MORE THAN RAIN - Utviklingsfondet

M o r e t h a n r a i n :
Climatic Ch a n g e Vulnerability Fo r Sm a l l Sc a l e Fa r m e r s In Nic a r a g u a
Climate change is gradually being
felt by communities all over the
world. Changes in temperature and
rainfall patterns are already contributing
to increasing the vulnerability of many
of the poor in developing countries. In
Nicaragua the weather pattern has changed
dramatically. This creates another factor of
vulnerability for small scale farmers with
few or no other options to secure their
livelihoods.
Based on information and data from local
farmers in Nicaragua, this publication will
assess how climate change is affecting the
situation for farmers, and how they are
working towards limiting vulnerability to
changing conditions. The study has been
conducted with cooperation from the
Centre for Promotion of Rural and Social
Development (CIPRES) in Nicaragua.
Improved varieties of beans developed through Participatory Plant Breeding.
Nicaragua - rich in varieties
Nicaragua is situated in Central America, bordering Costa Rica in the
south and Honduras in the north. A population of about 5.5 million
lives in the country, the majority living on the Pacific coast. Agriculture,
especially coffee production, is a major activity in the northern and
Pacific region. Coffee, bananas, beans and tobacco are some of the
agricultural commodities which the country produces.
The biggest rainforest in Central America is found in the Atlantic region.
However, due to deforestation, this has been drastically reduced the last
two decades. The Atlantic coast is also home to 12 000 varieties of plants
and 1400 animal species – making this region very rich in biodiversity.
Nicaragua is the poorest country in the region with around 80 % of the
population living on less than 2 US dollars a day.
Earlier, farmers used to know exactly
when to plant their seeds in order for
them to grow and be ready for the harvest.
Now the first rains fall at unpredictable
times and the intensity varies too. Farmers
and local organisations are, however,
developing various methods for adapting
to such climate change. These practices
include the improvement of their seeds
and crops, and promoting alternative
livelihood strategies for food production.
The livelihoods in the area are mainly
small-scale basic grain production at
subsistence level. Maize, beans and sorghum
are common crops. A part of the crop is
sold when there is surplus, but storage
capacity is small and hinders storage for
better prices at other times of the year.
Households also produce vegetables,
cooking bananas, and fruit. They raise
pigs and hens in the yards and most people
keep a few cattle. In some districts, shade
coffee is grown in the highlands, some of
it produced organically in agro-forestry
systems, and tobacco is also being grown.
1

Climatic Ch a n g e Vulnerability Fa c t o r s Fo r Sm a l l Sc a l e Fa r m e r s in Nic a r a g u a
The study area and project site
Nicaragua (project area in green)
The study was carried out in the Municipalities of
Condega, Pueblo Nuevo (both in the Department of
Estelí), and Totogalpa (Department of Madriz). CIPRES
has been working for more than seven years in these
areas. CIPRES is advising and accompanying small
farmers in the application of sustainable agricultural
practices that include the improvement of their crops.
The three municipalities cover an area of 739.3
km2 and have a population of approximately 65,
people. The project area is located in the North
Region of Nicaragua.
The Central North Macro Region has been
classified as a Dry Zone because of its low rainfall.
Due to the presence of cordilleras, massifs, and valleys,
the local climate, has spatial and temporal distribution
of precipitation. Nicaragua has a tropical savannah
climate with variations according to elevation (semiwet
in the highlands and dry in the lowlands).
Climatic risks and local vulnerability
Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in
Latin-America, with a GDP per capita of US3,2
compared to 13,5 in its neighbouring country Costa
Rica. A poor welfare system, unequal distribution of
wealth and resources, and decades of conflict are other
reasons that have led to extreme poverty. Many families
have lost their livelihood assets; they have low levels
of education and limited access to healthcare. The
lack of information about sustainable agriculture has
resulted in unsustainable practices and monoculture
designed and oriented to an external market. All this
has put strain on and deteriorated the natural resource
base. The break up and eventual disintegration of many
families of migrants along with a high proportion
of households run by single women (temporally or
permanently) are also expressions of the vulnerability
that the communities have to deal with daily.
