Youth Groups to Learn Organic Gardening Techniques
Over the next three months, local NGO Haburas Moris will teach members of youth groups in Maliana district how to make organic fertilizer and grow and market vegetables. Improved gardening skills and access to inexpensive, quality fertilizer will help young people and their communities increase their incomes and expand the market for fresh vegetables. USAID works with NGOs and local youth groups around the country to implement agricultural projects that increase income and improve food security. (Jan. 10, 2006)

Community Radio Inaugurates New Production Studio
With support from USAID, Lospalos Community Radio now has its own production studio. The new facility allows the station to produce its own programs, which it broadcasts to the eastern end of the country. The new studio will bolster the station's sustainability - UNICEF is now sponsoring a series on children and nutrition. Outside Timor-Leste's capital, Dili, most residents receive their information and news from one of the country's 16 community radio stations or the Public Broadcast Service (PBS). USAID has supported community radio and PBS in Timor-Leste since 2000. (Jan. 10, 2006)

USAID-Backed Training Yields Bumper Crops
Farmers in the Loes Valley, 50 kilometers southwest of Dili, are preparing to harvest a bumper crop of corn, rice, and other vegetables with help from USAID. Three farmers' groups with 87 members have learned improved agriculture techniques from a USAID-supported national NGO, which also offers the farmers access to tractors for mowing and plowing. The groups have planted more than 170 acres this season and expect their yields to double and their incomes to increase dramatically with their improved growing and marketing skills. (Jan. 10, 2006)

Printer Friendly Version