Cuba and international agricultural fund host agroforestry development project

GUANTANAMO, Cuba, Feb 11 (ACN) The Agroforestry Cooperative Development Project (Prodecafe), which benefits 140 productive forms of Guantanamo(eastern Cuba), is the result of the collaboration between Cuba and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to contribute to the sustainable development of the sector, strengthen food security and improve the living conditions of rural families.

According to Venceremos newspaper, it was reported that besides Guantanamo, the neighboring provinces of Holguin, Granma and Santiago de Cuba are linked to the initiative, where 40 million dollars will be invested to promote important productions such as coffee and cocoa, as well as livestock and other crops.

Among Prodecafe's interests are the creation of new jobs (for young people, women, people with disabilities), the raising of salaries, the training of the labor force, the substitution of imports and the contribution to exports.

It also includes the creation of mini-industries to complete the productive chains and the acquisition of means and resources necessary for the integral transformation of the communities.

The initiative, which will last six years to achieve environmental, social and economic impact, gathers 47 state entities that provide services, including the University of Guantanamo and other scientific-technical centers.

Prodecafe is the fourth project financed in Cuba by IFAD, an international organization that has been cooperating with Cuba since 1977, and as a result of which more than 25,000 families have benefited, mainly in the agricultural sector.