The young Guatemalan Irma Benito is an agricultural promoter. To become one, Irma has trained and acquired the technical knowledge necessary to treat the land, manage crops and take care of animals.
This preparation has marked a turning point in her life and her family’s, because before being trained, Irma did not know how to face many difficulties derived from pests, droughts, animal diseases and other adverse effects that, as a direct consequence, seriously damaged their food security.
“Before, I only knew how to plant beans and corn, but I didn’t know how to plant vegetables and other crops. I didn’t have the knowledge, so my plants would die, I had a lot of pests that I didn’t know how to fight…” she recalls. According to Irma, she also did not have irrigation systems or the technical skills necessary to prepare and treat the land for her crops. Feeding her chickens and caring for them properly was also a problem on many occasions.
FUNDAP y el apoyo financiero de la Comunidad de Madrid.
Irma’s fate, and with it that of her family and her community, changed dramatically when she trained to be an agricultural promoter and became part of the project we developed in the rural communities of San Bartolomé Jocotenango and San Pedro Jocopilas, in Quiché (Guatemala), with our local partner FUNDAP and the financial support of the Community of Madrid.
Irma’s crucial role as an agricultural promoter
The main objective of this initiative is to strengthen the food security of the most vulnerable indigenous population living in these geographically dispersed communities. To achieve this, the role of agricultural promoters like Irma is key, as they extend to their neighbors the agricultural practices that they themselves have learned to produce nutritious food and, thus, leave behind the situation of food insecurity in which many families find themselves.
Irma herself says that, thanks to the support and all the knowledge she has acquired, she is now not only able to produce her own food, but she also sells it. In this way, she manages to generate income and make life easier for her neighbours. “They come to buy vegetables at my house, they no longer have to go to the market” explains Irma, since her community lives very far from the “closest” municipality where they had to go before to buy their food.
Magdalena’s gratitude
As an agricultural promoter, Irma plays a crucial role in her community, since the knowledge she has allows her to help and teach other neighbors how to plant vegetables and care for animals. Magdalena is one of these neighbors who, in addition to the support needed to learn how to grow crops, has also received the seeds with which to begin harvesting her own food.
“We have received a lot of support from the community,” Magdalena says gratefully. She explains that she is now able to produce her own food for her family and that she also sells what she has left at the market to other neighbors. Together, they will ensure that more and more families in her community can achieve food security. Don’t miss Irma and Magdalena’s testimonies!
