Partners of the Americas is teaming up with Makouti Agro Enterprise, a Haitian agribusiness, to establish a seedling nursery in the community of Lory and help 50 families create home vegetable gardens. The project will help provide a more diverse diet to improve family nutrition and will also open up new economic opportunities as they can receive training and sell excess vegetables and vegetable products in nearby cities.
Lory is a small farming community located in northern Haiti, about 10 km from Cap Haitien. There are few economic opportunities in Lory and many of the farming methods used are outdated and ineffective. Soil is mostly clay and farmers must find a way to plant in a place where soil isn't hospitable to horticulture. In addition, family nutrition is poor and unvaried, which leads to other health problems. New economic opportunities and better nutrition are needed in the community of Lory.
This project will fund 50 family gardens, a nursery, a community garden, and technical training over 2 years. The community members, especially the women, of Lory are eager to learn. The community has a plot of land where Makouti can set up the nursery and community garden, which will also be used as a training site. Compost and seeds will initially be provided to each family but they will then receive training on making their own compost, manage seedling, and other vegetable production topics.
The hope is that this project will enhance the living conditions in Lory by not only improving nutrition, but also augmenting family income. In addition to the production training, the families will receive training in value-added activities and marketing so that excess vegetables can be processed and sold at the local market in Cap-Haitian, providing new revenue sources. With this knowledge and training, they can continue to be successful vegetable producers and for many years to come.
