Emmanuel Accilien is a breeder and farmer. Born in 1979 in a small town called Lakos Zéphirin, like many other children in Haiti, he only attended school until 7th grade. His parents decided to discontinue his education for health reasons.
He shared “I always got seriously ill during exams, as if I was being persecuted by evil spirits. When my parents noticed how school was affecting my health, they decided not to send me to school anymore. Instead they brought me to the fields to learn their trade, and that is how I became a farmer.”
Emmanuel loves his job. He has always enjoyed cultivating the land and working with his animals. He is very attentive and concerned with respect for the environment: all his fertilizers are used on his sugar cane, cassava, potato and corn fields. He also started making compost last year. However, farming is not his only trade. He has also worked as a mason and cabinet maker. When the harvest does not yield enough income, he offers his services to others. He repairs their furniture and homes to bring in a little extra revenue and help him survive.
Being very busy, just irrigation of his plants used to be very time consuming for him. Fortunately, his community received a well from Haiti Outreach last year and that has made a huge difference for him and everyone else in his community. He shared, “In times of drought, I have to go and fetch water for my plants and animals if I don’t want to lose them. I used to walk 45 minutes to gather water. Now that this well is very close to my house and I help manage it, I can easily take water to water my plants. It’s a blessing. ”
A man of many talents and trades, his community also entrusted Emmanuel with the responsibility of managing his community’s well. He takes his role very seriously and appreciates receiving additional monthly compensation for his work.