Assétou Kanouté, coordinator of PROFEIS-Mali, won the 2011 African Terres de Femmes International prize given by the Yves Rocher Foundation. Assétou is director of ADAF-Gallè, the NGO that coordinates the PROFEIS multi-stakeholder platform in Mali in carrying out action research based on local innovation. The prizegives recognition to the work with smallholder farmers in protecting and further developing indigenous tree species. PROFEIS-Mali identifies farmer innovators who are finding solutions to local agricultural and environmental problems and brings these farmers together with scientists to carry out experimentation. It recognised that the local innovator Sidiki Coulibaly was trying to graft two species of local fruit trees: Sclerocaria birrea and Lannea microcarpa. ADAF-Gallè helped Sidiki and other interested farmers to set up a nursery where, with the support of scientists, they are trying to see if they can develop fruits that are larger than the Lannea fruits, from which juice is made locally. In the long term, this could lead to wider commercialisation of this processed product. Assétou is using the Terres de Femmes prize of 5000 Euros to support continuation of this joint work by farmer researchers and formal researchers.
