By Marie Marthe Saint Cyr | Executive Director
Formed in 1975, the Organization of the Peasants of Boula (OPB) has a goal to improve the economic and social conditions of the members and the region. It began its agricultural activities with 50 members and now has a count of 248 (120 men and 128 women). In general, the region lacks potable water, roads for access, education and health care. The greatest problem the farmers encounter is timely tilling of the soil to benefit from the rainy season for planting and harvest for their income. For this reason, they proposed to develop an ox-plow service to facilitate their timely planting as well as increase the acreage used for agricultural production, thereby increasing income and revenue for all members and community dwellers.
The Lambi Fund, in partnership with OPB, will purchase 4 pairs of cows and 3 ox-plows. The organization is responsible for the feeding of the animals. They will develop grazing areas as well as produce feed reinforced with nutrients for the meager months and dry seasons. In addition, the membership will benefit from management, animal husbandry and nursery training that will take place throughout the 18 months of the implementation phase. The project will provide OPB with the means of financing and give technical assistance to assure sustainability of the service . A community credit fund is attached to the project to build the capacity of the planters to purchase the ox plow services at the initial stages. OPB will also produce 20,000 seedlings to plant in the area they serve.
The population of Boula was limited in their capacity to improve their income and revenue, labor and till more acreage and thus improve the conditions for planters and their families that make up over 65% of the work in the area. This initiative is an enterprise that will touch the lives and livelihood of planters and their peasant families in profound ways. It will increase access to goods and services such as school and health care that has to be paid for and it will increase production of food in a time when food security is a major concern throughout the country.
This began implementation in April of 2014 after a full year of investigation, organizational capacity building and training. We look forward to keeping you informed on one of the ways Lambi Fund, in partnership with rural Haiti, develops commuunity-run enterprises that makes a different in the life of the community.
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