THE FRUITS OF TRADITIONS IN ODORHEI Acronym: FRUTRAD Priority sector: Facilitating sustainable production Odorheiu Secuiesc, Romania

1
THE FRUITS OF TRADITIONS IN ODORHEI Acronym
FRUTRADPriority sector Facilitating
sustainable productionOdorheiu Secuiesc,
Romania
2
Where the project would be located?

• 23 communes
• 3 cities integrating totally 127 settlements.
• The subregion's total population is around
  120,000 inhabitants, from which 55 lives in
  traditional rural areas

3
Actual socio-economic situation

• Dominant rural economic sectors
• Animal husbandry
• Fruit growing
• Rural areas buffering space of social problems
• Ageing farmers

4
Actual socio-economic situation

• (Under) subzistence farming system
• Reduced access to market opportunities and
  technological know-how
• Imminent need for professional assistance and
  implementation of good model example projects

5
Objectives

• Primary objective
• increase the economic revenue of the rural
  enterprises by sustainable and enhanced use of
  natural endowments, especially the traditional
  varieties of fruit and wild forest species.
• Secondary objectives
• information dissemination and training of local
  communities on the economic and genetic value of
  traditional orchards and wild natural species
  available within and surroundings of the
  villages,
• improvement of processing level of local products
  by supporting the know-how and technological
  transfer into the subregion,
• developing and adopting special marketing key
  features in order to promote the access to the
  market of traditionally made products.

6
Project Partners

• Norway Royal Society for Development
• Agora Foundation
• Modern Business Sciences College
• Academic Society of Targu Mures
• Hungarian Farmers Association of Odorhei Region

7
Dimensions of the project activities
Biodiversity conservation
8
Dimensions of the project activities
Preservation of Traditions

• Multiplication, preservation of traditional local
  fruit varieties
• Use of traditional orchard management practices
  (extensive land use)
• Revealing marketable traditional knowledge of
  different methods suitable to produce high
  quality local products

9
Dimensions of the project activities Community
mobilization

• Community meetings for in-depth information
  collecting of traditional knowledge on fruit
  varieties
• Trainings for youth by involving experienced
  older farmers and university professors
• Organizing and implementing special local events
  (Traditional Fruit Days' Festival at subregional
  level)

10
Dimensions of the project activities Assisting
the Local Economy

• Developing and offering a sustainable Rural
  Economic Development Model
• Providing accredited training for improving the
  skills on traditional practices, food processing,
  marketing, entrepreneurial management
• Bio-certification of most important local
  orchards
• Preparation and certification of local trademark
• Establishing and maintenance of RADC

11
Dimensions of the project activities
Consolidated networking

• Experience exchanges within subregion and abroad
  (community members, project partners)
• Integration of innovative intervention of local
  NGOs (publicity intervention)
• Permanent professional assistance for local
  communities and SMEs

12
Publicity

• Project web page
• Leaflets and informative posters
• Organizing and implementing the 'Traditional
  Fruit Days' Festival in Odorhei subregion
• Publicity spots and news in local media
• Exercise booklets for pupils
• Publicity booklets and catalogue of labeled
  traditionally made products
• Innovative involvement of third partners in the
  promotional activities
• Participation at one international and three
  national fairs
• Permanent communication with local communities

13
Project activities Collecting of local
information and knowledge

• traditional cultivation and use of local natural
  values
• farmers' perception on the most important
  characteristics of local varieties
• territorial spread of the relevant varieties
  within community territory

14
Project activities Enhancement of community
active participation and information
dissemination activities

• trainings for farmers
• experiences exchanges
• publicity in printed and electronic format
• periodical meetings with local people
• using the local knowledge in the skill
  development of pupils

15
Project activitiesSupporting the local economic
initiatives of SMEs

• providing permanent consultancy
• establishing a Rural Assistance and Demonstrative
  Centre (RADC)
• professional marketing assistance to local
  economic initiatives
• market promotion of local products
• implementing community events to raise awareness
• providing information on the real status of the
  market for potential fruit made products
• permanent access to RADC facilities and
  assistance in order to improve the skills on
  suitable product development and management

16
Interrelation of activities
17
Results

• increasing the economic revenue of at least 200
  families within the targeted communities
• at least 300 community members will acquire
  directly and 30,000 people indirectly new
  structured knowledge on the genetic and economic
  value of local orchards and wild forest species
• at least 150 local pupils will be directly
  involved in the safeguarding activities of these
  values
• the number of traditional fruit varieties will
  increase by at least 1,500 trees

18
Results

• at least 15 new local products will enter onto
  the market
• the amount of collected and processed wild forest
  species will increase by 20
• the land size managed under low input (organic)
  conditions will increase up to 40 hectares
• a demonstration investment at subregional level
  will promote investments in small scale fruit
  processing systems of at least 20 newly formed
  SMEs

19
Sustainability

• Project objectives Foundations goals
• Fruit plantations are of national interest
• Complementary financial resources
• Trainings
• SME investments
• Product promotion
• Land use by fruit trees plantation
• Transferable Economic Development Model to other
  regions and/or other local products (for e.g.
  milk, honey, medicinal plants)

20

• Thank you for your kind attention !

Istv á n M á r Project Manager   Civitas
Foundation for Civil Society Odorheiu
Secuiesc Address Odorheiu Secuiesc, Bethlen
Gabor street, nr. 43, postal code 535 6 00
Tel/fax [phone]Mobil 40-754-6 5718
6 E-mail istvanmar _at_ civitas.ro W eb
www.civitas.ro