Waldi Kima, representative of Yayasan Mitra Tani Mandiri with Merianus, chair of the Oenaim Farmer's Association

Alexander Snak, farmer from Oenaim-TTU District, West Timor

Alexander Snak is a farmer in Oenaim village-TTU District, seven hours from Kupang in West Timor. Since 2007, AusAID-ANTARA has supported a local NGO, Yayasan Mitra Tani Mandiri (Independent Farmer Partner Association) to work with 1000 farmer family in West Timor to improve their farming practices and earn more income. Alexander has learnt how to terrace a hectare of land he owns that he thought was too steep to farm.  “In the first year, I learnt how to terrace, and the farmer association showed me how to plant fodder trees along the edge of the terraces to strengthen them. Now I grow pineapples, limes, bananas and candlenut trees. I am married and my wife and I have four children. Each year we eat some of the bananas and sell the rest for around R 1.2 million ($100), we get R 2.5 million for the pineapples, R 3,75 million for the limes and R 750,000 for the candlenuts. I have bought two cows and use the fodder trees to feed them. Before the farmers association showed me how I could use this land, I only farmed a small plot that was more flat.  I am very happy that the farmers association has helped me increase my income.”