By Hannah Rickard | Intern for Multicultural Initiatives
Greetings to all,
As many who are familiar with the High Atlas Foundation and its projects may know, HAF facilitates numerous agricultural projects within rural Moroccan communities. A key factor in the equation of these agricultural projects is water.
Currently in the Adare municipality of the Taroudant province, the trees covering the hilly landscape, all of which are almond, have not yet been organically certified, nor are they using water-efficient irrigation systems. HAF is working with the Adare village communities to change this by facilitating the planting an almond tree nursery--using the pressure drip irrigation system--upon land lent by their municipality throughout a 5 year period. We are also working with local people to secure organic certification of their almond trees, which will approximately double the value of the product as compared with global organic prices. Averaging a yield of 100 tons of almonds per year, increasing the supply (via the nursery), the price, and water efficiency, will trigger agricultural transformations that will benefit approximately 1,000 farming families.
Once production gets underway, the Adare community will team up with HAF’s subsidiary social enterprise, HA3. Inaugurated in 2014, HA3 strives to build a green economy for rural Moroccan families through the marketing and sale of organic certified walnuts and almonds, such as those in Adare, grown in the Atlas Mountains.
Greater household income, along with new financing for human development projects--generated by HA3--will enable the people of Adare to reverse oppressive trends, especially the persistent non-attendance of girls in the municipality at a school level beyond the primary level. The people of Adare are dedicated to social change; this project builds upon their existing incredible opportunity, regarding their almond products, to achieve broad and sustainable social development in and around their community.
Adare has the spirit, the work-force, and the dedication: now they need the funds to kick-start this green and prosperous initiative. The HAF team knows that with the continued generous and numerous support from near and far, this goal can be achieved! The not-so-distant smell of freshly produced organic almonds is in the air- let’s get “cracking!”
Warmly,
The High Atlas Foundation Team
(Photo Citation:)
Audley. Berber Village near Taroudant, Morocco. Digital image. Audley. Audley Travel, n.d. Web. 1 July 2015.
Moroccan Pavilion. Tafraout Almonds. Digital image. Moroccan Pavilion. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 July 2015.
Viault. Taroudant Maroc. Digital image. Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons, 26 Apr. 2010. Web. 1 July 2015.
Links:
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
