Dondon - Haiti Observer Blog

As per news dated April 18, 2016, Peter F. Mulrean, the U.S Ambassador to Haiti, visited the Agricultural School of Dondon to inaugurate the same which was closed for more than last 35 years. This school located in agro-ecological zones of Dondon (North Department), has been reopened with technical and financial support from the US government, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

During the inauguration, Pierre Guito Laurore, the Minister of Agriculture and Emile Joseph, the Mayor of Dondon, were present among other important personalities to witness the ceremony. The campus of the School of Agriculture of Dondon (in French École Moyenne d'Agriculture de Dondon - EMAD) has been set up as an agricultural training center based on the methodology "Learning by Doing" , where 18 agro-trainers, as per their contracts, will give lessons on planning, gardening, agricultural production, agricultural mechanization, mapping, natural resource management, soil conservation, composting, group management, agricultural popularization service, rearing chickens and food processing. The trainers will work with the farmers to permanently boost domestic production with the ultimate object to reduce imports. Under the program, 38 young local students with ages between 18 and 35, will receive 2- year training and with their learned techniques and practices, they would contribute towards the development of the northern region of Haiti. There will be an option for third year internship opportunities to the students in local agricultural enterprises to complete their technical training in the field. During the occasion, the U.S Ambassador Peter F. Mulrean expressed the commitment of the American people to stand alongside the Haitian people to help them achieve a substantial improvement in their quality of life. One of the goals of the project is to support community-based development projects, serving local food security needs.

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Dondon, situated within the Saint-Rafaël Arrondissement, is a third-level government division, part of Nord Department. Five rural villages make up Dondon: Bassin Caïman, Laguille, Brostage, Haut du Trou, and Matador. Estimates of the village's population range from 26,000 to 50,000.

Dondon is a farming village that produces coffee, cocoa, lemons, and sugar cane. The village infrastructure is weak, with no access to electric power and no paved roads. Very little auto traffic exists, the main modes of transportation horses and walking. No airport exists either, with the nearest located in Cap Haïtien.

The landscape of Dondon is striking, with mountain ranges, plains, and rivers bordering the village. From the ground floor looking up, an awe-inspiring sight greets the viewer. Colorful dwellings embedded in the mountainsides soar heavenwards, and stunning mountain-peak vistas succumb to plunging ravines everywhere in the village. And the villagers have heard rumors valuable mineral ore is hidden in the ridges burrowed into the mountainside.

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