PROJECT ICP
PROJECT DIVERSIFICATION
Today small farmers are faced with a crisis due to low coffee prices and lack of a sufficient
international market. Therefore, Project ICP helps them to find viable solutions to these
problems through project diversification to achieve short and long term economic stability.
The primary purpose of diversifaction is to give alternatives to the coffee farmers so that they
can maintain their farms as an agricultural operation and be self-sustainable. This alternative
should encourage various uses of the land as well as protect the areas culture. At the same
time they should be profitable and environmentaly sound. Also these programs should respond to the goals
of the small farmers in agreement with local needs.
These projects are:
AGROFORESTRY INDUSTRY
Part of the primary activities of the Asociation of community Agroforesteres -ASILCOM- is
to process and market the wood products. This activity requires much work and guarantees
constant flow of raw materials, generates employment for members of the asociation and
constantly sends the products to the national and intarnational market. ASILCOM is given
technical assistance in commercialization for high quality product of wood.
APICULTURE
ICP is establishing projects utilizing a genus of native bees that do not sting (genus Melipona).
These bees are abundant in this area and maintain a unique balance in nature through the work that
they carry out. They are responsible for the pollination of about 80% of flowering plants, thus achieving
a very strong contribution to the preservation of many native species of tropical foliage. At the moment,
seven species of Meliponas have been identified in this area. Their honey represents a high commercial value.
ORNAMENTAL UNDERBRUSH NURSERIES
Another contribution of the ICP project to the communities is the establishment of the
Ornamental Underbrush Nurseries program. The purpose of this program is to preserve and
explore in a sustained way the resources of the forest underbrush. The project has just
been initiated to utilize three native ornamental plants, the Heliconias, Chamadoreas and
Anturios, which are native to the forested mountains of the areas of Pamuc and Pampacche.
It is the only remaining cloud forests in the area, which is extremely rich in biodiversity.
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