MICROSAVINGS PROGRAM
In parternship with OPMAGAT
OPMAGAT is collective of farmers based in Camp Perrin, with more than 200 current members. The organization was founded in 1993 with the goal of improving conditions for farmers through reforestation, protection of the environment, access to microfinance, and promotion of agriculture, livestock breeding, health, and education. In the past we’ve partnered with OPMAGAT to plant vegetable gardens and to bring Covid Relief awareness. Our next cohort of microsavings participants includes 25 women from OPMAGAT with a wide variety of projects: some agriculture, livestock, small businesses, and several who need the savings and matching funds to meet personal needs.
June 2021: Women from OPMAGAT attending a meeting at the commencement of the latest round of our microsavings program. Financial education workshops are a big component of our program.
DEVELOPMENT GRANT
After our successful partnership with OPMAGAT in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, R2R extended a special development grant to meet major expenses involved in refurbishing OPMAGAT’s casava processing facility. The grant allowed OPMAGAT stay in good standing with the Haitian Ministry of Agriculture, and ultimately helped them to win a large competitive grant from the Pan American Development Foundation! This put OPMAGAT in a much stronger position to invest in local agricultural systems and continue their work rebuilding sustainable livelihoods in their community.
Camp Perrin
Located in the mountainous region of southwestern Haiti, Camp Perrin is home to around 65,000 people. The majority of the inhabitants make their living through agriculture. The main crop is cassava, which they grind into flour and sell throughout the country, but they also grow beans, sweet potatoes, plantains, and other staple crops. The agricultural land in and around Camp Perrin was devastated by Hurricane Matthew in October 2016. As humanitarian relief organizations concentrated their efforts in larger regional cities like Les Cayes and Jeremie, relatively little aid reached more remote areas like Camp Perrin.