Promotion of productive and social development in Carchi province.

(Quito, February 2012).- To promote development of the dairy chain in Carchi province, CAF - Latin American development bank - and the Alpina Foundation signed a technical cooperation agreement to improve the quality of life of 900 families of small and medium dairy farmers in the region.

"This initiative is based on public-private partnerships and the active participation of the communities, guaranteeing a high social impact, sustainability over time and the possibility of replication in any other type of production in the region," Hermann Krützfeldt, CAF director-representative in Ecuador, said.

Carchi province is a potential area for development of the dairy chain in Ecuador because of its competitive advantages in the market, including: the presence of a large number of companies in the dairy industry, proximity to Colombia as a potential market for processed products, potential local consumption (currently 60% with capacity for growth), and a strategic location for marketing to other regions.

Despite these advantages there are persistent difficulties that the project aims to solve by improving the competitiveness, quality and efficiency of the chain, not only in primary production where the efforts of other projects have been concentrated, but also in collection and transport processes, involving other stakeholders such as the middlemen.

The project will also contribute to building human capital and organizational capacity by setting up a Research and Training Center for Sustainable Production (CIAPS) and encouraging best food practices and consumption in the region.

A key part of the sustainability of these strategies is to guarantee the training of leaders in production with a view to placing managers in each (productive and social) area who will provide technical assistance services for their communities. The project will also create incentives for the participation of all stakeholders in the chain and the public sector entities whose policy is to develop the productive sector of the province.

The project will be implemented hand in hand with the Carchi Provincial Government, the Alpina Ecuador company and the Alpina Foundation, building on the progress made ​​on previous projects and the needs identified. This joint work throughout the project will build and transfer knowledge to public sector professionals to ensure continuity and expansion of the process over time.