Government of Dominica & UNDP GUY-DOM project launches week of activities and Farming Champions Competition

The Strengthening the Disaster Management Capacity of women in the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and the Commonwealth of Dominica (GUYDOM) Project launches its Week of Activities with an Opening Ceremony on Monday, 22 November 2021. Through collaboration with the Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica, the GUYDOM project, which is facilitated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean with the support of the Government of Japan, is engaging and educating the general public with a Visibility Blitz which will run until Friday, 26 November.

The Opening ceremony will be hosted virtually via UWITV (www.uwitv.org) as well as via the UNDP Dominica Facebook page. It will provide the public with an overview of the project’s progress thus far and further advocate for climate smart and disaster resilient farming practices in Dominica. Following the virtual session, several entertaining and informative activities are scheduled namely, two radio programmes which will be aired on DBS radio, Vibes Radio, Kari FM. The 9AM session on November 23rd will focus on Gender integration and mainstreaming in Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) while the Wednesday, November 24th programme, slated for 7PM will educate listeners on Early Warning Systems in DRR. Two panel discussions, one with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) on Microfinance, Value Chain and Climate Smart Agriculture and the other on Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA), are scheduled for Tuesday, November 23, 7-8PM and Thursday November 25, 10-11AM, respectively. The project will also host a photographic exhibition in locations in Roseau and in Agricultural District administrative offices.

But the highlight of the week will be the selection of the Farming Champions who will be chosen from four agricultural districts across the island. Twenty-five farmer nominees have been selected following rigorous criteria in collaboration with the Extension Officers of the Division of Agriculture and interested persons can visit the Dominica Facebook page to vote for their farmer of choice. The 8 winners will be announced at the closing ceremony on November 26 which will be hosted via UWI TV.

Through the leadership of the Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica, the GUY-DOM project targets rural, hazard-prone, and vulnerable communities across the Central, Southern and Eastern agriculture regions. As part of the project’s educational and advocacy component, four billboards displaying GUY-DOM project themes will be installed and jingles conveying project messages will be aired on radio and social media. This outreach effort forms part of the project’s strategy to accelerate communication and encourage farmers to adopt disaster resilient practices as well as support more women in farming. Through the week’s events, the best practice and lessons learnt on the project will be systemically disseminated.

To date, the project has facilitated the expansion of hazard monitoring equipment to strengthen Early Warning Systems for Multi-hazard alerts. It has provided training for 327 farmers in the use of weather and climate data to make informed farm decisions and these farmers are currently being supported with tools and materials to prepare, mitigate, and adapt to disasters. Additionally, the project provides value chain support to rural farmers and in turn links them to new markets. Further to this, under UNDP’s cross-cutting lens of gender, the GUY-DOM project has developed a gender-responsive micro-finance mechanism that addresses the needs of disadvantaged women. This facility will empower women to invest in resilient agricultural practice and agribusiness and to sharpen their business skills.

At this time when exogenous threats, such as COVID-19, are impacting the region, it is vital that developmental efforts are continued to reinforce the need for regional resilience and building forward better. The GUY-DOM project activities, underscore UNDP’s commitment to promoting economic diversification, job creation and resilience under the “Blue Economy for Green Islands” vision. As the Caribbean continues to seek solutions to support traditionally vulnerable groups, UNDP Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, in partnership with governments and stakeholders, remains dedicated to the advancement of inclusive and sustainable development throughout the region and building resilient communities that can withstand shocks and crises through targeted projects and programmes.

For more on the project and the week of activities please contact Project Coordinator Sawana Fabien [email protected]