Project Name：Papaya Export Project in Petén (Guatemala)

Project status：Completed projects

Cooperating Country：Central America, Guatemala

Project Description：

In 2005, the Taiwanese government began to cooperate with Guatemala’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (MAGA) on the implementation of an Export Crops Development Project, assisting farmers to produce fruits and vegetables for export and thereby increase their income. The cultivation and extension of papaya worked well and received a favorable response. In order to expand project effectiveness and the benefits of local agricultural clustering, it was noted that taking advantage of Petén’s status as being free of the Mediterranean fruit fly could allow papaya to be exported directly to the United States without hot water dipping or fumigation, saving on costs which would otherwise be required to carry out exports.

From 2011, the project will therefore continue in the form of a four-year papaya exporting project (to December 31, 2014), cooperating with MAGA’s Petén bureau to provide assistance toward the production and sale of papaya, and the development of the industry within the region.Overall, this project will:
1.Produce papaya at a papaya demonstration farm.
2.Assist farmers to organize a papaya cooperative and use the packaging field at the project farm to clean and pack papayas.
3.Provide cooperative technical assistance and assistance to market papaya.

Project No：TCD-2011-B05-02

Implementation Start Date：2011-01-01

Implementation End Date：2014-12-31

Project Objectives：

1.Reduce poverty by promoting local agricultural development over 100 hectares.
2.Establish a production management system over 50 hectares at the papaya demonstration farm by providing training courses on harvesting, packing and integrated marketing during the off-season.
3.Use the packaging field at the project farm to pack 300,000 boxes of papaya, for a projected value of US$2.4 million.
4.Reduce agricultural waste by producing organic fertilizers using CDM methodologies, which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions and yield byproducts that can be used to improve soil and agricultural land.
5.Provide papayas and derivative products to the Petén city government as part of a school nutrition program.
6.Assist employees at the demonstration farm to organize a Petén Papaya Cooperative, oversee the operations of the cooperative and provide training so that the operations of the demonstration farm can be transferred to the organization in the future.

Executing Agency：

Petén bureau, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (Guatemala) / Program Office for the Papaya Export Project in Petén (Guatemala)

Implementation Arrangement：The TaiwanICDF will dispatch a project manager and specialists to assist the partner country to implement the project.

Current Progress：

To the end  the following activities have been completed:

In 2011:

1. Assisted and monitored the municipality of la Libertad, MAGA, other cooperation partners and papaya associations in planting papaya orchards over 687 hectares of new land.
2. Assisted other farmers and papaya associations in preparing and planting papaya over 100 hectares.
3. Packaged 158,439 boxes of papaya at the project packing field for export and for sale within Guatemala.
4. Assisted in the export of 88 40-foot shipping containers of papaya.
5. Held 13 training classes on the cultivation of papaya for the benefit of papaya farmers.

In 2012:

1. Assisted and monitored the municipality of la Libertad, MAGA, other cooperation partners and papaya associations in planting papaya orchards over 887 hectares of new land.
2. Assisted other farmers and papaya associations in preparing and planting papaya over 133.5 hectares.
3. Packaged 292,912 boxes of papaya at the project packing field for export and for sale within Guatemala.
4. Assisted in the export of 178 40-foot shipping containers of papaya.
5. Held 10 training classes on the cultivation of papaya for the benefit of papaya farmers.

In 2013:

1. Assisted and monitored the municipality of la Libertad, MAGA, other cooperation partners and papaya associations in planting papaya orchards over 1,267 hectares of new land.
2. Assisted other farmers and papaya associations in preparing and planting papaya over 167 hectares.
3. Packaged 102,400 boxes of papaya at the project packing field for export and for sale within Guatemala.
4. Assisted in the export of 67 40-foot shipping containers of papaya.
5. Held 14 training classes on the cultivation of papaya for the benefit of papaya farmers.

In 2014:

1. Monitor and help the following progress of the municipality of la Libertad, the MAGA, other cooperation partners and papaya associations total plant more than 1200  hectors new land in the Petén papaya export area yet.
2. Assist directly papaya associations or other operating units to manage 202 hectors planted  land  .
3. Assist directly to complete 101 containers(40 feets) of papaya for exportation.
4. Assist the municipality of la Libertad complete the follow up plan of post transference, instruct the associations to carry out the preparation and planting of 35  hectors new land
5. Hold 10 training classes about cultivating , 1 seminar about controlling diseases and pests for farmers of papaya, 1 stakehooder meeting and published for outcomes of project .
6. Worked together with MAGA, OIRSA a trans 10 seed staffs for papaya extension in the topic of phytosanitary, controlling diseases and pests for farmers of papaya and farm management
7. Printed a manual  about management techniques of papaya packing plant.
8. Ending Chinese- Spanish project final report.
   

Projected Benefits：

1.Assist the Petén Papaya Cooperative to plant 90 hectares and harvest 330,000 boxes of produce worth US$1,980,000.
2.The project has directly employed 390 local persons in the past three years, with the multiplier effect of employee wages worth US$1,150,000 having a beneficial, indirect effect on local rural economies.
3.19,100 boxes of papaya-based products worth US$62,012 have been provided to city governments as part of school nutrition programs.
4.Assistance has been provided to cooperatives’ packaging plant papaya grading and packaging businesses. Exports of papaya made through the project represent 15.4 percent of Guatemala’s total exports of papaya.
5.The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (MAGA) has developed a paid-for service through which papaya farmers can use agricultural machinery for cultivation, cultivating 148 hectares of farmland to date.
6.MAGA and the Petén Papaya Cooperative have established a papaya industry worth US$7,221,000.
7.The project has driven growth in transportation, processing enterprises and other associated sectors.