Climate change in Nicaragua
The climate is unpredictable and extreme weather
has become more common. During the course of
a year, there can be both drought and hurricanes.
Drought alternated with excessive rainfall, making
farmers vulnerable since they are not able to be
prepared or respond to such extreme weather
patterns. Furthermore, the effects of climate changes
come in addition to the degradation of the natural
resource base because of agro-chemicals, overcultivation
of soils, deforestation, slash-and-burn
agriculture and deterioration of water sources.
People in the countryside are no longer able to
predict the weather patterns. Before they could plan
agricultural activities following signs from nature but
now, local predictions are no longer effective. Both
the occurrence of drought as well as late rainy seasons,
have changed the best time for planting basic grains.
Social dimension and people’s perception of climate change
Global warming has created many new challenges and problems all
around the world. Climate change is predominantly noticed through
changes in weather patterns, temperatures, amount of precipitation
etc. For many poor farmers this has a direct impact on their livelihoods,
forcing them to change their agricultural practices. This change is
neither easy nor cheap, creating more insecurity for the already
marginalized farmers.
In this analysis we consider past and current climate stress by looking
at subjective experiences of climatic events. The experienced climatic
variability and change is crucial in an adaptation analysis, because
the outcomes depend not only on the meteorological qualities of a
weather pattern or extreme event, but also on contextual factors that
influence people’s vulnerability and their capacity to adapt. Thus, a
minor drought might have serious consequences for some, while others
may experience relatively small consequences of a serious drought.
Such understanding makes it possible to design measures that support
poor people in their own efforts and make use of existing strengths and
opportunities. The analysis therefore argue that adaptation measures
needs to move beyond climate risks and physical adaptation
measures, to include the social context and people’s perception of
climate change, in order to build their capacity and resilience to cope
with barriers and thresholds.
2

Drought
The most frequent and damaging expression of
climate change in this area is the irregularity of the
rainy season. In Nicaragua, the rainy season runs
from May to October, and when rainfall is less than
normal in volume and frequency, a drought occurs.
Because these changes are associated with El Niño,
droughts show no predictable pattern and their effects
are devastating, especially in the dry zone.
One of the main effects of drought is degradation
of water sources. Water sources are often unprotected
because of the deforestation and degradation. The
soil has little infiltration capacity, hence the rain
carries away the soil surface layer. Rivers have lower
flows and many creeks easily dry up when there is
drought or overflow in the rainy season. Sources of
water become gradually scarcer and the pollution is
more concentrated because of low flows or stagnation.
Only in areas with dense forest cover some water
sources has been preserved.
The soil also loses fertility by being carried off by
the winds after it is converted into dust under direct
solar radiation. The erosive processes become worse
and there is a greater propensity for landslides and
landslips. These impoverished and compacted soils
limit possibilities for growing crops, especially if there
is only a minimum of water available.
Cattle require stable temperatures for adequate
development. During droughts, temperatures rise,
pastures do not grow well, and there is a general
shortage of food for them. Due to lack of water, the
cattle do not develop properly and milk production
falls. In addition, cattle and pigs suffer miscarriages
and some die. Farmers have to sell their animals in
order to cover their losses. Droughts occur irregularly,
either with the rainy season coming late (not until
July) or with dry spells (of up to one month) during
the rainy season, or rainfall is low and dispersed over
the period.
El Niño - the Southern Oscilation
El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a general term used to describe
both warm (El Niño) and cool (La Niña) ocean-atmosphere events
in the tropical Pacific. El Niño and La Niña are officially defined as
sustained sea surface temperature anomalies of magnitude greater
than 0.5°C across the central tropical Pacific Ocean. Historically, it has
occurred at irregular intervals of 2-7 years and has usually lasted one
or two years.
