A partnership blending unique expertise. A new nutrition facility and a life-saving product. A growing community of small farms.
A new social enterprise takes root, saving lives and expanding opportunity.
Partners In Health, Abbott and the Abbott Fund are helping to fight malnutrition and drive economic development – empowering Haitians to build a stronger, sustainable future.
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Program Overview
HIGHLIGHTS
Nutrition production facility in Haiti’s Central Plateau
An agricultural program trained approximately 300 farmers and created 35 jobs
Key Products
Nourimanba
Medical treatment for malnourished children provided for free at PIH clinics
Long-term goal is to sell peanut butter to support plant operations
Malnutrition and lack of economic opportunity have plagued Haiti for many years.
Today, Partners In Health (PIH), Abbott and the Abbott Fund are combining their unique expertise and resources to create a sustainable approach to combating childhood malnutrition in rural Haiti. A new manufacturing facility is improving and expanding access to a life-saving nutritional product for thousands of Haitian children each year, while creating market opportunities for farmers.
The result: a new model to help rebuild a stronger Haiti.
New Approaches Target Longstanding Challenges
Malnutrition is among Haiti’s most significant health threats. Nearly every child seen at PIH clinics suffers from some degree of malnutrition. Likewise, the lack of economic opportunity is pervasive. Together they create a vicious cycle.
To help address these challenges, PIH, Abbott and the Abbott Fund are working together to build local capacity and create long-term, impactful change in the Central Plateau, the poorest region in Haiti.
The hub of the $6.5 million effort is an 18,000-square-foot nutrition facility that is producing Nourimanba, a therapeutic food used to treat severe malnutrition in children. Nourimanba is distributed through PIH’s network of health facilities throughout rural Haiti, providing free, life-saving treatment to thousands of Haitian children.
In addition, excess production capacity at the facility is being used to process peanuts for local buyers, and the team is planning for production of a peanut butter product that will be sold to support facility operations. All revenue is reinvested in the facility to cover the costs of Nourimanba production, with the goal of self-sustaining operations over the long term.
More than 50 Abbott experts in science, manufacturing, engineering, marketing and other technical knowledge areas oversaw the design and construction of the facility, developed and refined product formulations and created strategic operating plans. PIH’s expertise in healthcare and agriculture, and a deep understanding of Haitian communities, ensures the partnership meets local needs.
Local Solutions
Expanding economic opportunity is a key focus of the partnership. Through the facility, PIH is providing an example of how to encourage local production to reduce Haiti’s reliance on imported foods. A Haitian team manages operations, with extensive training by PIH and Abbott experts to transfer skills and build local capacity.
“Haiti needs self-sustaining institutions,” says Katherine Pickus, divisional vice president, sustainability at Abbott. “We are focusing on creating a true local enterprise that is run by Haitians, for Haitians. The goal is to sustainably address malnutrition, while providing a model for driving economic opportunity.”
Growing a Vibrant Farming Sector
With Haiti’s rich agricultural history and ideal growing conditions in the Central Plateau, there is tremendous opportunity to expand local peanut cultivation – which will provide a reliable supply for the new facility.
Working together with PIH’s local partner organizations, Zanmi Lasante and Zanmi Agrikol, as well as the international nonprofit TechnoServe, the partnership piloted a new business supply chain model to expand the supply of quality, cost-competitive peanuts while boosting incomes for approximately 300 local smallholder farmers. These farmers acquired new skills and expertise in farming practices, and received financing for seeds, fertilizer and other supplies. In addition, 35 local residents were recruited and trained to provide services, such as tillage and harvest collection. Results indicate the effort has significantly improved crop quality, while increasing farmers’ incomes. Based on the success of the pilot, other partners are now replicating and expanding this model across Haiti, with the goal of improving farming practices and boosting income for farmers across the country.
“Haiti is actually a very rich country in terms of natural resources,” says Stenio Louis-Jeune, a PIH agronomist. “The PIH-Abbott partnership is showing Haitians how to use those natural resources to create real change in their country.”