Rural Women Empowerment Recovery amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

To promote economic empowerment among our rural women

• Kerene Walker
• Representative from the Rural Agricultural Development Agency
• Representative Inter-American Institute for Corporation on Agriculture (IICA)

Rural Women in all our four (4) regions in Jamaica

• The goal of the project is to assist our women to mitigate the combined challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing severe drought conditions that have been impactingthe island; and to strenghten the resilence of their livelihood within the present environmental and economical climate.
• The project will be implemented in all JNRWP four (4) regions. The target beneficiaries are small women farmers. A total of twenty (20) women will be identified in each region.

Participants of the workshops completed the GPN Workshop Evaluation form and provided valuable feedback to help determine whether the objectives of the JNRWP as previously stated were achieved.

Objective #1: Train and empower rural women producers to be better farmers thus ensuring food security and nutrition for their families and nation, and to maximize their farming enterprises for economic gain

With the partnership of Ag Chem Ltd and Newport Fersan Jamaica Ltd the JNRWP achieved objective #1. Over 79 women (other persons who were not counted joined via Zoom and Facebook live stream) were trained in Pest Management and Control and General Agronomy and Nutrition empowering them to utilize their newly acquired knowledge to more successful farming. Furthermore, to ascertain whether the information had been assimilated by the attendees, both partner entities administered quizzes at the end of their sessions with several participants scoring 100%. Each of the 79 attendees was awarded a certificate of participation in the topic of the relevant workshop attended.

Also, the attendees’ own comments on their evaluations attested to the achievement of objective #1. For example, one participant in the Pest Management and Control workshop wrote, ‘this was an excellent workshop and I think it has covered everything that us farmers need to know about chemicals and the types to be used for each type of insect’. Another writing on the new insights gained said, ‘...pest and disease identification and treatment in the crops I produce. Also, how to manage my production to earn more’. Also, from the General Nutrition and Agronomy workshops, one participant wrote about new insights gained, that ‘I have learnt that farming as a business is costly and requires scientific and technological knowledge for high yield’. Then as a prime example of the sense of empowerment gained, one woman wrote, ‘I think this motivation will lead me to higher heights. It will help me to encourage others about farming and how important it is to take care of our land and crops’.

Objective #2: Introduce rural women producers to new and developing technologies in agriculture for greater efficiency and improved crop yield

Objective #2 was achieved across all presentations. From the components on the administration of pesticides and herbicides with adjuvants to the demonstrations of soil and water testing with the pH meters to the best practices in farming in action at CASE including climate smart practices such as greenhouse farming, hydroponics and aquaponics, to the new nanotechnology high yield fertilizer blend by Newport Fersan (Jamaica) Ltd, the women were impressed by the training obtained. The participants also attested to this with one commenting on insights gained,’...learn how to read the pH meter’. Another commenting on Newport Fersan’s nanotechnology fertilizer package kit said it, ‘is quite interesting and (I) will be implementing it on my farm. This is what farmers are looking for – 30 times more yield’.

Objective #3: Introduce rural women producers to local partner entities who are key stakeholders in agriculture and agribusiness

Objective #3 was achieved at all four workshops. The participants met and interacted with agronomists and plant scientists from two of Jamaica’s leading players in the agriculture sector – Agricultural Chemicals Plant Ltd and Newport Fersan (Jamaica) Ltd. They were introduced to the offerings of each company and the benefits to their farming enterprises. Also, they interacted with the Acting Director, Community Liaison of the Bureau of Gender Affairs, the department within the of the Ministry of Gender, Government of Jamaica, that is charged with Policy Development, Public Education and Training and Project Planning and Monitoring, thereby representing gender related matters including those pertinent to women in agriculture. Then, they interacted with the representative from the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), an organization whose objectives include increasing the contributions of the agriculture sector to economic growth and sustainable development, and contributing to the well- being of all rural dwellers, plays an integral role in rural development including rural women producers.