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The ACP MEAs 3 Project Coordinator traveled to Saint Lucia to attend the Project Steering Committee and join the Regional and National Coordinators to visit their main partners. Taking advantage of this mission, an interview was conducted with these three great women to learn more about the current status of the project. 

Leshan Monrose, the National Coordinator in Saint Lucia, highlighted some of the main achievements of the MEAs project in Saint Lucia. Within the cocoa sector, training has been successfully delivered to farmers, agro-processors and extension officers on sustainable cocoa production, inclusive of, ecosystem-friendly agronomic practices, harvesting and post-harvesting techniques to ensure that quality is maintained from the field to the processor. Additionally, the implementation of two Farmer Field Schools (FFS) on vegetable production are a notable success. Each FFS engaged 20 farmers in holistic, discovery-based learning to solve longstanding production problems with pests and consequent heavy use of pesticides.

Leshan talks about the integration of women and youth in the programme activities, “When we planned our community meetings, we held them at a time when women are able to attend, without interrupting their household activities. In the afternoon, after their kids arrive from school, so they come with them. We ended up with a bunch of kids sitting in the meetings with us.” This was a lesson learnt during the development of the programme and it’s a good practice that has been applied in the rest of the activities in Saint Lucia.

Moreover, talking about the scale up countries, Thérèse Yarde, Regional Coordinator for the Caribbean, shares insights into scaling up initiatives. Collaboration is key to fostering real connections between countries, extension officers, and farmers, beyond just information exchange. Non-formal methods of communication are rising with excellent results, for example the creation of WhatsApp Groups between extension officers from across the OECS (Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States) who participated in a regional training on FFS methodology.

When Thérèse was asked to choose an activity or tool that will continue after the ACP MEAs program is over, she says: “More FFS everywhere! It’s people focused and brings farmers together in communities.  A well-delivered FFS gives all participants a chance to speak and share their experiences, including those more reserved or with different levels of literacy. It’s an approach that creates ways to engage everyone in farmer-centered learning, for a greater impact than top-down teaching.”

Owing to the successful uptake of the national FFS initiative in Saint Lucia, a new cycle is being planned as a scale out activity. KimAnh Tempelman, the Project Coordinator shares some ideas on the future of the project in the Caribbean “Looking ahead, the goal is to involve extension officers from the other 5 OECS countries to come to Saint Lucia at the beginning, middle and end of the new cycle of FFS, to learn from the extension officers who already gone through the whole FFS cycle. The idea is that the guests learn the best practices and take this experience home, to start establishing FFS in their countries. Creating at the same time a big regional network.”

KimAnh highlights the unique interaction she sees, between farmers and extension officers, building a relationship of trust between the government and the agricultural community in Saint Lucia. She also gives a lot of credit to the commitment and dedication of all stakeholders. She concludes, “We have a golden team in the Caribbean, there is a lot of work behind the scenes lead by our FAO members. I am sad that Thérèse, our regional coordinator, is leaving but it has been and honor to work with her. It is thanks to these two women that we can now celebrate the good results of our program. Without them we wouldn’t be where we are today.”

Before the end of the year, Thérèse will leave the ACP MEAs programme, to pursue a new personal challenge. She will keep working for the biodiversity of the Caribbean.

Thérèse assures: “Working on the ACP MEAs programme in Saint Lucia and the Caribbean has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my professional career so far.  It’s been deeply satisfying to work with partners in Saint Lucia to produce results that respond to national needs and have a real positive impact on people in the places where they live, study, and work.  I leave with confidence that the project is in good hands and will continue to deliver results for the Eastern Caribbean as scaling out continues.”

These interviews shed light on the impactful strides made by the ACP MEAs team in pesticide management and sustainable agriculture. Always keeping their goals clear, promote continuous learning, collaboration, and community engagement for a more resilient and inclusive agricultural future.