KUSIMAYO PROGRAMS PRODUCTIVE PUNO

Productive Puno is an agricultural programme that offers families the opportunity to achieve food security and to transform their subsistence economy into an entrepreneurial one.
It consists of a technological package developed by the Federation of Farmers of Cusco and the Institute for an Agrarian Alternative (IAA), combining innovative solutions with deep ancestral knowledge. The beneficiaries of this programme are trained in these technologies by yachachiqs, expert farmer-teachers who teach and advise each family for one year.
This programme enables families to use natural resources (water, pastures), productive resources (seeds, crops, small and large livestock) and cultural knowledge to transform their land into sustainable gardens over time. We began in 2014 and have equipped 319 rural plots.

The technological package includes:

1. Irrigation: water tank or reservoir, piping and drip irrigation system, ensuring water supply during the dry months (April to October).
2. Greenhouse: a 20 x 5 m structure where 23 types of vegetables, legumes and fruits are grown. None of these crops can be cultivated at that altitude or under those temperatures without the greenhouse. Each family produces 1,800 adobe bricks to build it, based on the training received.
3. Open-field orchards: a studied cultivation programme that takes seasonality and temperature into account.
4. Associated pastures: four types of pasture are cultivated so that livestock can graze within the family’s land.
5. Organic fertilisers and pesticides: training in the preparation of their own fertilisers, ensuring that all production is organic.

Results:

1. 60% of production ensures the family’s food security
2. The remaining 40% surplus generates income for the family
3. Families improve their nutrition by replacing carbohydrates and refined sugars with vegetables, greens and fruits
4. Increased cash availability
5. Self-employment / employment