Esmeraldas is a coastal city located in Northern Ecuador, on the border with Colombia. In a city of more than 160,000 inhabitants, basic services, such as medical care, are unattainable for most of its inhabitants. Child malnutrition, families living on less than $1 a day, houses made of boards, or the lack of access to drinking water are the norm. Poverty spreads wherever you look.

With this project, we want to help local fishermen and their families improve their living conditions by improving their income in a sustainable way. Fishermen in the city of Esmeraldas work with scarce resources, in conditions of exclusion and vulnerability, which makes them at risk for high poverty rates.

How do we help them?

We offer them training in a cooperative so that they can manage the cold chain and fish storage. This allows them to learn from each other, share knowledge and experiences, and access the market in better conditions. Their union will allow them to save costs and negotiate in fairer conditions, thus helping to improve their income and reduce their vulnerability.

Our help is the only opportunity for these fishermen to earn a decent income through their own work. They are essential to improve basic aspects of their lives and that of their families: with a stable income they will be able to take their children to school, they will be able to improve their diet and with it, their health. They will also become a development opportunity for their own community, creating work through this small cooperative.