A new UK project will enable farmers in Central America to improve food security through genetic biodiversity.
Genetic biodiversity can improve livelihoods and show resilience to climate change by providing access to locally adapted seeds.
The British Ambassador to Guatemala, Nick Whittingham, visited Huehuetenango on 24 May within the framework of the project ‘Community-based agro-biodiversity systems for improved livelihoods and climate resilience’.
The project is funded through the Darwin Initiative of the British government’s Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
How climate change is impacting food security in Central America
Climate change affects agricultural production in Central America, which threatens food security.
This makes the region highly vulnerable to droughts, high temperatures, increased rainfall in short periods and hurricanes.
Likewise, crops are experiencing a loss of agrobiodiversity due to changes in land use and deforestation.
Due to these issues, the United Nations estimates that 6.5% of Latin America’s population, or 43.2 million people, suffer from hunger.
How can genetic biodiversity address these issues?
In response to these problems, the project will focus on genetic biodiversity.
It will develop varieties of corn and bean seeds that adapt to changing climate conditions in collaboration with local organisations and farmers.
The project will also seek to strengthen collaboration between local seed banks and national banks of other grain varieties in the region, allowing the project to benefit approximately 3,000 families.
The project started in July 2023 and will end in December 2025. The British government has financed it with almost Q6 million (approximately $760,000).
The project is implemented in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica by a consortium of organisations made up of:
- ASOCUCH – Association of Organizations of the Cuchumatanes
- FIPAH – Foundation for Participatory Research with Farmers of Honduras
- FECODESA – Federation of Cooperatives for Development
- The University of Zamorano
- The University of Costa Rica
- The Norwegian Development Fund
