Community, Participation and Sustainable Production – BMLEH and its German-Colombian Project for Agroecology

Within the framework of the BMLEH funded German Colombian Training Centre on Agroecology, the Head of Department of the International Bilateral Cooperation (BKP) projects, Bernd Schwang and Senior Policy Officer for North-Central, and South America, Hans Peter Lampen visited project sites in the Boyacá region. The BMLEH delegation was accompanied by Dr. Andreas Gramzow and Denis Ünver of GFA. 

Within a year, the project team, including the operational partners AGROSAVIA and the Julius Kühn Institute, implemented over 12 participatory research projects together with various agroecologicalfarming associations in different project regions of Colombia. The participatory research covers diverse topics such as the commercialization of agroecological products, the agroecological management of pastures and native potato production or the Guinea pig value chain. Besides of the region of Boyacá, the project is active in Cauca valley of Palmira and Narino.

Asogranjas is a non-profit peasant women's organization in Sogamoso, founded more than a decade ago by women producers dedicated to agriculture and the solidarity economy. The organization coordinates production on small plots of land, joining forces to participate in farmers' markets and preparing various food products such as hayacas, tamales, corn mazato, or mantecadas.

Coagros (Cooperative of Agricultural Producers and Artisans of the municipality of Tutazá, Boyacá). This organization is recognized by national and departmental entities for its contribution to agricultural and artisanal development in the region, comprising 40 farming households. Since its inception, the cooperative has promoted the production of certified potato seed licensed by the National Agricultural Institute (Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario, ICA). Coagros currently participates in public support and value-added programs, particularly those related to the production and commercialization of native potatoes. At the same time, the cooperative is moving forward with an agroecological transition process, with an emphasis on native potatoes, combining sustainable agroecological practices with local knowledge and production traditions. 

El Convite Campesino is an organization led mainly by young people, made up of around 40 farming families from Boyacá who work in agroecological production, the transition to sustainable practices, and environmental conservation. The organization has three main areas of focus: short marketing circuits, the Agroecological Peasant School, and agroecological transition processes. The first seeks to bring producers and consumers closer together through relationships of trust and fair prices. The Agroecological Peasant School, for its part, is a space for the exchange, generation, and recovery of knowledge through theoretical and practical workshops on topics such as the production of inputs, garden management, and environmental conservation. 

Besides the three-day field visit, the project steering committee meeting was held at the Colombian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR)with the presence of the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Geidy Ortega. At the committee meeting, the project progress was presented and the annual operation plan for 2026 was discussed and confirmed. The focus will be on deepening the participatory research processes in current project regions, training of farmers and extension workers of participating organizations on agroecological aspects and practices, communicating the results and experiences of the participatory research projects, providing support to the Colombian MADR in the implementation of the National Policy on Agroecology through bilateral dialogues and national platforms and preparing the extension of the project activities to other regions. 

In general, the project has made very good progress and project results are promising, and the application of participatory processes as well as capacity building in sustainable production practices or consultancy on a political level are implemented successfully. Over 1000 farmers and extension workers have already received training on agroecological approaches and practices. Both political partners, the Colombian MADR and the German BMLEH, agreed to further deepening the collaboration and to strengthen the bilateral technical exchange between the two countries.