The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) is involved in two projects to enhance agriculture and improve food security in Haiti.
The first focuses on providing agricultural tools and training in rural areas :
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has donated US$2.5 million to enable the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) to carry out a program in Haiti aimed at repairing irrigation systems and strengthening grassroots organizations in the areas most affected by the earthquake that struck the country on January 12.
Following the earthquake, some 600,000 people migrated from the Haitian capital, Port au Prince, to the rural areas, where local resources and the agricultural infrastructure were placed under great strain.
The new program created for Haiti since the earthquake will target food security and the creation of work in the rural areas affected. Members of the local population will help repair 13 irrigation systems, rebuild 12 kilometers of rural roads, construct 300 community and family vegetable gardens and equip nearly 9000 homes with seeds and harvesting tools.
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The program, to be implemented by organized groups of rural women and grassroots groups, will seek to strengthen the social capital by means of more than 250 training courses on marketing, agricultural production, gender equity and the creation of organizations.
The second aims to develop trans-border co-operation between Haiti and the neighbouring Dominican Republic:
The representatives of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) based in Haiti and the Dominican Republic have reached agreement on the preparation of a binational project that will focus on the border region.
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The agreement – which IICA’s representatives described as groundbreaking – was adopted at a meeting held at the IICA Office in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on July 21.The organizations also formalized a partnership to coordinate their actions in the agricultural sector in the two countries.
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[ IICA’s Representative in the Dominican Republic] Manuel Sánchez explained that the group had reached agreement on the three main components of the initiative: transboundary diseases that limit trade in agricultural products; the promotion of agribusinesses for generational change in the countryside, and agricultural technology to cope with climate change.
[Photo: John O'Keefe]
William N. McCaffrey
Agricultural Program Coordinator
Centre Technique et d’Infomatique
Cap Haitian, Haiti
September 3, 2010
To Whom It May Concern;
Centre Technique et d’Infomatique is an established and growing computer technical school in Cap Haitian, Haiti. Our regimen for education has a strong emphasis on meeting nation-wide demand for skilled labor, with a post-graduation hiring rate of one-hundred percent. In the interest of furthering our role in the development of Haiti, we are branching out into the field of agriculture.
With limited access to quality education, Haitian farmers have immeasurable room to improve in their techniques and practices. However, the majority of existing agriculture schools have little stress on hands-on skills, resulting in a disconnection between theory and practice. Our objective is to ameliorate that disconnection.
Three integrable agricultural production systems show particular promise in Northern Haiti: intensive garden-style vegetable production, peanut farming, and dual purpose poultry husbandry. Our school aims to provide a replicable model for each of these systems to young farmers who already possess land. As they progress through the curriculum, the material they learn will be put into practice immediately, with supervision and supplies provided by the school.
We have already assembled a network of accomplished individuals, associated with organizations such as Meds and Food For Kids, Sonje Ayiti, Food for the Poor, and Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Together we seek to improve the livelihoods of rural Haitian farmers, while fostering a stronger economy and environment for Haiti.
If your organization would be interested in supporting or collaborating with us, or would simply like to learn more, please feel free to contact us at wnm3@cornell.edu. The following is an abridged list of expenditures crucial for the success of our school. Any contribution from your organization would be greatly appreciated.
$5,000 Tractor $1,000 Trailer
$5,000 Truck $600 Vegetable Shade House
$3,000 Water Well $600 Water Pump
$1,000 Irrigation Materials $500 Individual Student Scholarship
$1,000 Motorcycle
With sincerity and gratitude,
~William N. McCaffrey