Mayorquín

The river basin community in rural Buenaventura that resists the armed conflict with its traditional livelihoods.

The city of Buenaventura is considered a “special” district, given its economic importance, geographic location, fiscal resources, and population. It is the largest city in the Pacific region and has the most important seaport in Colombia, where more than 53% of the country’s international trade transits.

The Mayorquín River Community Council is located in the Mayorquín river basin, about 45 minutes by boat from the port of Buenaventura.   

The Community Council has its own government and the legally recognized collective territory title, Comunidad Afro-Colombiana. It has an area of approximately 19,000 hectares and a population of 3,060 inhabitants, according to local leaders.

The local communities are located in and around the river basin, so their productive and food activities utilize available natural resources; mainly artisanal fishing, mollusk harvesting and agriculture.

Almost 53 percent of Buenaventura’s population identify as victims of the armed conflict. Different social problems converge in this territory, including extreme poverty, the presence of non-state armed groups, the lack of access to basic services, persecution, the assassination of social leaders, and mass displacement, among others, which have a serious impact on local livelihoods, increasing their vulnerability and protection needs.

In the midst of this challenging context, two productive initiatives have emerged that are resisting displacement to remain and preserve their territories. Thanks to the support of the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the MAS Resilience project, HAI has accompanied these initiatives in their early recovery and strengthening process.

Mangrove Roots Association – GRAMAPA

GRAMAPA was born in the village of El Papayal and is made up of 18 people, 5 men and 13 women, who are dedicated to mollusk harvesting, artisanal fishing and agriculture. Initially, the association was only dedicated to harvesting piangua (ark clams), but over the years, piangua has become scarce due to indiscriminate harvesting, which has deteriorated the mangroves. Currently, the Mayorquín River Community Council has 3 hectares of mangroves in conservation waiting to recover, which has resulted in the community’s need to diversify their productive activities. This includes the planting of pineapple and bananas, and artisanal fishing. 

Association of Artisanal Fishermen of  “El Cacao”

The Association of Artisanal Fishermen of El Cacao (ASOPESAR CACAO) is an organization set up to support the welfare of its members, to improve their quality of life and to support the development of artisanal fishing, aquaculture and agriculture in the village of El Cacao and the Colombian Pacific. The association is made up of 12 men who, in addition to being part of the board of directors, lead the fishing activities.

Organization is the way

So far, the process has:

Conducted capacity needs assessments using the Rural Entrepreneurship Measurement tool -MER- evaluating the productive activities carried out by the associations GRAMAPA and ASOPESAR CACAO, and to co-create an action plan for capacity strengthening.

Provided training on the development of business plans and reflected on their value proposition, relationship with clients, key resources, partners, cost structure and sources of income.

Developed a community investment plan for the purchasing of fishing equipment and productive elements that will facilitate an increase in fishing production and improve the overall quality of life of the associates.

Set up a purchasing committee within the community to analyze the local market in order to find local suppliers of fishing equipment. 

Coordinated with the National Training Service (SENA) to provide training and technical assistance in artisanal fishing. Members of the community are participating in the “Artisanal Fishing Entrepreneurship” course, which includes a session on the design of productive projects, budgeting, and fishery resources according to technical guidelines.

Supported the creation of a Community Risk Preparedness and Mitigation Plan to strengthen and enhance the community’s capacity to respond to events caused by the internal armed conflict.

Carried out actions to strengthen individual’s knowledge on legal rights, mental health, the prevention of gender-based violence, psychoeducation on hygiene promotion and water management, among others.

The support and capacity strengthening of these communities will continue in the coming months.