Historically, the municipality of Jobabo was one of the best agricultural areas in the province of Las Tunas, but over the years, marabou took over a large area. Negligence and carelessness also played their part.
However, the urgency of the times, the demands of the political and governmental authorities of the territory, and the will of many men and women have prevailed, so that plants can grow in the soil and families can have more food on their tables at lower prices.
Although the road has pitfalls, the intention is good and can be realized with the contribution of all those involved. Of course, more control is needed, especially, the accompaniment of producers by the state company and the National Association of Small Farmers (ANAP in Spanish).
They are doing so through tours, visits, and exchanges with the different agricultural production, credit, and service cooperatives to evaluate the potential on the ground and ensure attention to the prioritized sectors and agricultural fairs.
During these visits, they also discuss projections for the coming months, the help they need to consolidate crops, and their commitment to supporting the nutrition of the residents of the municipal capital and the city of Las Tunas.
STATE-OWNED COMPANY, THE MAIN RESPONSIBLE
Iryás Arenas Buitrago, director of miscellaneous crops at the Jobabo agro-industrial company, believes that the municipality is currently in a favorable situation, as planting campaigns have been underway for about a year and a half. But he knows that not everything has been achieved.
"Right now, what worries us most are the rustic crops because the area balances necessary to comply with the food sovereignty plan for the territory have not yet been achieved. This is where the emphasis is placed, especially in sowing plantain, sweet potato, and cassava."
"In the first months of the year, the municipality was affected by drought and we almost ran out of seeds. There are few irrigated areas here; however, last year we over-produced maize and sorghum and thus contributed to import substitution."
The organization tries to maintain stability in the agricultural fair, which is held every Saturday, and the production units are arranged in such a way that there is a variety of items. This has had a significant acceptance by the population.
"Sometimes, we don't have enough fuel to bring the resources from the cooperatives that are further away, so sales are made on other days of the week. This is the way we are going, and much will be achieved when the recovery of the Melanio Ortiz pole becomes a reality."
THE MELANIO ORTIZ POLE REGAINS ITS STRENGTH
These days, the sound of bulldozers drowns out the other noises in a part of the Melanio Ortiz production center. The site is now working to recover 11 hectares infested with marabú and weeds, which will later be planted with donkey bananas.
This was explained by Yoenia Martínez Escobar, head of the unit's collective, who is optimistic about all the actions being undertaken to restore the splendor of an area of fertile soils and with real possibilities of producing significant quantities of various crops, especially viands.
"We are trying to move forward, thanks to the support of the province and the municipality. A great effort has been made here but the most important is that we are in progress. We hope there will soon be food for the people of Jobabo and Las Tunas."
"We have about 259 hectares and about 170 are in production. There is also land in motion, although not as much as we would like because of the state of the machines and there is little availability of spare parts in the country. However, we are confident that this place can be transformed."
"On our land, we grow cassava, plantain, sweet potato, maize, pumpkin, cucumber, and beans, for which we use three irrigation machines. If we get the results we are planning, the people will be satisfied with our work because there will be more food, which is important."
ADVANCED AND HARD-WORKING BENEFICIARIES
Iván Barbán Ochoa and Maiber Fernández Pérez are two of the usufructuaries associated with the Melanio Ortiz pole; on their land, they make the most of the soil by dint of hard work, from dawn until the sunsets over the horizon.
For Maiber, working in the fields is a daily chore; he is not afraid but rather takes it on with commitment. It has been too difficult but he enjoys working the land and is determined to overcome the obstacles so that his 26 hectares produce more and more food.
"This area has changed a lot, it used to be a marabuzal and now it is planted with maize, cassava, cucumber, and sweet potato. In addition, very soon we will be growing banana burro. The best thing is that everything I harvest goes to the population or the industry, marketed by the polo management."
Iván has 50 hectares under irrigation, planted with various crops, and he is happy to be linked to the unit because he has all the help he needs to prepare the land. After all, "large areas require a lot of resources and cannot be worked with oxen alone.
"We have had this support and also for marketing. We sell all our productions to the pole and receive payment timely, directly to the card. Sometimes it is difficult to pay the workers, but we are working on it. The important thing is to plant and harvest.
