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The uses of the palm açaí by the traditional populations of the Amazon are numerous and testify to the importance of this plant in everyday life. There are more than twenty traditional uses of all parts the plant and fruits: food, remedies, smoke, construction equipment, etc. Currently, most açaí producers are traditional in that they possess the knowledge associated with the management, preservation and uses of this plant. From an economic point of view, the proliferation of industrial operators, which are competitive and demanding in terms of the regularity of volumes, raises questions for the maintenance of traditional populations in the sectors, at the same time as it offers a clear improvement in the standard of living. For a part of the Amazonian population, the sale of the fruit makes up up to 70 % of the income of families during the harvest period, changing, often invisibly, the lifestyles of rural populations. Until now, the populations engaged in the markets of the açaí are innovating spontaneously most of the time, appropriating and adapting the advances of research, particularly on the productive and health aspects (ref). DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT: The objective of the project is to support the actors of the wassai sector to valorise this specific resource and the local knowledge attached to it, develop agro-ecological practices and consolidate quality markets, source of an innovative economic dynamic. It will be based on an approach of co-construction of knowledge and exchanges between three countries of the French Guiana plateau: Region Guyana, Brazil (Amapá, Pará) and Suriname. The activities of the project will be carried out in three parts: 1) Transnational exchanges. 2) Vocational training in three rural family homes (Guyane, Amapá, Pará) and academic training. 3) research.

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