After a 10-year cooperation by rolling out three important projects in Cuba, the increased in cultivated and irrigated areas as well as the implementation of good agricultural practices are major results of the technological and financial investment with loans and non-reimbursable funds from IFAD.

Such a cooperation, through Prodecor, Prodegan and Prodecafé programs, has positively impacted on 49 municipalities in the eastern provinces of Camagüey, Granma, Las Tunas, Holguín, Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo, and also benefitted as many as 562 agricultural cooperatives and 42 families, Juan Diego Ruiz, IFAD’s Agricultural Development Office Head, told the local press.

Ruiz said Cuba is considered as priority within IFAD’s development agendas in Latin America and the Caribbean, thus focused on the development of cooperatives for agricultural production to reach sustainable production and effective business management.

The IFAD´s member pointed out that among goals of these projects is to increase production and productivity of some strategic crops including corn and beans, two paramount components for the Cuban people´s staples – as well as coffee and cocoa-, and also to support the livestock progress so as to guarantee milk and meat output and sale.

IFAD´s representative stated that with Prodecor (Cooperative Rural Development Project), completed in January 2021, the number of irrigated land hectares ramped up to 6,000, cropped areas rose by 42% and over 300 jobs were created.

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