Support for Peruvian cacao agro-exporters

(Lima, August 31, 2011). Today, CAF –Latin American development bank– and the San Martín Regional Government signed a non-reimbursable technical cooperation agreement that grants funding for improving the competitiveness and sustainability of the production chain of cacao for export and to benefit, in the first stage, 16 organizations that, together, have a membership of more than 5,000 producers in this Amazonian region.

The document was signed by CAF’s director in Peru, Eleonora Silva Pardo, and the president of San Martín Regional Government, César Villanueva Arévalo, in the presence of Production Minister Kurt Burneo Farfán, as honorary witness.

This project proposes a joint effort by the Center for Technological Innovation (CITE after its initials in Spanish) and local producers to strengthen them from the institutional viewpoint so that they can increase productivity while focusing on product quality with a view to consolidating their position in the international market and the domestic premium market.

Burneo Farfán made special mention of CAF’s constant support of Peru and, in particular, thanked the development bank for promoting projects whose purpose is to foster competitiveness and sustainability in production chains geared to export.

“The contribution of multilateral agencies is fundamental for initiatives of this type. For that reason, I welcome CAF’s support via this non-reimbursable contribution. I’m convinced –given the quality of the participants and the clarity of the objectives- that making cacao more competitive and bringing it to the notice of the international market is a goal that will be met, as this initiative is headed in the right direction,” he stressed.

After recalling that CAF’s mission is to promote the sustainable development of its shareholder countries, Silva Pardo emphasized that this project seeks to foster training, competitiveness, good practices, business management, and leadership, as well as the development of local production and growth in the employment indicators that will make it possible to lay the foundations for developing the cacao chain so that it focuses on products with added value, all of which has a high social and economic impact for the region and the country.

“It is worth noting that this technical cooperation contemplates the project’s main consultants being trained by actors of the Cacao Chain in Esmeraldas, Ecuador, which is also supported by CAF, so that the lessons learned from this initiative can be capitalized on for the benefit of Peruvian producers,” he said.

Villanueva Arévalo commented that the San Martín Region is Peru’s biggest cacao bean exporting region, from which nearly 23% of total cacao exports come, approximately USD 80 million.

Bearing that in mind, he considered that CAF’s support will make it possible to optimize the technical handling and business management of the productive units.

“With this project, we seek to increase our competitiveness in the international market, particularly in specialist and niche markets, where there is a demand for fine aromatic cacao of Peruvian origin,” he stressed.