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Our
Nicaraguan partners
Since
our beginnings in 1978 we have worked with a huge variety of people,
projects and organisations including bike workshops, building projects,
coffee cooperatives, community organisations, debt cancellation networks,
disabled groups, education projects, fair trade producers, health clinics
and hospitals, human rights organisations, mural painters, musicians,
political parties, sesame producers, sewing co-ops, theatre groups, trade
unions, radio stations and many more.
For an upbeat resume of our work between 1978 and 1998, complete with
photos and contributions from our many sponsors, ask for our 20th
Anniversary publication 'The NSC Story'. 020 7561 4836 or
nsc@nicaraguasc.org.uk
You might even like to give us a donation...
A few organisations with whom we have worked recently are described below.
Other fair trade organisations are described in Campaigning Issues >>
See also our Contacts section >>
For volunteering opportunities with some of these organisations
go to
>>
CECOCAFEN (Organisation of Northern Coffee
Co-operatives)
Coffee growing has a long tradition in the Matagalpa and Jinotega
departments of Nicaragua, dating back to the mid-1800s. The region’s humid
tropical forest climate, rich volcanic soil, and lush vegetation all
contribute to the unique flavour of its internationally renowned coffee. In
1997, with contributions from local farmers and international NGOs, the
Organization of Northern Coffee Cooperatives, CECOCAFEN was founded to
promote and sell coffee produced by its members. Initially, the organization
focused on strengthening internal organization and studying the experiences
of other Nicaraguan organizations in order to create their own vision: a
cooperative business with a social character and financially viable. Over
2000 coffee farmers organised in ten cooperatives make up CECOCAFEN which
exports more than four million pounds of coffee per year.
Key achievements:
A. Coffee quality and environmental protection:
* With a mix of loans, grants, and their own funds generated from
fairtrade, purchased a dry processing mill, SolCafé, in 1999.
* Member coops are now owners of the mill, enabling them to process
the coffee, control for quality, and increase their incomes.
* A cupping lab was installed so that coffee could be sampled and
tested prior to shipment. CECOCAFEN technicians also conduct quality control
workshops in the field. Not only are steps being taken at SolCafé to improve
the coffee, but careful attention has been taken to improve the quality of
the work environment as well. For example, workers at SolCafé are paid
competitive wages and care is taken to provide for their health and safety.
* CECOCAFEN promotes certified organic agriculture and shade-grown
coffee. They do this by conserving water and practicing good soil management
and agro-forestry techniques.
B. Social Projects:
* Scholarships for the children of members to offset the costs
associated with high school, technical or university studies. Participants
in this program repay the scholarships through work in the cooperative. For
example, they might help the members with the organic certification process.
These activities increase the commitment of young people to the cooperative,
as well as strengthen the cooperatives and their communities.
* More than 400 women participate in a solidarity savings and loan
programme. They are organised into 15 autonomous groups around activities
that diversity family income and complement coffee production. Many of these
women are saving for the first time in their lives. The loans are used to
start small income generating projects which help the women meet some of the
most essential needs of their families - nutrition, school supplies, and
clothing. In addition, they are learning business, marketing, and credit
skills. Because the credit decisions are made in groups, their participation
also promotes leadership skills and contributes to the development of their
self-esteem.
* Young people have been trained to identify the local flora and fauna
and to serve as guides to the visitors.
* Women are organized into committees and are learning how to
appropriately house and feed the visitors. The appreciation that visitors
show upon visiting the cooperatives for the vast wealth and diversity of
natural resources, reinforces the importance of conservation and
environmental practices in the eyes of cooperative members.
Further information:
www.cecocafen.com
email: turismo@cecocafen.com
tel: 00505 772 4067 or 00505 772 6353
SOPPEXCCA
SOPPEXCCA was established in the Jinotega department to provide business and
organisational support for small coffee producers in improving their social
and economic conditions and strengthening their human rights and
self-esteem. Today they also support the growth of garden vegetables to
improve the self-sustainability of families and the management of grass-fed
livestock. 650 coffee farmers participate in SOPPEXCCA.
Key Achievements:
A. Coffee Quality and Environmental Protection:
* Set up a coffee laboratory where quality can be monitored and
enabling farmers to see their coffee as “quality coffee”
* Provision of training in quality improvement
* In 2002 and 2004, three Soppexcca producers were among the 37 best
coffee producers in Nicaragua.
B. Social projects
* Activities for young people covering areas such as quality control ,
environmental protection, and reproductive health
* Support and training in business and accounting principles,
environmental health and preventative and reproductive health.
* Promotion of active and visible integration of women within member
cooperatives, member communities and the organization itself (40% of
Soppexcca members are women). Of these 35 women are integrated into
decision-making structures such as the General Assembly of SOPPEXCCA.
* Support for the empowerment of women through adult education courses
* Schools have been built in the communities of “Los Alpes”, “La
Union” and “Sierras Morenas”
* Established three pharmacies which provide rural populations with
low-cost medicine
For more information see SOPPEXCCA website at
www.soppexcca.org/en/
PRODECOOP
PRODECOOP was established in 1993 to support member cooperatives in
sustainable production and the marketing of their coffee. Today they promote
organic farming techniques, integrated systems of production, conservation
of natural resources, and economic diversification among their members.