ENSO is associated with floods, droughts, and other disturbances in a
range of locations around the world. These effects, and the irregularity
of the ENSO phenomenon, make predicting it very difficult. The IPCC
claims that ENSO is the dominant mode of climate variability in Latin
America and is the natural phenomenon with the largest socioeconomic
impacts.
2007 was a year when typical effects from La Niña were experienced
in Nicaragua: dry at the start, wet and cold at the end. Because of the
rainfall deficit at the beginning of the rainy season in May, June, and
July, the planting of basic grains did not begin until late June. Hence
the first bean crop could not be harvested as it should be during the
canícula (the warmest period of the year); but only in August and
harvesting coincided with the work of the second planting. The crops
were then affected by the low temperatures in October and there
were major losses of the basic grains harvest. The next cycle also had
low yields and low quality grains because of these alterations. Due to
these harvest losses, many farmers were left indebted.
3

Climatic Ch a n g e Vulnerability Fa c t o r s Fo r Sm a l l Sc a l e Fa r m e r s in Nic a r a g u a
Adaptation to climatic
changes and vulnerability
Participatory plant breeding (PPB)
For centuries farmers have been
domesticating and improving varieties of
basic grains by means of ancestral practices,
generating the biological diversity that
characterised the region. This diversity has
been their principal tool for dealing with
the unpredictable nature of the climate,
and the heterogeneity of environments in
order to guarantee farmers food security.
The Participatory plant breeding Meso-
America (PPB-MA) rescues and improves
these ancestral practices by combining
farmers traditional knowledge with scientific
development. Researchers and farmers work
together in developing stronger and better
food plants that are better suited to variable
climate conditions.
CIPRES has been accompanying and
advising groups of farmers in Pueblo Nuevo
and Condega for more than seven years and
in Totogalpa more recently, with the purpose
of increasing and improving the production
of quality seed with methods controlled by
farmers.
The local approach
Unlike with conventional plant breeding,
in participatory plant breeding the farmer is
a key actor in the decision-making process,
especially in selecting the plants with the
characteristics that are of interest to them.
They select those that will develop better
in the conditions of their farms – at the
level of micro-zones - that are resistant to
drought, pests, and diseases, with good plant
size, greater yield, and better quality of the
final product in terms of taste, nutritional
qualities and forage for animals. Farmers
apply their criteria in selecting the material
and evaluating it.
PPB is particularly relevant in the context
of these communities, where the most
fundamental resources for guaranteeing their
basic livelihood have been lost.
In PPB, the trials were made in the
parcels of the farmers – under natural
conditions. Thus the plants were being
improved and developed in different settings
and exposed to environmental changes such
as drought, high relative humidity, high
temperatures, flooding, etc. Work has been
done with local varieties of maize, beans,
sorghum and millón that were gathered and
introduced into different agro-ecological
conditions at different elevations. Advanced
lines and families have also been introduced,
after crossing with the local varieties; have
created a broad genetic diversity.
The Collaborative Programme for
Particpatory Plant Breeding in Meso-America
The Collaborative Programme for Participatory Plant Breeding in Meso-America
(PPBMA) was initiated in 2001. Groups and agencies from the region and CIPRES
joined the program, in particular to access good quality seeds that would
enable them to improve yields and begin to improve their quality of life.
In contrast to modern development of plants, that often take place in seed
companies’ laboratories. Participatory plant breeding takes place in the
farmers’ field. Farmers receive knowledge and training before carrying out
cross breeding and research to develop suitable seeds for their climate, soil
and taste.
The farmers have the lead and control over the whole process in the programme,
and decide on the attributes he or she wants to improve. In Totogalpa, the work
of plant breeding begun by the CIAT-CIRAD, and CIPRES continued with the
process, moving it ahead. The link with CIAT (International Centre for Tropical
Agriculture) is maintained and it still provides genetic material for sorghum as
well as technical assistance.
