Farmers’ Clubs (FC) Central is a comprehensive program to train small-scale farmers in sustainable agricultural practices and to equip these farmers with knowledge that they can use to adjust to the ever-changing climate conditions. The project provides low-cost sustainable solutions, technical assistance and exchange of collectively gained experiences, personal assistance, and much more to help the farmers improve their production.
Humana Pueblo a Pueblo-Ecuador started its first FC project in the Colta region of the Chimborazo province in 2013. The project worked with 300 small-scale farmers to improve their products and create income by processing and marketing their products. In 2022, FC Tungurahua promotes the socioeconomic development of the canton of Ambato, Tungurahua, from a gender perspective. An important element of the project is the promotion of equal opportunities between women and men, integrating the gender perspective in all its components, thus contributing in the medium and long term to women’s access to economic and social rights, as well as to the visibility of their contribution to the development of their territories.
Even though Ecuador as a country is a middle-income country, there is still a big need for our type of projects to help empower the most vulnerable parts of the community. In 2022, Ecuador was ranked 95 out of 191 countries on the Human Development Index. As a middle-income country with a population of 17,511,000, Ecuador’s society is addressing the issues of great economic disparity and a pattern of inequitable development. Inequality is highest in rural areas, but the relative poverty in cities and their peripheral neighborhoods are becoming a serious problem. The number of people living without basic health and education services is very high.
According to the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC), in the province of Loja for example, 12% of the population has a monthly income that is below the poverty line at EUR 84 a month. Up to 5% of the population lives in extreme poverty, or less than EUR 50 a month.
