The African Millennium Villages.
We describe the concept, strategy, and initial results of the Millennium Villages Project and implications regarding sustainability and scalability. Our underlying hypothesis is that the interacting crises of agriculture, health, and infrastructure in rural Africa can be overcome through targeted public-sector investments to raise rural productivity and, thereby, to increased private-sector saving and investments. This is carried out by empowering impoverished communities with science-based interventions. Seventy-eight Millennium Villages have been initiated in 12 sites in 10 African countries, each representing a major agro-ecological zone. In early results, the research villages in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Malawi have reduced malaria prevalence, met caloric requirements, generated crop surpluses, enabled school feeding programs, and provided cash earnings for farm families.
Sanchez
Pedro
P
The Earth Institute, Columbia University, 405 Low Library, 535 West 116th Street, New York, NY 10027, USA. psanchez@ei.columbia.edu
Palm
Cheryl
C
Sachs
Jeffrey
J
Denning
Glenn
G
Flor
Rafael
R
Harawa
Rebbie
R
Jama
Bashir
B
Kiflemariam
Tsegazeab
T
Konecky
Bronwen
B
Kozar
Raffaela
R
Lelerai
Eliud
E
Malik
Alia
A
Modi
Vijay
V
Mutuo
Patrick
P
Niang
Amadou
A
Okoth
Herine
H
Place
Frank
F
Sachs
Sonia Ehrlich
SE
Said
Amir
A
Siriri
David
D
Teklehaimanot
Awash
A
Wang
Karen
K
Wangila
Justine
J
Zamba
Colleen
C
D000349:Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D000383:Agriculture; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D006262:Health; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008288:Malaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D012424:Rural Population; D014480:United Nations