The plant breeding project being executed in Nicaragua is part of the
Collaborative Programme for Participatory Plant Breeding in Meso-America,
with particular emphasis on the participation of the farmers in decision-making
and their access to knowledge for improving the varieties of basic grains they
cultivate. This programme has facilitated alliances between different actors,
with farmers and their organisations playing an important role in the process,
as well as governmental institutions, NGOs, universities, cooperation agencies,
and national and international research centres.
The linking of experiences developed in the countries through the PPB-MA
as regional liaison allows for exchanging experiences, having references,
making comparisons, and sharing what is learned at the regional level with an
expanded horizon for all the actors.
Human resources are key to the success of any plant breeding activity. Farmers
are intrinsic breeders because they possess knowledge about the behaviour
of their materials and about local productive conditions. Such knowledge is
complementary to the experiences and capacities for scientific analysis that
the professional breeder may have. Plant breeding must also be considered in
terms of empowerment. The capacity to acquire or develop decision-making
power, is necessary to achieve long-term development objectives. This means
that farmers and the community must develop the capacity to make decisions,
from both technical and organizational points of view.
4

Adaptation through strengthening of
farmers organisations and networking
In order to work with participatory
plant breeding, the Nicaraguan farmers
have required their own autonomous
organisation to represent them.
In late 24 the farmers from Pueblo
Nuevo created the COSENUP RL (New
Union of Producers Multiple Services
Cooperative, Limited Responsibility)
whereby the members have proposed the
goal of producing and commercialising
improved seeds. For this, they are forming a
commercialisation committee, another one
for seeds, and others for credit, education,
and research.
As indications of their level of growth
and self-managed undertakings, the
COSENUP is strengthening ties and
establishing alliances with other farmers’
organisations - including three youth
organisations. COSENUP also provides
temporary coverage to groups of farmers
from Totogalpa and Somoto.
Farmers’ decision of organising
themselves into cooperatives such as
COSENUP RL, has been successful. In
these communities, more and more families
exchange information, knowledge, strategies,
and agricultural products. They give each
other mutual support, search for solutions
to common problems affecting them, and
combine their efforts.
In just a few years, these cooperatives
have been making themselves into solid
organisations. They have matured and
developed. The collaboration with NGOs,
academia and government organisations
has enabled them to scale up their actions
and goals. They are acquiring capital goods
under collective ownership: a wet coffee
processing plant in Condega, a chicken
farm in Pueblo Nuevo, and a collection and
storage centre. They are increasingly making
greater commitments and their decisions
are responding to economic, social and
environmental analysis among others. They
aim to create jobs that will contribute to
improving the socioeconomic situation of
their communities.
Women groups
Collective action is making it possible
for the families to make changes and
undertake initiatives that would not be
possible otherwise. For example in Pueblo
Nuevo, groups of women have been
organised in the communities to work with
family gardens, using organic and agroecological
practices, with better results
and without endangering their health or
polluting the surroundings. Strengthening
farmers’ organisations and networks,
with a special focus on the inclusion of
women in these activities, enhance peoples’
ability to adapt to climate changes.
Adaptation through
Diversifying Production Practices
More and more farmers are making
relevant changes in their production
practices adopting agro-ecological methods
that are environmentally-friendly. Farmers
are:
• Planting branches of trees that
will take root along their fence
lines, and ploughing back weeds
into the soil;
• Planting and incorporating cover
crops and applying compost in
order to recover fertility;
• Undertaking soil conservation
work in order to have more
infiltration of water and to retain
the soil;
• Practicing natural regeneration.
They do not cut down young trees
and only use dead branches.
Crop rotation and diversification on
the farms is a strategy that the farmers are
practicing primarily to have food all year
round, but also to generate income when
there is a surplus. Farmers combine crops
in the parcel or yard, such as squashes,
onions, sweet peppers, yucca/cassava and
cooking bananas.
