Resilient Rural Belize in the Ministry of Economic Development distributes $40,000 worth of equipment to five producer organizations

Photo Credit: RRB

By Rubén Morales Iglesias: The Resilient Rural Belize (RRB) Program in the Ministry of Economic Development is distributing $40,000 worth of equipment to five producer organizations.

According to RRB Program Manager Dr. Geraldo Flowers, RRB has a matching grant agreement with producer organizations who it is assisting.

“It’s a project to help farmers,” said Dr Flowers. “Since yesterday we have been distributing a first complement of supplies, including computers, printers, refrigerators, fans, and crates for them to be able to transport their vegetables. We mostly deal with farmers cooperatives that produce vegetables.”

Flowers said they handed over equipment to Los Buenos Amigos Cooperative in Trio, Toledo on Thursday and on Friday, they did so to the Maya Green Growers Cooperative in San Antonio, Cayo, and to the Valley of Peace Farmers Cooperative in Valley of Peace.

Next week, RRB will visit the New River Farmers Cooperative Society San Carlos in Orange Walk and Los Pequeños Agricultores y Ganaderos de Nago Bank Co-operative Society Limited in Nago Bank in the Belize District.

“In all for this first distribution, we’re going to distribute about $40,000 worth of material,” said Flowers.

RRB is also assisting the five cooperatives with enhanced roads and storage-office space.

“In addition, we’re also enhancing the irrigation systems and their roads,” Dr Flowers said.

“For example, we did the first enhancement of roads in Nago Bank. The next road that we will be enhancing will be in Valley of Peace, the road that leads from the farmer’s cooperative, the plantation itself, to the town.

“Whenever it rains, they can’t get their products to market. So, farmers will be able to get their books to market all year round.”

That should help the farmers immensely. When Breaking Belize News visited Valley of Peace last year, the main complaint the farmers had was that when it rained, they couldn’t get their produce out.

For now, the equipment will be housed where the cooperatives have their meetings, but Flowers said that since this is one of their major projects, RRB is going one step beyond.

“But one of the things that we will be doing as well, is that we will be building them a storage facility and that facility will also have an office in which they will be able to manage from,” he said.

“Right now, they are using temporary offices most of them, but we will be building them a permanent place where they can store their produce and operate their cooperative.”

And though that might take a while, Flowers said the project is over a span of two years.

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