International cooperation projects

The AKOSAA project aims to increase access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food and improve the health of 8,000 people in the commune of Saint-Marc, in Haiti’s Artibonite region by intensifying and diversifying agricultural production, promoting public health, and encouraging producers to adopt agricultural practices better suited to ecological principles and nutritional needs. The project also aims to strengthen the teaching and applied research capabilities of the State University of Haiti by establishing a sustainable partnership between the university, public health organizations, and the local community. The initiative is designed to help 16,000 people improve their understanding of nutritional health, and increase the incomes of 2,600 women in Saint-Marc.

• Website  - AKOSAA project
• Project profile – Global Affairs Canada

• Sécurité alimentaire en Haïti, ULaval nouvelles
• Haïti: une aide internationale positive, ULaval nouvelles
• Pour la sécurité alimentaire d’Haïti: Production de semences de sorgho résistant, ULaval nouvelles

In Haiti, a high percentage of the population is exposed to aflatoxins—poisonous and cancer-causing chemicals growing in soil, decaying vegetation, hay, and grains. These substances are regularly found among staple food commodities and enter the food supply when processed. Children are particularly affected by aflatoxin exposure, which leads to stunted growth, delayed development, and liver-related diseases. The AFLAH project aims to get Haitians involved in the fight to control aflatoxins.  Working from the principle that the methods for limiting food contamination are already well known, the project focuses on factors that influences use of these methods by producers, distributors, and processors of peanuts, sorghum, and corn-based foods.

• Website  - Project AFLAH
• Project profile  - IDRC

• Makings of a Haitian Agronomist: Spotlight on Frantz Roby
• Improving Aflatoxin Control in Haiti

The FOGRN-PEFOGRN project aims to strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of training institutions (universities and colleges) in three Central African countries so they can become regional centres of excellence in sustainable management of natural resources. Natural resources constitute an important source of revenue for most states in Central Africa and are critical for local populations that depend on them for their livelihood. To ensure sustainable resource management, governments, private sector companies, and NGOs require specific competencies that are currently lacking in the region, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This project aims to help fill the gap by emphasizing South-South cooperation and strengthening forestry training.

• Website - FOGRN-BC project
• Project profile – Global Affairs Canada

The FASAM project aims to improve the availability of agricultural training, develop a skilled workforce, and foster job creation for young people. Agriculture is the pillar of the Malian economy, yet food insecurity, caused by a mix of external and structural factors, remains a constant concern. Development of a skilled agricultural workforce can play a key role in preventing food crises and achieving sustainable food security. The project supports six Malian institutions that provide vocational, technical, and university training.

• Project details - FSAA
• Project profile – Global Affairs Canada

• Partage des connaissances agricoles pour aider les jeunes maliens à lutter contre l'insécurité alimentaire, Radio-Canada

The second phase of the PASME project has been underway since June 2016 in the eastern, northern, and central western regions of Burkina Faso. In collaboration with local authorities and selected communities, PASME 2 aims to reduce maternal and infant mortality using a continuum of care approach. The program, part of an intervention strategy based on fostering social consensus and bringing about changes in behaviour, has two main thrusts: improving the availability and delivery of maternal, newborn, and child health services (MNCH) and getting women and their children to use these services more.

The following documents are available in French only :

• Fiche projet (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - approche centrée sur la personne (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - communauté virtuelle de pratiques (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - pratique des ASBC (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - implication des hommes (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - évaluation des stages (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - implication de l'Université Laval (PDF)
• Fiche synthèse - parcours de soins (PDF)
• Infographie résultats finaux PASME (PDF)
• «Agir pour la vie» (video)
• «Chaque vie compte» (video)

You can also watch our PASME 2 videos on the International Office Youtube page. (in French only)

• Pour la santé durable des Burkinabés, ULaval nouvelles

The project focuses on local capacity building to develop agroforestry systems that are more resilient to climate change in two particularly vulnerable agro-ecological zones in Cameroon: the (i) Sudano-Sahel (Northern Cameroon) and the (ii) High Guinea Savannah (Adamaoua). Université Laval and its partners are working to boost the capacity of farmers in Cameroon through training and technical support on the ground.

Research is also underway on carbon sequestration through sustainable management of agroforestry systems with a view to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Université Laval is conducting the project with financial support from the Government of Québec via Ministère de l’environnement et de la lutte contre les changements climatiques (MELCC) as part of the 2013‒2020 Action Plan on Climate Change, funded by the Green Fund.

The following documents are available in French only:

Project poster

Appendix 8: Problématique de la dégradation des terres et des paysages dans les zones arides et semi-arides du Cameroun

Appendix 9: L’agroforesterie comme outil de lutte contre les Changements Climatiques et pour la restauration des terres et des paysages dégradés dans les régions arides et semi-arides du Cameroun (Zones agro-écologiques soudano-sahélienne et soudano-guinéenne)

Appendix 10: Barrons la route à la propagation Covid-19 en tout temps

• On November 27 and 28, 2018, Professor Damase Khasa presented the project to the scientific and academic college of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership at the 18th Meeting of the Parties of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership in Brussels, as well as to the General Delegation of Québec in Brussels (meeting with the Delegate General Michel Audet, Director of Bilateral and Public Affairs Grégoire Diamant, and Stéphanie Roy).  A poster promoting the project to the general public was also presented.
• The official launch of the PADESAR3C project took place in Yaoundé on March 13, 2019, attended by approximately forty representatives of a range of organizations. See the article on the subject published in Villes et Communes.
• The PADESAR3C project was presented to a workshop on scientific advice to governments organized by Québec’s Chief Scientist’s Office and the Cameroon Academy of Young Scientists (Appendix 11).
• The PADESAR3C project was presented at the first international conference organized by the Cameroon Academy of Young Scientists.