In addition to being a sound practice
for the soil, diversification has contributed
to improved food security of the families,
and to a certain degree helping them to
overcome the dependency on basic grains,
diversifying and improving the family
diet, producing feed for animals, and
earning income. They reduce their risks by
diversifying and building their farm assets.
If conditions become adverse, at least one
of these crops will produce. By planting
some crops during the first cropping season,
and others in the second, they become less
vulnerable to the erratic rains, pests and low
market prices.
5

Climatic Ch a n g e Vulnerability Fa c t o r s Fo r Sm a l l Sc a l e Fa r m e r s in Nic a r a g u a
Strategies for Economic Growth
In order to get beyond production
for survival and generate income,
some families are beginning to
experiment on a small scale with
product value adding. Individually or
collectively, for example, some women
are making sweets and marmalades.
They package dry flowers, marmalades
and make wine that they sell in the
local markets. As cooperatives, they
are producing poultry and organic
coffee, among other products, on a
greater scale. The more processed the
food crops are, the more economic
value is added to the products.
Crop
Yields per manzana*
without PPB (averages)
Somoto
Pueblo Nuevo
and Condega
Yields per
manzana
with PPB (cw =
hundredweight)
% increase
Maize 8 cw 15 cw 22.5 cw 50 - 180%
Beans 17 cw 12 cw 22 cw 30 - 83%
Sorghum 12 cw 12 cw 18 cw 50%
*Manzana is a measure for land area, 0,7 ha.
Source: Regional coordination, PPBMA, 2007.
The value of
local cultural practices
Ancestral survival strategies are
reintroduced, such as exchanging
agricultural products. A mediería,
which means a farmer who owns land
work half-and-half with a landless
farmer. Modalities for this vary, but
generally, the one with more resources
contributes with seed. This practice
especially benefits those farmers
who lost their arable land due to
Hurricane Mitch.
People’s capacity to adapt
Many small farmers in these
communities have suffered a total loss
of their crops on repeated occasions,
due to factors such as pest outbreaks
and lack of rain. Climate variability
now constitutes an additional threat
factor. This is affecting the food security
of their families, as food is in short
supply for both people and livestock.
The capacity to adapt to climate change
varies between individuals and groups.
The majority of the population in the
region has knowledge and skills of
growing maize, beans and sorghum,
some vegetables and fruits, as well as
in traditional animal husbandry. They
also have traditional knowledge on how
to interpret and predict weather and
seasons, but since the patterns have
changed, this knowledge is less accurate
today than before.
In the Northern zone of Nicaragua
important livelihood assets are
land, animals, seeds and the work
capacity of women, men, youth and
children. People have little access to
technologies which could strengthen
their food security and incomes. There
has been limited cooperation, little
exchange of products or services, little
organization of activities, and few
community initiatives. However, people
demonstrate through these projects
that they have the capacity to enter into
valuable cooperation for the community
as a whole.
As a result of the activities, less
people choose to migrate, and engage
themselves in the improvements of
agricultural techniques. Vulnerability
and poverty is still present in the project
area, but the project activities have
increased the capacity of households and
communities to respond to the threats
they are facing.
What does this mean for
reducing local vulnerability?
The effects of changes in climate are
one of the main causes of alterations
in the cultivation of basic grains in
the last few decades, either because of
the occurrence of drought, hurricanes,
and/or excessive rainfall or because
of the ecological alterations caused by
those phenomena such as depletion
of soils and water sources, alterations
in the populations of insects that
sometimes become pests, and the
occurrence of illnesses.
Farmers are achieving greater yields
and better quality in their production
under different agro-ecological
conditions, at the same time as having
improved food security and meeting
the dietary needs of their families and
livestock. They are broadening the
possibilities for income generation since
they themselves produce the seeds they
need, and as their crops require less
and less chemical inputs since the new
varieties developed through PPB are less
input demanding.
