ESCALAR project strengthens tri-national alliances in assessment and strategy workshop for a sustainable future in the Central American Dry Corridor

• Key meeting: 2023 assessment, gender strategy and synergies in the Trifinio region to combat climate change and migration

January 8, 2024. The ESCALAR project: Scaling climate change adaptation solutions for resilience and migration reduction in the Central American Dry Corridor, led by CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center), with the support of the Swedish Cooperation, marked the closing of 2023 with an enriching meeting in Esquipulas, Guatemala. Thirteen partner organizations gathered to evaluate and chart the course for the coming year in the Trifinio region, which includes 17 municipalities in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.

The main focus of the workshop was to analyze the activities carried out during 2023, explore synergies between the partner organizations and ESCALAR, and lay the groundwork for the 2024 Annual Operating Plan (AOP). One of the initiatives highlighted was the start of the process of consolidating the gender strategy, with a participatory approach aimed at integrating it into the project's actions.

ESCALAR is based on collaboration with 13 implementing partner organizations, including the Multi-Stakeholder Platforms (PMA), made up of municipalities or sectoral roundtables. These include the Association of Trifinio Municipalities of El Salvador, the Güisayote Commonwealth in Honduras, the Río Lempa Tri-national Commonwealth, which covers territories in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, and the tri-national HOSAGUA Trifinio Women's Network.

The project focuses on working with producer families associated with Associative Rural Enterprises. In Guatemala, the Integral Agricultural Cooperative "Cafetales" R.L. (CAINCAFE R.L.), the Olopa Producers' Association (APOLO), and the Suchitán Agricultural Producers' Association (APAS) are participating. In Honduras, the Cooperativa Cafetalera Ecológica La Labor Ocotepeque Limitada (COCAFELOL) stands out.

For the rural business incubation component, ESCALAR collaborates with entities such as the Centro Universitario de Oriente (CUNORI), with the PROMIPYME area in Guatemala, the Fundación para el Desarrollo Empresarial Rural (FUNDER) in Honduras, and the Universidad Católica de El Salvador, with its CEDEMYPE area.

The ESCALAR team is grateful for the commitment and dedication of all partner organizations in building a more inclusive, green and sustainable future in the Trifinio region.