No. 365 Coagro (Ecuador) – Vegetables and milk

The 3 year project “Contribution to food security, sovereignty and empowerment for the exercise of the rights of indigenous women from the Pedro Moncayo and Otavalo Cantons” aims to help improve the food security and sovereignty and the exercise of the rights of 90 indigenous women and their families from Pedro Moncayo and Otavalo.
The project focuses on four components: 1. Modernization of milk production to increase the income of the indigenous women; 2. Implementation of diversified garden vegetables and Andean crop of high nutritional value; 3. Technical training for indigenous women to improve the quality of theirs pastures and feeding cows; to use agro-ecological and organic technologies in order to sustainably manage natural resources such as paramo, water sources and soil; and 4. Trainings in rural microenterprise management for the sustainable management of their business and trainings in women’s rights in order to raise their self esteem and empower them to achieve greater security and improve their position in their communities and local society.
As a way to support the production of milk, the project will set up a mini warehouse to store livestock supplies, which will be managed the Women’s Association. Furthermore, 4 reservoirs of craft water will be set up in order to hold water for watering the diversified household plots of the women during the hot summer months. In this way the production will not be affected by the lack of water.