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Report

South - South Exchange

Cuba and Belize

GEF Small Grants Programme

Prepared by: Leonel Requena, National Coordinator, GEF SGP – Belize & Fabio

Fajardo, National Coordinator, GEF SGP -Cuba

July 26th- 2nd August, 2017

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Summary:

The Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (GEF SGP) in Belize, Cuba and

the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) organized a South-South

exchange on 26th July – 2nd August 2017. The GEF SGP Cuba received the Sustainable

Development Award in 2016 and proceeded to use the award to support the south -

south exchange to Belize. The delegation from Cuba included the GEF SGP National

Coordinator, Mr. Fabio Fajardo, Dr. Angel Quiroz, Fisheries Specialist, Mr. Noel Morales,

Sponge Cultivation Expert and Mr. Maisel Miranda, Sponge cultivation assistant.

This south - south exchange fostered knowledge sharing on seascape experiences,

innovative techniques towards promoting and securing sustainable fisheries such as

Managed Access in Belize. Furthermore, this exchange allowed for demonstration of

SGP`s supported community eco-tourism model and projects which provided valuable

interchange of knowledge and experience for the SGP programme in Cuba as the

programme seeks to promote community-tourism based initiative through its

programming interventions in OP6 and beyond.

Illustrative South-South Exchange details:

The National Coordinator and Programme Assistant in Belize coordinated the in-country

exchanges with a visit to Halfmoon Caye Natural Monument and the Blue Hole Natural

Monument in partnership with the Belize Audubon Society, Belize Fisheries Department

and Belize Coast Guard. A boat to boat strategy was implemented during the field mission

to foster civil society and government dialogue regarding sustainable fisheries –

Managed Access which is funded through an ongoing GEF SGP project. Three National

Steering Committee Members accompanied the visit to Halfmoon Caye Natural

Monument.

Pic 1: Innovative Boat to Boat Strategy crucial to replicate, scale-up and mainstream

Managed Access.

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Pic2: Vessel procured for the Belize Audubon Society

In Placencia, Lowell Godfrey Jr. Chairman of the Placencia Producers Cooperative Society

Limited and Wilbur Dubon, Executive Director facilitated training in seaweed cultivation,

harvesting, processing and marketing for the four participants from Cuba. Two types of

red seaweed (Euchema and Gracelaria) is farmed by the Placencia Producers Cooperative

Society Limited. Seaweed is used as emulsifiers in sauces and food preparation and has

many other uses. This innovate alternative livelihood is being scale-up in Belize,

Columbia, and knowledge was transferred to the delegation from Cuba.

Pic3: Cuban delegation with dried seaweed at Brewed Awakenings

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Pic4: Seaweed cultivation by Placencia Producers Cooperative Society Ltd.

A visit to Fragments of Hope (FOH) Coral Replenishment efforts was facilitated by Lisa

Carne, Executive Director. Fragments of Hope is a community based organizations based

in Placencia village. FoH has installed and maintained over 19 in situ coral nurseries in

southern Belize and out-planted over 73,000 nursery-grown corals to Laughing Bird Caye

National Park. Expansion includes nurseries in Gladden Spit and the Silks Cayes Marine

Reserve and Moho Caye, and over 11,000 nursery-grown corals out-planted in four

replenishment sites at Moho Caye. Coral species are resilient to the effects of climate

change and coral spawning event has been recorded of the outplants!

Pic5: Lisa Carne, explain Coral Replenishment, successes, challenges and scaling-up

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Pic6: Noel Morales, Sponge Cultivation Expert snorkels coral replenishment site

The delegation from Cuba shared their experiences and knowledge on sponge cultivation

with the Placencia Producers Cooperative Society Ltd, Toledo Institute for Development

and Environment, Toledo Fishermen Association, Environmental Defense Fund, Belize

Fisheries Department, Sarteneja Fishermen Association and Copper Bank Fishermen

Association. The GEF SGP supported a sponge cultivation project in Cuba which exports

annually twenty - one (21) tons of sponge to France thus creating sustainable livelihoods

for men, women and youth. The experienced shared by the delegation from Cuba was

beneficial to Belize as we will initiate a national assessment of marine sponge to

determine feasibility, marketing/tourism opportunities as a supplemental alternative

livelihood to fishing and income generation.

Pic7: Noel Morales explaining sponge cultivation techniques to Lisa Carne

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The exchange also included a visit to Santa Teresa Village where the GEF Small Grants

Programme supported Belize`s first indigenous female solar engineer Ms. Florentina

Choco who travelled to India for six-month training and thereafter returned to her

community and installed solar energy to sixty-eight (68) homes and facilitated training of

3 other women, and established a solar power board.

