Ikaram, Nigeria
Ikaram: 6 Millennium Villages | 30,000 residents

The Millennium Village cluster of Ikaram is located in the state of Ondo in southwestern Nigeria. The soils are severely depleted in nitrogen, putting a tremendous strain on the population, most of whom are sub-subsistence farmers. Ikaram has a town hall, one health center, 26 primary schools, and 13 secondary schools. There are two major markets in Ikaram that operate once every five days. There are also smaller local markets that are open daily. Villagers have formed credit cooperatives to enable them to access small loans. The Farmer's Congress is a cooperative organization that links farmers to extension services and other inputs provided by the government or other agencies. Ikaram has one cereal bank, but it has been abandoned for 15 years.

Village Characteristics by Sector

Farmers produce a range of crops including yams, cassava, groundnuts, beans, maize, melon, cotton, rice, tomatoes, and palm oil products. They also raise livestock— primarily cattle—as well as sheep, goats, chicken, ducks and other fowl. On average, land holdings are less than 1 hectare per farmer. Farmers produce about 0.2 tons of cassava per hectare and about 0.12 tons of maize per hectare, both exceedingly low yields.

The primary schools are basic mud-block structures dating from the 1950s; secondary schools date from the 1970s. Both are heavily dilapidated. Lack of toilets, water supply, furniture, libraries, teaching aids, and adequate teaching staff has compromised the quality of education. There is no school feeding program or latrines specifically for girls. These limitations translate into poor quality education. Girls in particular face special challenges. While most girls attend school, very few actually complete primary education. Instead, they spend about 4 hours a day on average collecting water and firewood. The literacy rate for the community is extremely low: 35% for males and 15% for females.

Malnutrition is prevalent. There is one basic health center and one maternity center for a population of 5,000 people. The health center can only treat a limited range of ailments such as minor cases of malaria or minor injuries. For the entire village there are three community health workers and three health assistants.

Water is drawn mainly from streams and wells beacuse there are no boreholes in the cluster. On average, women and children travel 5-6 km to fetch water on a daily basis. There aren't any sewage pipes and sanitation facilities are very poor. Rough estimates suggest that less than 25% of households have latrines.

Intervention Highlights

Improving infrastructure is one of the key developmental challenges the cluster faces. Basic interventions such as insecticide-treated malaria bed nets, fertilizer and improved seed, a school feeding program and the construction of a road are all helping to turn the situation around in Ikaram.