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Growers and shippers in the Dominican Republic are waiting optimistically an action plan to help expand the USDA APHIS pre-clearance program and allow the country to ship additional commodities. Via the USDA-funded Trade Safe project implemented by IESC, the final approval is on a new pre-clearance program for tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. The initiative stems from the five-year, $13.7 million USDA Food for Progress-funded Trade Safe (TraSa)…
read moreThe USDA Food for Progress funded Market-Oriented Dairy (MOD) Project in Sri Lanka, implemented by IESC, has collaborated with the Sri Lankan Department of Animal Production and Health (DAPH) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to develop a Climate-Smart Dairy Model to help small- and medium-scale dairy farmers in Sri Lanka mitigate climate impacts and adapt to changing climatic conditions. This model works at the farm…
read moreThe Pekoe Trail is a 22-day, 200-mile network of hiking trails through the Sri Lankan tea country funded by the EU and USAID Tourism Resilience Project, implemented by IESC.
The aim is to develop, maintain, and curate a trail that promotes the diverse cultural and natural heritage of the Sri Lankan Tea Country and encourage its preservation ultimately benefiting local communities. The trail provides a world-class experience for both long…
read moreOn 27 January, ultramarathon trail runner Hyun Chang Chung crossed the finish line at the Ceylon Tea Museum in Hanthana, cheered on by new fans from the surrounding local community and his elated family. He had just achieved the superhuman feat of becoming the first person to run the entire 300 km length of The Pekoe Trail non-stop in two and half days.
The Pekoe Trail is designed as a 22-day walk from Kandy to Nuwara Eliya via Ella,…
read moreFunded by a US$ 1.3 million grant from the Yum! Brands Foundation, the vocational training kitchen initiative titled ‘An Equal Slice for Everyone’ is the first in a series implemented through a partnership between USAID’s Youth Employment and Business Start-Up activity, YouLead; Gamma Pizzakraft Lanka, the owner of the Pizza Hut franchise in Sri Lanka; and the Sevalanka Foundation.
Through YouLead, USAID will assist in the development of…
read moreA workshop was held on July 26 in Hanoi to empower small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through digital transformation and financial access. The event was co-organized by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) along with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Experts maintained that Vietnamese firms, especially SMEs, have encountered numerous difficulties in post-pandemic recovery, and digital…
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