The Compete Caribbean Partnership Facility (CCPF) recently concluded a supervision mission to Dominica, to assess the strides achieved within the Cocoa Cluster Project, RG-T3519.
The project, titled “Experiential Learning of Cluster Development Best Practices in Small and Vulnerable Countries,” reinforces Compete Caribbean’s commitment to fostering sustainable growth and knowledge dissemination.
The mission’s focus was to review the project’s advancement against planned outputs and outcomes, as well as to engage with key stakeholders to identify prime opportunities to provide greater value to beneficiaries. The Compete Caribbean team of Wayne Elliott and Ramona Sinanan, met and engaged beneficiaries in discussions to gauge project progress, address implementation challenges, and explore avenues to ensure long-term sustainability.
Throughout the mission, the Compete Caribbean team engaged with esteemed local stakeholders, including the Dominica Import Export Agency (DEXIA)- the implementing agency, and the Ministry of Blue and Green Economy, Agriculture, and Fisheries. Moreover, interactions with cocoa farmers and processors of chocolate and cocoa-based products offered a nuanced understanding of the project’s real-world impact.
Integral to the mission were site visits, enabling the team to witness the thriving cocoa plants that had been propagated and distributed to farmers during the project’s implementation. The project’s reach and influence were further validated through expressions of gratitude from the government, farmers, cocoa processors, and Extension Officers at the Ministry of Blue and Green Economy, Agriculture, and Fisheries. These stakeholders appreciated the depth of insights gained from the training programs conducted by the University of The West Indies’ Cocoa Research Center (CRC) under the project’s umbrella.
Ccompete Caribbean’s mission to Dominica is a testament to its commitment to fostering collaborative growth in small and vulnerable countries. Through dynamic interactions and empirical observations, the mission sets the course for an even more impactful and resilient Cocoa Cluster Project, fostering economic and sustainable development in the region.
