Improving the flow of ecosystem services in biologically-rich watersheds of the Southern region of Haiti

Objectives

to increase the economic value of ecosystem services provided by restored biological diversity-rich ecosystems in the southern region of Haiti

Other

Note: Disbursement data provided is cumulative and covers disbursement made by the project Agency.

Target Groups

The project’s GEB are detailed under section 6) of the project’s justification (Part II). Expected GEB’s are restored land and tree cover, limited land degradation and protected biological diversity over 2250 ha (of forests and agricultural landscapes); and improved BD management over a total of 3,220 ha – that is the area covering the five watersheds for which sustainable management frameworks will be developed by the project (to guide futur land planing). This will be achieved and maintained in the long-term as socio-economic conditions improve in the target communes, food security increases, and exposure to natural risks like floods, droughts and landslides, are reduced.At the national level, under Component 1, the project will work closely with the MoE to develop recommendations for mainstreaming BD into regulations and law, and for freeing national budget to invest in the implementation of BD protection. Moreover, public and private organisations will be trained to properly interpret BD regulations and to mainstream BD protection into their daily activities and projects. Further to this, a spatial planning tool will be adjusted and used to facilitate sustainable land and water management in watershed landscapes. This tool will be used to develop watershed management frameworks in the five project’s target watersheds. Under Component 2 of the proposed project, on-the -ground land restoration will take place, following the watershed management plans: 2,250 ha of land will be restored through agroforestry and reforestation. Increased BD protection will lead to environmental and socio-economic benefits: as land and vegetation are restored, ecosystem services like water filtration, soil stabilization and nutriment will be enhanced. This will not only increase the productivity of agricultural landscapes, but also protect households, properties, and economic activities from natural hazards.Additional socio-economic benefits can be expected under Component 3. Incomes are expected to increase as marketing and commercialization of key commodities will be boosted. This will be done through registering farmers on the Agrotracking platform, to facilitate trade. Moreover, existing cooperatives and associations will be strengthened and capacitated to process, store, and commercialise their commodities on the domestic and international markets. Access to credits will also be improved through training on financial management and support to solidarity funds for women. Access to fund can be used by farmers to buy the necessary input and equipment that will boost their productivity and products’ added value. In return, as income streams are increased and livelihood improved, farmers will not need to turn to survival strategies which deteriorate the environment, like the production of charcoal and poaching. They will also be sensitized on the roles and benefits of healthy, restored ecosystems to support agricultural productivity and buffer against natural hazards, under Component 1 of the project, and through demonstration of restoration impacts under Component 2.Overall, the project’s socio-economic benefits fully support GEB in southern Haiti. Rather than using coercion to protect Haiti’s BD – as currently promote in the legislation – the project’s approach is to demonstrate the socio-economic and environmental benefits of restored ecosystems to the local communities – for which sustainable agroforestry systems will be established – and to organizations in the public and private sector – through rigorous monitoring of project’s impacts and publication of data and knowledge products on the EIS. Moreover, through demonstration, equipment and technical support provided to the beneficiaries, the project will ensure the population continues to protect and preserve their ecosystems. BD protection will finally be further institutionalized under Components 1 & 4 as MoE’s capacity to manage BD-related projects will be enhanced; and as capacities for sustainable natural resources management are enhanced amongst local to national institutions.