On Tuesday, May 4, the Government of Haiti and the International Fund for Agricultural Development of the United Nations (IFAD) signed a financing agreement for a project that will allow rapid revival of agricultural production and incomes through the rehabilitation of small irrigation systems, ensure the supply of essential agricultural inputs and help increase the resilience of small farmers.

The Emergency Project for Strengthening the Resilience of Small Farmers to the Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic (PURRACO, by its French acronym) is a US$ 5.8 million project ($ 5million from IFAD; $ 0.5 million from the Haitian Government and a beneficiaries’ in kind contribution of $ 0.3 million). It will benefit 3,250 poor rural households (around 13,000 people, half of whom will be women and 30% youth).

"IFAD has been committed for many years to improving Haitian family farmers’ lives. In this difficult time the Fund is stepping up to help them recover from the impact of the pandemic, restart their communities’ economies and build the resilience to face future health and other emergencies," said Rossana Polastri, IFAD’s Director for Latin America and the Caribbean.

PURRACO will target the four Haitian departments most affected by food insecurity due to structural fragilities, recently aggravated by COVID-19 impacts: the Northwest, the Northeast, the Central and the South Departments. It will be implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development (MARNDR).

PURRACO’s will help households recover, increase their production to pre-Covid-19 levels, and access markets, building food security with enhanced efficiency in agricultural production. At the same time, short-cycle animal husbandry (hens, pigs and goats) will increase the availability of animal protein in these remote rural areas, compensating for historic nutritional deficiencies.

Since IFAD started its engagement with Haiti in the 1980s, the Fund has invested in 10 projects in the country with a total value of $ 276.51 million ($ 125.21 million from IFAD funds), benefitting 103,315 families.

HL/ HaitiLibre