Meeting of Committees

(a) Magazine Committee

This committee met and finalised the CAFRA NEWS for January-December 2001, as a double issue focusing on HIV/AIDS.

(b) Staff Review Committee

The committee communicated by e-mail and teleconferencing and submitted their recommendations to the Continuation Committee. The Committee approved the filling of staff vacancies and set salary levels.

(c) Continuation Committee

This Committee did not meet earlier because of plans for CAFRA General Meeting in May or August 2001. Since the General Meeting could not be held due to funding constraints, a meeting of the Continuation Committee was held in August 2001. This rescheduled the General Meeting to May 2002.

(d) Technical Assistance Committee

Funds were allocated as seed money for technical assistance during the July-September quarter of 2001. These funds were specifically for income-generating activities and the National Representatives submitted relevant projects. The following income-generating projects were identified:

  Garment making/School Uniforms (3 projects) (one project is for people living with HIV/AIDS)

  Production of Heritage Dolls

  Pastry Stall/Lunches for school children (2 projects)

  Rapporteur Service (2 projects)

  Age Care Service

  Agro processing Plant Nursery, Seedlings

  Children and Youth Literacy Project

The seed money has been divided into small grants to finance these projects. Several of these projects were particularly outstanding.

(a) In Suriname, the funding was used to purchase sewing machines and materials for a sewing project for people living with HIV/AIDS or who had lost members of their family due to the disease. The income has helped, the hospice to be self-sufficient, through sales of specialised garment, uniforms and tourist items. In addition women can bring their items and use the machines to sew them. They pay a small fee for upkeep of the machines. Several women who previously worked as security guards at night are now able to give up these jobs as the income from sewing can sustain them.

(b) In Grenada, two women were supplied with raw material, bought in bulk, for their lunches and snacks for school children. They are now able to realise a profit, which meets their household needs.

(c) In Guyana, the funds were used to start a Rapporteur Service. Five unemployed young women, when trained in the skill, are giving the services at Meetings and Seminars in Guyana. Two of these Rapporteurs assisted at CAFRA’s Fifth General Assemble.

(d) In the case of St. Vincent, the Lauders Women in Agriculture Kitchen now process banana wine, banana chips and a variety of seasonings.

(e) The plant nursery for seedlings has enabled the women farmers to produce more vegetables for supply to hotels. The nursery is a continuing effort and other women came to buy seedlings.

Work was done with women farmers on the impact of Trade Agreements on their banana and vegetable production and development of alternative means of income. This training was conducted in the Windward Islands – Grenada, Dominica, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines reaching a total of 200 women.

Women were in a better position to lobby their representatives and to begin diversifying away from bananas or making secondary products from bananas.

Women are now able to maintain their children at school and meet the needs of food, clothing, shelter, water and electricity.

The household income has been improved as a result of these activities, which have generated new income.