Across Burkina Faso, declining soil fertility has quietly become one of the greatest threats to food security and sustainable livelihoods. Years of intensive farming, mining activities, dependence on chemical fertilisers, and unpredictable rainfall have left vast stretches of farmland exhausted and unproductive. For many farming families, harvests continue to shrink while the cost of cultivation rises, pushing young people away from agriculture in search of survival elsewhere.

For Yameogo B. Hector, this crisis was deeply personal. Having witnessed farmers struggle with declining yields and mounting debts despite repeated use of imported chemical fertilisers, he understood that communities needed more than temporary solutions, they needed a way to restore the land itself.

That opportunity came through the AJAN Jesuit Youth Social Entrepreneurship Action (JYSEA) Program . Through the programme, Hector was introduced to sustainable agricultural practices and the transformative potential of biofertilizer production. What began as a training opportunity soon became a mission to restore both the soil and the hope of farming communities.

With support from AJAN and guidance from an agronomist within the Jesuit university network in West Africa, Hector received hands-on training in compost preparation, vermicomposting using locally available organic waste, liquid biostimulant formulation, and soil testing techniques. Equipped with new knowledge and practical skills, he began building a biofertilizer enterprise focused on helping farmers naturally regenerate depleted soils.

AJAN further strengthened his vision by providing equipment, a production space, and working capital through its recoverable grant framework. Starting from modest beginnings, Hector steadily developed a growing enterprise dedicated to producing affordable organic fertilisers tailored to the needs of local farmers.

Today, his work is making a visible impact within farming communities. Farmers using the biofertilizers are gradually seeing improvements in soil quality, crop productivity, and reduced dependence on expensive chemical inputs. Beyond improving harvests, the initiative is also encouraging more sustainable farming practices that protect the environment while strengthening food security.

Hector’s journey reflects the power of investing in young innovators with solutions rooted in local realities. Through AJAN’s support, a young agricultural enthusiast transformed an idea born from community struggle into an enterprise that is helping restore the land, improve livelihoods, and inspire a new generation to see agriculture not as a burden, but as a pathway to renewal and opportunity.