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Role Models and Innovation Give Farming a New Reputation in Jamaica
Extended drought, water scarcity and soil degradation are the main challenges for the area’s farmers.
©FAO/Chrishane Williams
Nestled in the hills of Clarendon, Jamaica is the home of the Mount Airy Farmer’s Group. For many of these individuals, farming was inherent, a livelihood passed down from generation to generation without question. Throughout years of increasingly unpredictable rainfall, the farmers have had to haul water from a nearby pond. However, without individual water storage units, they frequently resorted to purchasing water from trucks, which cuts into their earnings.
As part of the United Nations Jamaica Human Security Trust Fund, the project uses the Farmer Field School approach to alleviate the farmers’ water woes. Methods shared include rainwater harvesting, gravity drip irrigation and fertigation (the process of inputting nutrients into the soil simultaneously with irrigation).
With training from the farmer field school, the farmers have been able to control pests in a more affordable and responsible way. It has also helped farmers increase yields by over 35 percent. They now have their eyes set on expanding fruit and vegetable production.
Documents
- Role Models and Innovation Give Farming a New Reputation in Jamaica-Farmers are Harnessing Innovation to Tackle Water Scarcity and Spread their Passion for Growing Nutritious Foods
- Mt Airy Farmer's Group Laud Project as they Graduate a Farmer Field School on Drip Irrigation
- Yardley Chase Female Farmers are Building Resilience one Shade House at a Time - Using Drip Irrigation to Improve Livelihoods
- Drought Characteristics and Management in the Caribbean
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- Irrigation : Making the Difference in Agriculture in Jamaica- Video
- E-Learning Course- Cultivating Good Water | FAO in Jamaica
- Climate Change and Agriculture in Jamaica - Agricultural Sector Support Analysis
- FAO Country Profile: Jamaica
- South - South Cooperation - Video