The director of the Special Fund for Agricultural Development (FEDA), Hecmilio Galvan, delivered close to 12 million pesos to three producer cooperatives and a women’s association for the production, processing, support and management of cocoa production, in the Barahona and Duarte provinces as part of the National Plan for the Relaunch and Transformation of cocoa farming Dominican Republic executed by that institution with the support of the Presidency.
The beneficiary cooperatives are Servicios Múltiples de Paraíso (COOPAMUPA), Agropecuaria del Suroeste (COOPASURO), in Barahona, and Agropecuaria y Servicios Múltiples Jobobán, in Villa Riva, as well as the Naranjo de Castillo Women’s Association, in Duarte province. .
During tours of both provinces, Galván delivered a check for almost 7 million pesos to COOPAMUPA executives and gave the first pitch for the construction of a cocoa collection center in the municipality of Paraíso, where he also delivered RD$1,500,000 for the construction of a cocoa nursery managed by COOPASURO.
According to Galván, the government of Luis Abinader is betting on diversifying the productive matrix of the Southwest Macro Region, in which cocoa can play a stellar role as it does in the North, East and Northeast regions.
Galván also delivered another check for RD$1,508,000 to the Jobobán Agricultural and Multiple Services Cooperative COOPJOBOBAN in Duarte Province for the reconstruction of a cocoa dryer, and to the Naranjo de Castillo Women’s Association, a check for RD$1,612,500 for the expansion of chocolate manufacturing machinery
The plan, executed by the feda seeks to renew and transform the country’s cocoa subsector through investment in key areas to increase productivity, improve the income of producers and thus guarantee their development and sustainability.
The plan includes building 8 new nurseries with the capacity to produce 400,000 plants each quarter, distributing 1,250,000 cocoa plants and 3,000,000 fruit plants free of charge to 2,500 selected associated producers, trained to promote the substitution of crop plantations for higher quality ones and thus achieving a greater renewal of cocoa farming and increasing the productivity of the crop to 2 quintals per task.
Galván recalled that the plan proposes to build 10 collection centers and 5 fermentation centers or mills in places where these constructions are needed to guarantee quality post-harvest management of the cocoa crop.
It also includes hiring 25 brigades of 6 to 10 people to recover the plantations affected by Hurricane Fiona, coordinated with the producer associations.
Tour of Barahona
Galván indicated that the Paraíso collection center will be built in the Villa Nizao community and will benefit producers organized in COOPAMUPA, who requested support from FEDA to promote and renew their cocoa plantations for the entire Southern Region, as well as the cocoa nursery. of COOPASURO, which is being built in San Rafael.
The construction of this center where the first pick was made for the start of the works, together with the municipal authorities and FEDA officials, will serve to improve the quality of the crop, since it will guarantee the fermentation of the cocoa and will prevent the inhabitants from drying out. cocoa in the streets of the municipality.
Galván assured that the construction of the collection center will generate jobs for people in the community. He affirmed that with the cultivation of cocoa the environment is protected and foreign currency is generated.
The event was attended by Francisco Acosta Saldaña, mayor of the municipality of Paraíso; Maltiano Moreta Matos, president of COOPAMUPA; Aquiles Ledesma, former deputy for Independence, and for FEDA, Rafael Uceta, deputy director; Rafael Beltré, in charge of the Monitoring Department; Dorka González, provincial; Emilio Jiménez, regional, and César Matos, advisor to COOPAMUPA.
In the Duarte Province
On the other hand, the Ruta de los Haitises was developed, where Galván toured the communities of Castillo, Pimentel and Villa Rivas, in the Duarte Province.
At these events, Gabriel Luna, president of the Jobobán cooperative, thanked President Abinader and the director of FEDA for the initiative to develop the country’s cocoa subsector.
In the act with the Association of Women of Los Naranjos de Castillo, Galván recalled that through the FEDA Mothers of the Field Program, all these women who work in an artisanal way chocolate, wine, sweets and cream will be supported to improve their living conditions and contribute to the development of the community with the production and sale of their products.
The FEDA director said that with this action, the government of President Abinader improves the quality of life of rural families, contributes to reducing rural poverty and improves the competitive capacity of the national agricultural sector of small and medium producers.
The deputy Dorina Rodríguez, the FEDA regional Emilio Sánchez and Francis Fernández, as well as Ramona Martínez, president of the Los Naranjo de Castillo Women’s Association, participated in this activity.
