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   72-year-old Armando del Arca Huamaní of Peru, a farmer and father of 13 children, is a family man. He is also a former inmate who has served time in prison on drug charges.Like many local farmers in Peru, Armando was faced with a choice: cultivate legal crops or grow coca, the plant used to make cocaine. In Peru, the list of pros and cons does not come out in favor of raising legal crops. Agricultural production of legal crops in Peru faces an array of challenges: markets are difficult to access, there are few agricultural services and processing facilities, private sector investment is limited, and government support is weak. Growing coca for illicit markets, on the other hand, pays well and is supported by drug traffickers' middlemen. "Since the destruction of the agricultural bank in 1995, we were left without jobs and possibilities to educate our children. We had no alternative but to work for the drug traffickers," says Armando. "Because our community had a runway available for small planes, the 'narcos' (drug traffickers) paid us to extend the runway and to transport the drugs from the production centers to the planes. They offered us 50 soles (about US$14.00) for 50 kilos of drugs," explains Armando. "In 1994 I was arrested for drug trafficking and spent one year in prison, being mistreated and ill-fed. I left behind my wife and children, who had to stop their schooling to support the family." The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's (ODC) alternative development project in Peru is working to increase farmers' legal options. The project focuses on the needs of small farm families and the obstacles they face for re-entering legal production. ODC supports local community-based farm organizations to develop into modern farm companies that know how to sell products in local, regional, national and world markets. ODC's alternative development project is helping to boost production of traditional and new export crops such as organic coffee, tea, rubber, tropical fruit, palm heart and palm oil. As a result of ODC's alternative development programmes for Peru, farmers' yearly income form agricultural products has increased from US$1,600 to US$3,500 in a country where the minimum wage is US$1,400. Today, Armando is one of the many beneficiaries of ODC's alternative development project focusing on rubber. His story is similar to many farmers and villagers in Peru who fall prey to the exploitative work of drug traffickers. "After my release [from prison] in 1995, my family and I could no longer bear the situation in our home village, so we moved to San Carlos de Cajonari, where we still live," says Armando. But the situation is not easy: the soil there is poor and water resources are scarce. But, he continues, "I am thankful to the United Nations for studying the potential of rubber production in the area and for advising us on the possibilities and risks. Today they tell us that the rubber will be sold at 3 soles per kilo. This is the correct way to work. We are very happy now, because our family has a safe type of work that also preserves our forests and homes." FIND OUT MORE about how the UN supports projects and programmes that give people like Armando a chance to build more prosperous lives for themselves, their families and their communities. Click on the links next to Armando. ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT STORIES: Norma saves her time Ram's village has a new community hall | Thérèse has a business plan |
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