Holding back the winds of change in Madagascar…with the sisal plant

The cultivation of sisal plants by some of the most vulnerable communities in southern Madagascar is helping to tackle desertification and allow people to stay on their land, thanks to a project by the UN Development Programme.The seasonal Tiomena wind, a fiercely strong wind that blows over the coastline,  has driven sandy soils across productive farmland forcing many people to give up their subsistence farming activities.But the planting of sisal has helped to reverse the trend as Daniel Dickinson reports for the Lid is On Podcast from southern Madagascar.

Om Podcasten

This flagship podcast series from UN News takes its name from the words that correspondents at UN Headquarters in New York hear each night, at the end of the working day. We highlight the in-depth human stories behind the UN’s work and the way that it touches and impacts ordinary lives around the world. During UN High-Level week UN News is releasing a daily podcast mini-series, designed to make sense of what’s going on at our New York HQ. Each episode of Focus on the Future will have a main topic linked to the focus of the day, and will include highlights from the GA debate, original interviews, and a colourful wrap up of the side events.