Overview:
In Kenscoff, the place insecurity has displaced rural households and deepened meals insecurity, the agroecological farm run by native group SOHADERK offers sustainable agriculture coaching, women-led manufacturing and help to just about 7,000 residents. This grassroots initiative demonstrates how community-led farming can shield livelihoods, construct resilience and function a mannequin for different elements of rural Haiti.
KENSCOFF, Haiti— Perched greater than 4,900 ft above Port-au-Prince, the fog-wrapped hills of Kenscoff maintain a quiet however highly effective type of resistance. On a 50-acre plot of land, the agroecological farm run by the grassroots group Solidarité Haïtienne pour le Développement Rural de Kenscoff (SOHADERK) is rising greater than greens. It’s cultivating group resilience.
Based a decade in the past as a response to soil degradation and rural poverty, the farm has developed right into a lifeline for almost 7,000 individuals throughout Kenscoff—particularly ladies. Its guiding mission: empower native farmers with sustainable agriculture coaching, environmentally pleasant methods and alternatives to regain dignity by self-reliance.
“We constructed this farm as a legacy for our youngsters,” stated Chérilien Eliancy, deputy coordinator of SOHADERK. “The individuals right here have all the time identified the worth of exhausting work. Now we’re displaying what that work can construct.”
“We constructed this farm as a legacy for our youngsters.”
Chérilien Eliancy, deputy coordinator of SOHADERK.
As armed violence displaces rural households and meals insecurity worsens throughout Haiti, SOHADERK’s mannequin affords a uncommon instance of social restoration led by the individuals most affected.
Farming with dignity, coaching for tomorrow
SOHADERK’s farm makes use of no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. As a substitute, it prioritizes soil conservation, composting and guide labor. Crops embrace cassava, leafy greens, potatoes and peanuts—bought at markets in Kenscoff, Pétion-Ville and Port-au-Prince.
Native farmers are grateful for SOHADERK’s help, regardless of its limitations.
“We are able to’t afford fashionable tools but,” stated Francillon Dorvil, an agricultural technician at SOHADERK. “However our farmers are dedicated. They do all the pieces with picks, hoes and machetes.”
Past manufacturing, the farm is a coaching hub. Ladies like Natalie Antoine turn into agricultural facilitators after frequently attending workshops to reinforce their information and expertise.
“I train different ladies the way to put together greens on the market and retailer them safely,” Antoine stated with a smile. “That is about taking possession of our land and our future.”
“I train different ladies the way to put together greens on the market and retailer them safely. That is about taking possession of our land and our future.”
Natalie Antoine, agricultural facilitator
Ladies distributors like Marie Carme Petit-Homme depend on the farm to help their households. “I promote at Tête-de-l’Eau market,” stated Petit-Homme, 52. “It’s not simple, however I keep energetic and earn sufficient to handle.”
SOHADERK additionally hosts interns like James Suprien, an agronomy pupil from Saint Francis of Assisi College. “Right here, we get hands-on expertise that goes past the classroom,” he stated.
Adapting by adversity: A replicable mannequin for Haiti’s rural future
In January, the Viv Ansanm gang coalition invaded elements of Kenscoff, forcing rural households to flee. Dorvil says SOHADERK absorbed a few of the displaced farmers into a brand new peanut cultivation initiative.
A firearm and a communication radio have been additionally seized in the course of the police’s response to the armed gang assaults within the mountains above Port-au-Prince
“They’re Kenscoffites now,” Dorvil stated. “However the insecurity is fixed. Persons are afraid to work within the fields as a result of stray bullets fall like rain.”
Regardless of the dangers, the farm continues working, because of volunteers and group members who refuse to desert the land. However funding stays a significant impediment.
“We estimate needing $191,000 to modernize instruments, improve manufacturing and replicate this mannequin in different neighboring areas,” Eliancy stated.
Kenscoff will not be alone. Neighboring communes like Cornillon Grand-Bois, with related altitude and local weather, may undertake SOHADERK’s mannequin. Different areas within the South have launched comparable efforts—however with out broader help, these initiatives danger collapse.
“Our merchandise are wholesome and grown with dignity,” Eliancy added. “If we let this land fall to waste, we lose greater than meals—we lose our future.”
As Haiti confronts cascading crises, SOHADERK’s farm in Kenscoff reminds the nation that grassroots agriculture is usually a path not solely to survival—however sovereignty.