The new locally adapted varieties and
improved lines of crops are giving better
results than other seeds in terms of yield
(see table below), resistance to drought,
resistance to the pest Mosaico Dorado, and
better quality sorghum and beans in terms
of taste, cooking time, and yield of sorghum
flour (more tortillas from less flour).
Farmers are restoring their livelihoods,
reducing their vulnerability, and making
better use of their resources.
The farmers have also had the
possibility to take advantage of the
contribution of scientists and validate
the behaviour of the crosses in the
research centres. Participatory plant
breeding has therefore enabled farmers
to reduce their vulnerability and the
risks that are run with the frequent
changes in climate by having seeds that
are resistant to different factors. This
also results in important savings that
allows them to lower their production
costs, thanks to the production of their
own seed. The table above shows how
yields of maize, beans and sorghum
have increased significantly after
introducing PPB.
6

Santos Luis Merlo Olivera, Community of El Rosario, Pueblo Nuevo.
Santos Luis Merlo Olivera was seriously affected by Hurricane Mitch in 1998. He
has three parcels in an area of six manzanas (measurement of land area). He
grows basic grains and when he can, vegetables. He also has one or two cows
for household consumption. He has access to water on his farm for irrigation,
and he has taken advantage of this for doing trials with participatory plant
breeding during the dry season.
With Mitch, he lost a good part of his land. The soil was washed away by the
water, leaving a rock-strewn field in its wake.
“You can’t do anything with that land now. It’s not even good as a paddock.”
So even after such a long time the impact of hurricane Mitch is felt by
Nicaraguan farmers.
Luis Merlo, however, is now a proud participant in the PPB-MA project.
“The participatory plant breeding project is just what the doctor ordered.
Improving the seeds is very important. We are looking for varieties that can
withstand drought in order to deal with the [climatic] changes.”
A change from using maize as a staple crop towards the more drought resistant
crop, sorghum, has been made by many PPB farmers.
“Sorghum is a substitute for maize and work is being done on varieties that
would be productive, good for feed, resistant, and with a short growing cycle.
They help us through the effects of the drought and bring increased yields.”
Luis Merlo says that through the PPB-MA programme, farmers have acquired
more information and knowledge
on how to adapt and change their
agricultural production in order to
overcome the changing weather
conditions.
”What we have gone through has
made us understand better what the
new practices to take should be.”
Summary
Climate change and variability have, and
will in the future, have great impact on the
lives of small scale farmers in Nicaragua. The
unpredictable rainy seasons have severe effects
for farmers as they lose important crops and
hence income and food. Destructive hurricanes
leave families without houses, devastate roads
cutting people off from markets, school and
other services, as well as destroying crops and
endangering the lives of people and livestock.
The consequences of climate change therefore
increase peoples’ vulnerability.
However, methods for improving
farmers’ adaptive capacity, such as practising
participatory plant breeding and conserving
local biodiversity of plants and crops, have
proved successful. Through participatory
plant breeding, the farmers have had the
opportunity to improve their seeds.
The improved food security also reduces
vulnerability to non-climatic shocks and
changes, since food security is not so vulnerable
to outside stresses due to these new ways of
working. Also nutrition, health and income
levels can improve through securing sufficient
production of foods. Thus the quality of life
of the involved households can be improved
despite lack of other jobs, lack of social security
systems, low and irrelevant education or weak
health care. These vulnerability factors also need
to be changed, but it depends to a large extent
on national governments and international
agencies and organisations. The Project
activities increase the number of livelihood
options which are viable under current socioeconomic
conditions and current climate
variability and change, and people’s capacity to
make use of those opportunities. Thus, such
project activities can be seen as a kind of first aid
measure to reduce poor families’ vulnerability.
