THE HAITIAN SWEET POTATOES MARKET CHAIN

BRIEF OVERVIEW

• Sweet potato is a major staple crop cultivated all year round, providing carbohydrates, a good calories source.
• It is produced on a wide range of climatic conditions.
• It is however mainly found in the dry areas where it is well adapted and provides some degree of food security.
• Most varieties are white-flesh ones.
• FAO 2006 statistics indicate a total production of 160,535.00 MT on 55,463.00 ha for an average yield of 2,894.45 kg/ha.

 

UNMET MARKET NEEDS, CONSTRAINTS OR OPPORTUNITIES

• The insect, cylas formicarius is the most important pest affecting sweet potato production.
• It invades their flesh and makes them unfit for consumption.
• This pest is widely found in all the production areas.
  
• It is spread through the traditional propagation method used by the farmers, sharing cuttings.
• As with most commodities, sweet potato is sold by volume and not by weight and transported in bags of around 100lb from the production areas to the markets.
• Heavily infected tubers result in important losses.

 

MARKET CHAIN DYNAMICS/STAKEHOLDERS

• The stakeholders in the sweet potatoes value chain comprise the producers, retailers, "Madame Saras", and the Ministry of Agriculture.

 

MARCHE'S INTERVENTION & STRATEGY

• Farmers interested in sweet potato production will be identified and encouraged to set-up producer groups that will enable them to receive technical assistance and planting material.
• In each targeted commune, 10 ha will be planted with the new variety and farmers who had first received the material will execute the secondary propagation, extending plantation for a total of 50 ha per commune.
• The project will provide assistance to farmers to use traps to control the pest affecting field production.

 

VALUE CHAIN SPECIFIC MILESTONES & RESULTS

• In year one, ORE will have established a 6 ha multiplication plot to produce cuttings and identify farmer groups in six (6) targeted communes for cuttings’ distribution.
• By the end of year three (3), 8.5 millions cuttings minimum will have been produced and planted on 300 ha on producers’ plots, and improved cultural practices and marketing skills will have been provided to 300 farmers.

 

BUDGET FOR INTERVENTION IN SWEET POTATOES PRODUCTION & MARKETING

Activities	Yr 1	Yr 2	Yr 3	Total
ORE- Multiplication plot/cutting delivery	$29,231			$29,231
Technical Assistance for field production	$5,455	$5,455	$5,455	$16,364
Marketing training	$3,000	$3,000		$6,000
Technical supervision	$7,500	$6,429	$6,429	$20,357
Field logistics	$36,750	$3,000	$4,500	$44,250
Total	$81,935	$17,883	$16,383	$116,202