Last June 14, the Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Tunisia, Mr. Nadhir Hamada, presented the 2010 Presidential Award for Environmental Protection and Nature.

The first prize was awarded to the SGP grantee organization " Ettafaoul for the rehabilitation of disabled children light" of Gafsa (TUN/OP3/Y2/06/09), this projects seeks to promote renewable energy for irrigation in agriculture and to develop medicinal and aromatic plants certified organic (BIO) with a Community of handicapped persons in Gafsa.

This project demonstrate the success of the GEF Small Grants Programme in supporting communities to successfully preserve the environment while achieving sustainable livelihoods.

The president of the NGO Madame Narjess BEN AMMAR received the prize from the hands of His Excellency Nadhir Hamada, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development.

The project used renewable energy to pump the irrigation system and ensuring appropriate water use to reduce waste. In addition, the Ettafaoul handicapped community was trained to plant medicinal and aromatic plants in an environmental way. All products are dried by solar energy.

In the photos below it is easy to appreciate the change produced by the project. The first picture from 2006 shows the project site before the project started and gives an idea of the aridity of the soil.

Photos of the site after the implementation of the project demonstrate the great changes introduced by the project in its ecosystem.

Contact:
Abdelkader Baouendi, National Coordinator, SGP Tunisia