Today PRODECOOP is made up of 2,300 producers in 45 cooperatives. Half of
their production is sold through is sold through fair trade.
Key achievements:
A. Coffee quality and Environmental Protection:
* Through pooling the resources of the producers, they have
built a cupping laboratory the ensure very sophisticated quality control.
* An organic production program has improved the quality of
coffee through environmentally-friendly techniques
B. Social programmes:
* Organisational training
* A scholarship program that has provided dozens of scholarships
to members’ children so that they can attend primary and secondary school.
This included providing books and backpacks for over 2,000 students.
* The most outstanding children have participated in a training
programme to become expert suppers
* Food support programme in which food is given to members in
disadvantaged areas
* Empowering the participation of women. Membership includes 504
women with several women in senior management, including the CEO
* A revolving fund for building and improving members’ houses
Further information:
www.cafedirect.org.uk/growers/nicaragua
CESESMA and Child Coffee Workers
 CESESMA, the Centre for Education in Health and Environment, is based in
Matagalpa. The project we support is called the Little Community
School, a community scheme which combines basic education with practical and
personal skills such as organic food growing, crafts, music and dance,
leadership, gender equality, conservation, nutrition, non-violence and more.
Games sessions are used to integrate and motivate.
This is at a school in Samulalí.
Photo by CESESMA.
This project is mainly for child coffee workers. The
Nicaraguan coffee industry (excluding in the organic and fair trade sector)
depends on many thousands of child workers, some as young as five years old.
They work long hours on large, often foreign-owned, mountain plantations, in
burning sun and drenching rain. The risks they face include scorpions and
snakes; toxic pesticides; and injuries from carrying heavy sacks of coffee
beans, beatings and sexual abuse.
Some go to school but have to drop out at harvest time and often abandon
their education after three or four years. Many live so far from the nearest
school that they have no education at all. Self-esteem and hope for the
future are soon destroyed. Added to this most get paid nothing at all. To
get around child rights legislation, plantation owners only register adults
and older teenagers so the younger children work all day but see their
parent or siblings take the money. On top of this, whole families are
becoming destitute and starving as they are laid off due to the world coffee
crisis.
Last year we sent funds raised through an appeal, a birthday event, a
cabaret and a coffee brigade reunion. Many thanks if you contributed to
this.
If you would like more information you can email
cesesma@ibw.ni
FETSALUD and Health projects
FETSALUD is the Nicaraguan health workers' union. In March 2004 Evile Umaña, deputy general secretary, came to speak at
the NSC's
Workers' Rights Dayschool and to activists around the country. NSC has
raised some funds for various health projects through the
efforts of John Grigg in the London Marathon and through an appeal.
This is how Evile described the health situation in Nicaragua.
 "
In the days of the revolution, there was free health care for all
regardless of status or wealth "
Photo shows mothers at clinic in 1981. Note Sandino in the posters.
Credit: Mike Goldwater
Since then the level of access to health care among the
vast majority of Nicaraguans has been falling steadily. At the same time,
there has been a mushrooming of private clinics, hospitals and pharmacies,
with services dedicated to the top ten or twenty per cent who can afford to
pay for services at rates that approach those charged in the US or the UK.
At the present time (2004), probably 80% of Nicaragua's population is
effectively disenfranchised, certainly as to a comprehensive health care
service. While it remains true that there are still clinics and even
hospitals technically "free" dispersed throughout the population, the
reality is that even the most basic treatment will involve the average
family in costs which are insupportable. An example: Don Cristobal Chavarria,
86 years old, suffered a sudden heart collapse. There was no ambulance, his
family had to pay a taxi. Once in the hospital, they had to provide sheets,
pillows, toilet paper, soap, food, even someone to monitor his condition -
on top of any medical requirements. The person in the next bed was already
dead. Simple tests and the resulting stabilising medicines cost between them
in excess of 200 pounds sterling. His family brought him home after two
nights, they could no longer bear the costs.
Thus the hospitals are short of even basic medicines, medical supplies
and the most fundamental tools such as syringes, rubber gloves, sterile
masks, etc. Doctors and nurses earn less than C$1000 per month, while even a
specialist doctor does not earn sufficient to cover the basic requirements
for a decent level of life, currently reckoned at around C$5000. Many health
care professionals professionals have to work double shifts or find other
work outside their regular hours. Some take in washing and ironing, some
drive taxis, some work within the private clinics, some sell on street
corners. At the same time, Nicaragua is confronting rising rates of
potential epidemic diseases, such as TB, AIDS, malaria and dengue.
Despite all these things, the budget for 2004 has been reduced by about
10%.
We must continue to fight for change for the sake of the patients and the workers."
Contact FETSALUD on fntsid@ibw.co.ni
For more information on Nicaraguan trade unions go to
NSCAG (Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign Action
Group)
>>
You could also take part in a Trade
Union delegation to Nicaragua in years when this is running. Go to
NSCAG delegation >>
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