Central America
Central America is especially known for bananas, coffee, sugarcane and cocoa. Agriculture is the largest employer, but many of the small scale farmers lack knowhow on farm management and are weakly organized.
Providing training and support
The Regional Expertise Centre (REC) Central America is based in Guatemala. It has a long tradition of civil society projects in Guatemala, and has extensive experience in producer support.
The REC Central America provides training and support for producers interested in improving their farm management and in certification of their products. Improvement projects lead to cost reduction, production increase and better quality, and therefore increases the value of products. Certification provides producers with a stronger market position and enhances their commercial opportunities. Moreover, it aims at the improvement of the labour conditions of workers.
Vacancies
If we have vacancies you will find these in our jobs section.
Cases
We offer
REC Central America works on sustainable supply chains in close collaboration with Solidaridad's worldwide network of expertise centres and local partners. Together we deliver the following services:
To producers
- Training farmers in good agricultural farming techniques that lead to higher yield, cost reduction and have less negative impact on people and the environment.
- Supporting producer organizations through capacity building and organizational strengthening.
- Assisting producer organizations to get access to means of production, finance and markets.
- Supporting agricultural producer organizations and industrial producer companies to qualify for social and environmental certification standards.
To companies
- Supporting companies to implement corporate social responsibility (CSR) related to sourcing in developing countries.
- Developing sustainable business concepts in order to broaden the marketplace for sustainable products from developing countries.
Other
- Supporting civil society organizations that empower women, farmers or employees, as well as organizations that protect nature and bio diversity.
- Seeking dialogue with stakeholders and the public using our knowledge, experience and views on sustainable economic development and corporate social responsibility.