Pic8: Florentina Choco, Belize`s first indigenous female solar engineer

Furthermore, the exchange included a visit to Payne`s Creek National Park and the Port

Honduras Marine Reserve where Managed Access was the pilot site. GEF SGP Belize is

also funding a Ridge to Reef Expeditions Programme as an innovative sustainable

financing strategy for the Toledo Institute for Development and Environment. This

project received an award in September from the Caribbean Sustainable Tourism.

Pic 9: Fisherfolk, TIDE, EDF and Cuba delegation at Sustainable Fishing Dialogue

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Pic10: Dr. Angel Quiros delivering presentation on Sponge Cultivation

Pic11: Site visit to Payne`s Creek National Park – Ridge to Reef Expeditions

A visit was conducted to Aguacate village – an indigenous Maya community in rural

Toledo District, where GEF SGP funded the establishment of three community conserved

areas, empowering women through a woman`s craft group, homestay programme,

community guiding.

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Pic12: Aguacate Conservation and Development Committee based in Aguacate village,

Toledo.

At Rio Blanco National Park, the Rio Blanco Mayan Association have co-managed the

national Park on a voluntary basis since 1994 in partnership with the Forest Department.

GEF SGP is funding park management, biodiversity inventory monitoring, and funding the

Rio Blanco Women`s Group who are creating biodiversity products using the jippi jappa.

Pic13: Josue Oliva, Programme Assistant discusses support provided by GEF SGP to the

women

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Pic 14: Waterfall at Rio Blanco National Park

In San Miguel, an indigenous Ketchi Maya community, the community has designated its

Rosewood Community Conserved Area of 68.7 acres, including lobbied the Ministry of

Natural Resources and Environment for a license to sustainably manage the 66-ft.

riparian forest which is crucial to their health and livelihoods. Their motto is: “Rio Grande,

Our River, Our Livelihood”

Pic15: San Miguel village- Indigenous Participatory Stewardship of landscape resources.

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Ya`axche Conservation Trust pioneered climate-smart innovative agro-ecology as a

strategy to reduce land degradation and ensuring food security within the Maya Golden

Landscape. With GEF SGP support, over 120 farmers have been trained and 30 model

agroforestry farms are supported. A visit to Daniel Chiquin`s model agroforestry farm

was conducted. Daniel hosts agro-ecological tours within his farm promoting soil

conservation, food security and integrated farming. Daniel Chiquin recently was awarded

the second-place Planet Hero Award from WWF

http://www.wwfca.org/en/planetheroes_belize.cfm .

Pic16: Daniel welcomes visitors to his model agroforestry farm

Pic17: Daniel accompanied by grandson explains agroforestry farm to Fabio Fajardo

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Pic 18: Camera installed in agroforestry farm to monitor biodiversity

Pic19: Leonel Requena thanks Wildtracks for the development of Belize`s Marine

Protected Areas Atlas and for many years of dedicated landscape/seascape stewardship

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Pic20: Aquaponics/vegetable/tilapia project developed by youth

Pic21: Fabio Fajardo explains GEF SGP`s work in Cuba to Grantee Partners in Sarteneja

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Pic22: Delegation with Zoe Walker, Director, Wildtracks (Manatee &Primate

rehabilitation centre)

Pic23: Jeronimo Tzul, Chairman, Copper Bank Fishermen Association inspects marine

sponge. GEF SGP current funds a project to the Association for harvesting live lobster

for export markets in Asia.

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Pic24: Fabio Fajardo explains uses of sponge to women in Sarteneja.

In Summary, at the end of the south- south exchange training visit which was mutually

beneficial, all participants:

1. Obtained first-hand knowledge and experience of the GEF Small Grants

Programme portfolio of supplementary livelihoods and eco-tourism projects in

Belize;

2. Obtained theoretical and hands-on practical experience in seaweed cultivation,

harvesting, processing, value-added techniques and marketing strategies;

3. Learnt step by step process using Seaweed Training Curriculum and Seaweed

Manual;

4. Obtained theoretical and hands-on practical experience in coral replenishment

techniques;

5. The Cuban participants shared valuable techniques in Sponge cultivation and

other mariculture projects in Cuba with Belizean fisherfolk.

6. Mutual exchange of Sustainable Fishing Strategies (Managed Access Initiative –

Learning from Piloting stage to Replication, Upscaling and Mainstreaming efforts

nationally)

7. Convened meetings with key donor agencies to discuss areas of cooperation and

strategic programming and project financing (SGP Grant Maker+)

8. Learnt Strategies towards localizing, Implementing and Mainstreaming the

Sustainable Development Goals through the GEF Small Grants Programme

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SPONSORING INSTITUTIONS

Funding was provided through the GEF Small Grants Programme in Cuba and Belize

with Technical & financial support from the UNDP South-South Cooperation, Regional

Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean based in Panama.