For as long as she can remember, Yessica Yana knew that she wanted to spend her life connected to the countryside, but not with the conventional tasks associated with these tasks. She dreamed big. That is why she decided to study Agronomic Engineering, a career that could seem distant for an Aymara woman from a small community on the shores of Lake Titicaca, about 3,800 meters above sea level.
Despite the obstacles, his thoughts were clear: “I am from the countryside, I like the countryside and I am going to stay in the countryside.” This helped her persevere in her academic training at the Public University of El Alto, although she is aware that each step was a sacrifice. Despite everything, she managed to become the first indigenous woman to operate high-tech drones in Bolivia.
“All professions have their degree of difficulty. At some point I thought: ‘why have I studied this?’ Being a woman in this career has been a challenge, but rather I have had good teachers who have helped me,” Yana told the Voice of America in peace.
Between the field and the drones
His great opportunity came with the Swiss Organization Swisscontact, the Proimpa Foundation and the company Biotop SRL, groups that work on development projects. The goal of Yana, 31, was to improve agricultural performance in her native Bolivian highlands, for which she immersed herself in the Inclusive Markets initiative thanks to which she became a pioneer within her community in the use of high-tech drones applied to agronomy.
With this equipment, he was able to reduce, for example, fumigation time in crop fields from one day to just 20 minutes and save up to 80% of water. This technology is effective, but it is not so simple to implement, he warned.
“At first when I saw the drone I said ‘Wow! What is this?’ It was huge (…) Everyone can handle drones, but this one for spraying is a little more complicated, you have to meet different conditions: height above sea level, wind speed, obstacles that are in different places. We achieved sprinkle (fumigate) a hectare in 20 minutes, when day laborers did it in a day.”
The use of this type of technology, according to Swisscontact, is part of the so-called precision agriculture that “reduces costs, improves the profitability of crops and reduces the environmental impact by applying agroinputs directed and adjusted to the real requirements of the crop. ”.
![The drone project has paid dividends in agricultural production in indigenous communities and improved the expectations of this young professional who does not see her life outside the field. [Foto cortesía Swisscontact]](https://gdb.voanews.com/01000000-0a00-0242-5e3a-08dc91f722ec_w250_r0_s.png)
An additional aspect of this project is that it was developed with a gender focus, as it was shown that not only were they able to reduce the time and amount of water, but that women could be active participants and with less workload.
“Leader of Rurality”
A few months ago, Yana’s effort and dedication was recognized by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), which named her one of the “Rural Leaders of the Americas.”
In interview with the VOAMario León, director of Technical Cooperation, Territorial Development and Family Agriculture of IICA, highlighted the work of the Aymara engineer. “Being a professional in the agricultural sector herself, an agronomist, she has been working and promoting her community, stimulating young people to be inspired by her and the trajectory she made.”
“For me, receiving this recognition means a commitment to continue moving forward, always looking after family farming. We are also trying to now see inclusion in gender issues and work with young people so that they become the new leaders,” adds Yana, who managed to handle a drone much more advanced than she had imagined during a project in Costa Rica. “I don’t have words to explain that emotion,” she confessed.
IICA, an organization specialized in agricultural and rural development, recognizes as “Rurality Leaders” “men and women who leave a mark and make a difference in the countryside of the American continent, key to food and nutritional security and the environmental sustainability of the planet.” .
“We highlight Yessica for being a guarantor of food and nutritional security and for its ability to promote positive examples for the rural areas of the region,” adds León.
Great challenges
After mastering the technique, Yana carries out training throughout Bolivia, in a project called “generational pairs.” “We want a young person to become an advisor to his adult peer, for example his mother or grandmother; and he taught him the use of technology, from the simplest to the most complex to reduce that digital gap, which especially in the countryside is so great,” he explained.
She is convinced that women have the potential to improve the lives of their communities and be true leaders. Although she still has a lot to contribute in Bolivia, she is also packing her bags for professional challenges abroad. In a few months she will travel to Kenya, to live an experience from which she hopes to learn a lot.
Meanwhile, keep dreaming. Yana wants to do a master’s degree and speak English fluently. “I’m learning, it’s necessary for my career,” she says, laughing.
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