Silver Spring, Maryland--The United States ambassador to Nicaragua, Paul Trivelli, recently honored the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) with a visit to its Development Activity Program (DAP), a multi-year food security project that since 2002 has changed the lives of more than 75,000 individuals in some of Nicaragua's most impoverished regions. During his visit, Ambassador Trivelli officially opened the first annual Tomato Fair, held April 30 in the town of Totogalpa.

The ambassador's visit recognized the success of the DAP, a seven-year development project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to improve the quality of life of residents in 154 communities and reduce malnutrition in children five years and younger in Nueva Segovia and Madriz, two of the poorest departments, or states, in Nicaragua.

"With this fair," said Trivelli in his remarks during the opening ceremony, "I believe that [the department of] Madriz will also be known for producing the best tomatoes in the country."

The fair provided an occasion to present nutritional and agricultural information for attendees, and an opportunity to participate in tomato-themed events such as the tomato cook-off that highlighted different ways to season and cook tomatoes, and a children's art contest showcasing tomatoes and their impact on Totogalpa. Financial institutions and loan representatives also attended to offer lending opportunities for local farmers.

Located in Madriz, Totogalpa, with a population of nearly 12,000, once struggled from a weak economy due to its dependence on the local production of basic grains. The region's unpredictable climate changes made the productivity of grain crops unreliable. "Six years ago, it almost became a ghost town," explains Plinio Vergara, country director for ADRA Nicaragua. Many local farmers were forced to abandon their homes in search of work on coffee plantations in other areas.

"Before, many of you earned only enough to survive," noted Trivelli, addressing attendees at the Tomato Fair. "When the harvest failed, you would have to find another way to feed your families. Now, many of you have doubled your incomes . . . I am impressed with the dedication that all of you have to make this department healthy and prosperous."

In addition to opening the Tomato Fair, Ambassador Trivelli inaugurated ADRA's Post-Harvest Management Center (PHMC), also located in Totogalpa. As a vital element of the DAP, the PHMC provides farmers access to a facility that is used to review their products for quality assurance and allows buyers to pick up their expected quota at a convenient location without having to travel to individual farms. "This new procedure guarantees better prices, greater profits, and ultimately accelerates the economy of the entire municipality," explains Marcela Villagra, planning, monitoring and evaluation assistant for ADRA Nicaragua.

"The center is also creating more jobs in the target area and is adding more value to the production," adds Vergara. "Farmers are also able to implement marketing standards when they have appropriate coaching and support."

"The Tomato Fair and the inauguration of the PHMC are the result of transforming a municipality that had no hope, into one that is now known as the "Tomato City," continues Vergara. "This is a special celebration, not just for the farmers, but also because of the impact on the life of the community. Now the families have hope; ADRA has helped them make their dreams come true," he finishes.

The mayor of Totogalpa, Carmen Hurtado, agrees. "Our town has been revitalized by the new technology and through the tomato production ADRA has implemented," she says. The success of the DAP led her to declare April 30 as Totogalpa Tomato Fair Day.

The DAP project was first implemented in January of 2002 and has achieved dramatic results throughout the targeted regions, creating 5,892 agricultural and commercial jobs in 2005 alone, and an additional 4,928 in 2006.

The project's main objectives focus on improving the productivity of non-traditional crops, such as tomatoes, green peppers, and zucchini, increasing the income of small businesses in targeted communities, and ensuring the nutrition of children under the age of five in selected regions.

The DAP works to create and strengthen the capacities of rural farmers through training projects that provide farmers with the tools and equipment necessary to yield a higher crop, teach them the methods essential to growing better quality produce, and unites them in a network with other local farmers, giving them stronger leverage as producers. The project also helps them sell their products to high-end domestic and international markets that ensure a higher and more reliable income. Farmers also receive training in improved storage methods that increase food availability year round.

Other aspects of the project include providing microcredit loans for small businesses, and ensuring access to clean water, household latrines, and quality health care and medicine in the most vulnerable communities. ADRA is also distributing food and training mothers to grow family vegetable gardens that improve the nutrition of the entire family.

ADRA plans to expand the project to other areas of the country, in the hopes that it will trigger the same level of transformation evident in Totogalpa and the surrounding regions.

The DAP project is scheduled to run through September 2008.

ADRA Nicaragua has been partnering with USAID for 16 years, and is considered one of its principal partners in the areas of food security, community health, water and sanitation, road rehabilitation, and environment management.

ADRA is present in 125 countries, providing community development and emergency management without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, or ethnicity.

Additional information about ADRA can be found at www.adra.org.

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Media Contact: Nadia McGill ADRA International 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904 Phone: 301.680.5145 E-mail: Media.Inquiries@adra.org