling farmers to diversify their crop choices. Additionally, SAILD developed seedbeds from which 10,000 plants are grafted annually. As a result of these initiatives, thousands of farmers have created viable rural enterprises.

SAILD builds the economic and organizational capacity of farmer associations through several strategies: it helps farmers conduct their own analysis of available resources, supports them in identifying challenges, and guides them in addressing these challenges. SAILD Support, which is active in Cameroon, Chad, Gabon, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, helps farmer organizations innovate and assign appropriate prices to their products, while also providing training and microfinance programmes. One of SAILD’s initiatives, ACDIC (Association Citoyenne de Défence des Intérêts Collectifs), is a non-profit, apolitical and non-tribal organization whose mission is to improve citizen awareness and participation in public affairs.