| El Edén San Ramon, Matagalpa, Nicaragua Size: 292 acres |
 Download a Summer 2011 Village Update |
 Download a Fiscal Year 2012 Village Plan |
 Download a Fiscal Year 2011 Expenditure Summary |
In January 2003, a group of families from different communities came together to seek help from various institutions. The group contacted Agros in 2004 after international coffee prices dropped and many were left without jobs or a steady income. The land is 80 miles north of the Agros office in Managua. It is one of the poorest parts of the country and most live on less than $1 US per day. However, the area has environmental conditions that favor the diversification of crops and the farmers already have previous experience in the cultivation of land. The group uses the land to raise livestock and to grow basic grains and coffee, the latter traditionally being the primary product of the region.
The land currently consists of 52 acres of organic coffee, 43 acres of forest, 14 acres of pasture and 95 acres for farmland. 1,420 yards of river cross the land and there are two artificial ponds. There is also a 66-foot waterfall which could potentially be used as a source of hydroelectric power. With the purchase of the land, the group received a house large enough to serve as a community center, corrals for livestock, coffee processing equipment and the crops left on the land.
Projects planned for 2011 – 2012 fiscal year include:
- Experimenting in growing garlic, carrots, cabbage, peppers, watermelon and beets to improve family nutrition
- Training women in investments, credit, costs, accounting, and small business administration
- Starting worm-composting projects to produce organic compost
- Building chicken coops to expand the poultry production for income generation and consumption
- Seminars teaching nutrition and early childhood development
- Training three new health promoters in basic health care in order to serve the community
