Small farmer coffee improvement

The evaluation, prepared a year before the PACD, covered the period FY81-5/90. The project is on track. IHCAFE has provided direct assistance to an estimated 9,815 small and medium coffee farmers and the number is increasing by about 700 annually; the target of 10,400 farmers should be reached by the 5/91 PACD. Training has reached more than 199,000 individuals in a total of 14,639 events. These services were carried out by 139 extension and credit agents and some 250 community leader-farmer paratechnicians. Beneficiary farmers report substantial changes in coffee growing practices. For example, significant increases were reported in field renovation, fertilizer use, insect and disease control, and shade regulation. Coffee renovation has been completed on about 13,003 manzanas (exceeding the project goal), and soil conservation practices have been instituted in all coffee regions. As a result of these achievements, coffee yields increased from 6 to over 25 quintals per manzana (1.7 acres) for beneficiaries who planted during the 1982-85 period and whose coffee reached full maturity before 4/90. The project has provided 55 million Lempiras in loans, resulting in the upgrading of on-farm coffee processing facilities. The project has given first-time credit to 62% of beneficiaries, many of whom will now be eligible for regular bank credit. Loan repayment was sufficient to allow continued lending, but was not as high as desired, with 25% of beneficiaries behind in payments. Further, the rate of loan delinquency is rising and must be dealt with now. Additional problems include the failure of the initial crop diversification program, the failure to incoporate soil testing results into extension recommendations, and the poor condition of 12% of coffee plots. In terms of women"s participation, a representative number of women received loans, but, for reasons yet unknown, women beneficiaries had a higher delinquency rate. Three major lessons were learned. (1) A supervised credit program such as that of the project may not be the best way to reach the poorest farmers, since those with the fewest resources seem to be the ones that are failing. (2) Private banks will lend to small producers when good technology is available. (3) The paratechnician approach can contribute to cost-effective outreach programs, but its effect depends greatly upon the attitudes of extension personnel and beneficiaries.