Rural Economic Development Project (PDER)
and Cooperative Ajnim in Guatemala

 

The Rural Economic Development Project (PDER) was implemented by Fundacion Progresar in Guatemala between 2009 to 2016. The model included capacity building and hands on support to value chain and market linking. In 2017, the cooperative Ajnim was founded to continue the work, supported by Fundacion Progresar.

 

PDER supported 1,879 small scale farmers, of which 376 women. Several of the farmers participated for several years and more than 1,200 families or 6000 people living in poverty benefitted from the PDER.

 

The project led to an increased knowledge of agricultural production, adaptation to climate change and increased income for farmers as well as a substantial increase of local employment opportunities.

 

Fundacion Progresar used an integrated approach based on best practices including the organisation of farmers into community based farmer companies, provision of agricultural credit complemented with practical training and technical assistance in agriculture production, business development and adaptation to climate change. In addition, there was training in gender equality and hands-on support to establish market connections with Guatemalan export companies.

 

In 2016, the Project supported the farmers to start their own agricultural cooperative called Ajnim. Thereafter, Ajnim received institutional capacity development from?? to build a functioning cooperative.

 

Through the alliance with a Guatemalan micro finance organisation, the Progresar Foundation introduced a new type of agricultural credit. For many producers, this was the first loan from a formal organization. PDER moved over USD 740,000 to support small farmers and repayment level was above 97%.

 

The farmers in the project produced and exported an average of 332,000 kilos of green beans annually. A total of 98,624 days of work (approximately 16,000 days of work annually) for poor families outside the Project and a total income from this work of USD 513,000. Including the income of producers participating in the PDER, rural families in poverty earned more than USD 1,455,000.

 

The Cooperative Ajnim continued achieving similar results producing and exporting around 300,000 kilograms of beans and generating net income to poor farmer families over USD 143,000 per year.