UN Agrifruit Project in Contramaestre

The Agroindustrial Company América Libre of Contramaestre, belonging to the Agricultural Group in Cuba, was inserted at the end of 2018 into the Agrifruit project of local support to the strengthening the chain of fruit trees (Agrifruit trees).

This program, planned only for the municipalities of Contramaestre and Santiago de Cuba in the eastern part of Cuba, aims to collaborate in food production and food security focusing on mango and guava fruit trees.

Six projects have conditionally approved, three of them related to fruit production and the other three in the field of service rendering and inputs. They were presented by the different crop areas of Contramaestre municipality. The program continues to call for more projects.

For the second call of the Agrifruit Project, according to Alexander Garcés Chacón, its municipal coordinator, Raúl Gómez and Saturnino Lora Credict and Service Cooperatives work together in the process of storing and transporting the fruits to the Industry. While La Guira Basic Production Unit is preparing the request to set up a fruit processing center.

The Agrifruit project, run by the Ministry of Agriculture, the Agricultural Business Group and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will keep on until March 2022, and it has a budget donated by Canada amounting to 4.8 million dollars.

Ensuring gender equity by favoring the incorporation of women and the employment creation for young people are elements that distinguish the agrifruit project. More than 60 women and young people are supposed to have decisive roles in the project.

Written by Liliana Lorente Matamoros