The Digicel Foundation has helped planted the seeds of a sustainable business venture in rabbit-rearing for residents of the Heights of Guanapo and Heights of Aripo.
In a news release yesterday, the Foundation recognised the business established by young residents of the Heights of Aripo, calling themselves the ‘Bunny Builders’.
The organisation explained the children will care for and rear rabbits to sell, and they have plans to put their earnings towards their education costs.
The Digicel Foundation, in partnership with Shell Trinidad and Tobago, donated $100,000 to the NGO One Seed for Change to facilitate the training programmes in both communities as part of the Extraordinary Projects Impacting Communities (EPIC) programme,
This business plan, Digicel Foundation said, is just one of the positive outcomes of The One Seed for Change ‘Feed to Fork’ initiative that introduced residents of the Heights of Guanapo and Heights of Aripo to employment opportunities in rabbitry.
Over eight weeks ending in March 2024, the participants learnt how to make pellet feed from grasses, how to care for the animals, and how to create a range of value-added products in the community.
“In Heights of Aripo, the children in the community didn’t want to slaughter the rabbits, so we started a youth club teaching sales and business skills to support agriculture, and that’s how Bunny Builders was born,” said Lorraine Waldropt-Fergusson, president of One Seed for Change.
“In Heights of Guanapo, we taught rabbit production, including slaughtering and making value-added products such as rabbit burgers and gyros, in the community.”
Cindyann Currency, head of operations at the Digicel Foundation, said, “Together with our partner Shell Trinidad and Tobago, this year’s EPIC programme focused on community projects in the areas of agriculture, the environment, and renewable energy.
“It is a true joy and a welcome bonus to see young entrepreneurs like the Bunny Builders inspired to explore a future in sustainable farming through this community initiative. We look forward to seeing their business grow!”
The Digicel Foundation is charitable organisation that was launched by Digicel’s former executive chairman, Denis O’Brien in Jamaica in 2004. The charitable organisation set up in T&T in 2012.
Between 2004 and 2021, the Digicel Foundation has invested over US$173m in Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and Papua New Guinea, reaching 3.1 million people through 2,700 projects.
Digicel, which provides mobile telephone, broadband, cable and other telecommunications services throughout the region, was founded in 2001 by O’Brien, an Irish entrepreneur.
Last June, Digicel completed a restructuring of the company, which reduced the group’s consolidated debt by about US$1.7 billion and its annual cash interest expense by about $120 million. As a result of the restructuring, O’Brien was replaced as chairman by Rajeev Suri, but continues to be involved in the company both as a shareholder and as a director of its reconstituted board.