Sustainable Rural Development Project for Food Security in the Semi-arid Zones of Lara and Falcon States

Sustainable Rural Development Project for Food Security in the Semiarid Zones of Lara and Falcon States (PROSALAFA III)

Small-scale agriculture is the main economic activity in the semi-arid region of Lara and Falcón, in North-Western Venezuela. Yet the region's semi-arid climate and the lack of good water-collecting infrastructure pose great obstacles to the agriculture sector. As a result the region has a poverty incidence ranging between 30 to 60 per cent.

To address these challenges, the Government of Venezuela, based on the previous IFAD-funded experience in the region, has proposed the implementation of specific actions that can increase agricultural production and productivity, while contributing to fight poverty and ensure food security and nutrition.

Sustainable Rural Development Project for Food Security in the Semiarid Zones of Lara and Falcon States (PROSALAFA III) aims to improve living conditions of 18,000 rural households and contribute to their food and nutrition security.

To achieve these targets, PROSALAFA III will:

• improve food security and nutrition, through the adoption of production practices compatible with the sustainable use of natural resources;
• support the creation and consolidation of associative rural enterprises for transformation and commercialization of food and agricultural products;
• strengthen the managerial capacities of rural communes (self-managed organizations), new entities created within the framework of the decentralization process

The project will empower 40 communal organizations, boosting their governance abilities through a process of systematic and continuous training.

Source: IFAD