Canada's Governor General is a symbol of how tiny seeds become
mighty trees. The Right Honourable Michaelle Jean was born poor in
Haiti, brought to Canada as a child, and became a distinguished
journalist. She was appointed to the prestigious ceremonial post of
Governor General in 2005.
Her homeland is special to her and to MEDA. As the poorest country
in the western hemisphere, it provided fertile soil to plant mustard
seeds.
One seed was a micro-credit program which grew into Haiti's largest
credit union (15,000 members). Eight cocoa cooperatives still thrive
many years later, as do 200 village banks, some reachable only by donkey
path.
Over the years thousands of cocoa growers, merchants, butchers and
shoemakers have - thanks to MEDA - been able to provide their families
with healthier meals, shelter, school supplies and medical care.
In the 1990s MEDA undertook an emergency civil reconstruction
program to build and repair many miles of roads and irrigation canals,
anti-erosion terraces, open-air market stalls and schools. It planted a
million trees and organized adult literacy and training programs. If you
visit these communities today you'll see how bridges have improved life
and how people who were trained as masons and bricklayers are earning a
better living.
MEDA, along with Governor General Michaelle Jean, knows that great
things can grow from small sprouts.
