NEW YORK, January 1, 2010. – The Batey Relief Alliance (BRA) is launching two new programs addressing socio-economic needs of populations living in extreme poverty in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Last year, BRA received $2.5 million from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to improve agriculture development for farmers inside the DR agricultural batey communities and provide training and microcredit loans to women in the SouthEast border region of Haiti.

The USDA-funded Cooperative Agricultural Program aims at creating food security and economic development for impoverished batey communities in the province of Monte Plata, by putting 7,700 unemployed farmers to work 1,500 acres of fertile land to produce food for 32,000 people. It is expected that surplus crops will be sold to local communities by the cooperative – an effort to foster long-term sustainable re-investment into the program.

The USAID-funded Women’s Empowerment Program, under its new Development Grants Program, will allow BRA to partner with key local partner groups such as FONKOZE, Partners In Health and Esperanza International, to establish 30 women’s organizations, provide training to 600 hundred women, of which, 300 to receive microcredit loans to start or maintain small businesses. Additionally, BRA signed an agreement with Haiti’s Ministry of Health on January 11, 2010 to operate a medical center in the border region’s commune of Anse-a-Pitres. Click HERE for more details. The program targets Haiti’s SouthEast department, Capital of Jacmel, District of Belle Anse, covering the communes of Belle Anse, Grand Gosier, Thiotte and Anse-a-Pitres.

“In light of the current global economic crisis affecting millions around the world, especially in poor countries like Haiti and the Dominican Republic, BRA’s programs are timely as they will provide thousands with economic tools to meet their current economic hardships, and to better themselves and their communities,” said Ulrick Gaillard, BRA’s CEO.