Ghana:
Snail-Farming and Training Project

In the West, snails are generally considered garden pests that treat live plants as a food source. But the villagers from Gbornorkope in the Volta region of Ghana, decided that snails, once farmed and raised to full size, could also provide a high protein source of nourishment for people who could ill-afford the cost of meat. With financial assistance from the UN 1% for Development Fund, they came up with a plan to harvest small snails from the forest, raise them in hatcheries and sell them as kebabs to individuals or restaurant operators. The aim of the project is to eradicate poverty and malnutrition by training 113 single mothers and unemployed youth the training and materials they need to not only raise the snails to full maturity to feed their families, but also learn how to create self-employment possibilities. Additionally, the shells of the snails can be made into soap and also sold to earn income.