Lucia Umanzor, Tresurer of the New
Dawn Cooperative, Cofradía, Pueblo Nuevo
Lucila Umanzor has seen the direct effects of joining the PPB programme. Her
economic situation has improved and she does not have to leave the country
in order to earn enough money to take care of her family. By raising greater
awareness on natural resource management as well as providing farmers with
knowledge on how to do agriculture in a sustainable manner, CIPRES strengthens
farmers’ capacity to adapt to the climate changes as well as other stresses.
“I used to migrate to Costa Rica where I could earn a living. When I found out about
the PPB programme, I decided to stay in Nicaragua and work the land. I have a
small piece of land but me and my husband get a lot from that little piece. Two years
ago there was almost no water in the wells, but now it is returning.”
7

More than Rain
This publication is part of the report
“More than Rain - Identifying sustainable
pathways for climate adaptation and
poverty reduction”.
The first objective of this study is to
look at how climate change impacts
farmers and poor people in the
respective countries. Then it is important
to understand and discuss the links
between climate change adaptation,
development, and poverty reduction
and present the notion of sustainable
adaptation measures. The second
objective is to identify how sustainable
adaptation measures can look like in
specific, on-the-ground development
projects. Finally, it is our aim to
present some guiding principles for
identifying activities and strategies
that both reduce poverty and
increase the capacity of households
and communities to respond to
climatic variability and change. In
order to attain these objectives, it has
been fundamental to get the farmers’
feedback on the experienced climate
risks, causes of vulnerability and their
ability to adapt.
More than rain has been a cooperation
between the Development Fund in
Norway, CIPRES in Nicaragua, REST
in Ethiopia, LI-BIRD in Nepal and the
Global Environmental Change and
Human Security project at the University
of Oslo (GECHS). GECHS has provided a
solid analysis of the work we are doing
which increases our understanding of
what climate change and vulnerability
means for local populations and their
livelihoods.
The full report and case studies can be
downloaded from:
www.utviklingsfondet.no/morethanrain
The information in this presentation
is based on Cabal, S.A.’s report
“Documentation of climate change
for the Development Fund” done in
Nicaragua, and on an analysis of
various climate studies presented in
the report “More than Rain - identifying
sustainable pathways for climate
adaptation and poverty reduction”
made by Global Environmental
Change and Human Security Project
(GECHS) at the University of Oslo.
CIPRES
El Centro para la Promoción, la Investigación y el Desarrollo Rural y
Social (CIPRES) is a Nicaraguan NGO established by people dedicated
to a welfare based economic approach in the Nicaraguan rural areas.
CIPRES works as a socio-economic support center aiming to raise the
living standards of local producers, cooperatives and agricultural
labourers. The organisation cooperates and networks with several other
local, national and international NGOs, national institutions and farmer
unions devoted to agriculture, farmers’ and rural issues. They work
directly with more than 10000 families in 10 departments on the pacific
coast of Nicaragua.
CIPRES supports rural families and rural workers in general, defending
their land rights, improving agricultural production, commercialization
through encouraging small scale farming, diversification of production,
inclusion of women working outside home and development of artisan
work, amongst other things. CIPRES also conducts related studies and
experiments, soil analysis, produce seeds, organise fairs and training
sessions, facilitate the exchange of farmers’ experiences and produce
educational material such as videos and written publications.
The Development Fund (Utviklingsfondet) has worked together with
CIPRES for 8 years. The Development Fund and CIPRES collaborate closely
on the implementation of the Participatory Plant Breeding Programme in
Mesoamerica (PPB-MA), as well as other project activities related to the
organisation of rural cooperatives and small-scale farming innovations
and linkages to markets.
The Development Fund is a Norwegian
independent non-government organisation
(NGO). We support environment- and
development projects through local partners
in Asia, Africa and Latin America. We believe
that the fight against poverty must be based
on sustainable management of natural
resources in local communities.
Utviklingsfondet / The Development Fund
www.utviklingsfondet.no
8