New Opportunities in Agriculture

Overview:

New Opportunities in Agriculture (NOA), a five-year, $2 million program funded by USAID under the RAISE PLUS IQC, boosted agricultural production by capitalizing on the strengths of traditional crops, introducing new high-value crops into market, involving women, youth and minorities in the production process and advancing and expanding value chains to draw in infrastructure investment and strengthen export capacity. From 2011 to 2015, NOA put tools in the hands of Kosovar farmers, supporting them in all aspects of production, marketing and entrepreneurial growth by providing vital training and opening market linkages to encourage and facilitate trade.  Working under contract with Tetra Tech, CNFA provided short-term technical expertise in value chain development through its USAID-funded JOhn Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer Program and extensive network of agribusiness consultants.

Approach:

From 2011 to 2015, NOA promoted value addition in targeted sectors, introduced new crops, including asparagus and saffron, and developed various crop-based producer groups to provide stronger linkages between producers and buyers throughout the region. It also expanded access to credit training and technical assistance for loan borrowers and officers and provided mentoring, training, workshops and technical assistance for private-sector agribusinesses, building the capacity of Kosovo’s private sector agribusinesses.

1. Increased Affordable and Accessible Credit: NOA enables producers and other value chain actors to access capital or credit through a variety of mechanisms, such as loans and grants. A total of 142 small or medium enterprises received access to credit and grants issues for value chain operators and helped procure a variety of new agricultural equipment, allowing firms to increase productivity and reach new markets.
2. Linked Farmers to Markets: NOA exposed Kosovar farmers and processors to new markets by organizing study tours and promotional events, as well as facilitating relationships between producers and buyers. These activities exposed producers to new technologies for crop production, new varieties to enhance yields and quality and new, higher-priced crops. In addition, these activities increased awareness amongst potential buyers of new opportunities arising from raw materials produced domestically. The program saw over $3.3 million in sales as a direct result of linkages created between farmers, processors and traders and a total of 310 delivery contracts were issued for targeted crops.
3. Diversified and Increased Agricultural Products: NOA also expanded production by training farmers on the use of new technologies and value0adding processing, including a new processing line for bagged lettuce — the first of its kind in Kosovo. A total of 25 new technologies and management practices were introduced through the program and 1,200 farmers and processors adopted these new technologies and management practices. CNFA designed a toolbox of interventions to encourage table grape farmers to use growing techniques specific to table grapes, which included instruction on best cultural practices, improved canopy management and integrated the modified “T” trellising. This allowed for an extended growing season across all targeted crops, enabling farmers to produce earlier and earn higher prices.
4. Improved Food Quality and Safety: NOA worked to improve food quality and safety to ensure Kosovar producers and processors abided by existing food safety regulations issued by government authorities. By working with firms to become certified and meet international standards, NOA built consumer confidence in local products in areas including water sanitation, the establishment of a Listeria exclusion and testing program, pre-harvest inspection procedures, hygiene-enhancing supplies and equipment and the development of a recall plan. Food quality and safety measures implemented through NOA helped to improve product formulations, enrich human resources and further the development of Kosovo’s food industry.

Overview:

CNFA implemented the two-year (2012-2014), $2 million Commercial Farm Service Program (CFSP), a program funded by USAID’s Innovation Fund for Ethiopian Agriculture (IFEA), adapting its proven Farm Service Center (FSC) solution to the Ethiopian context for the first time. By establishing FSCs as “one-stop-shops” in their communities, entrepreneurs provided a complete range of inputs, services, information and output marketing linkages to Ethiopian smallholders. This solution continued to support farmers in making the transition from subsistence to commercial production as part of the Feed the Future Ethiopia Farm Service Center Project, which CNFA implemented in Ethiopia from 2015 to 2017.

Approach:

Through mentoring and training, the program provided locally owned businesses with uniform branding, technical and business management training, expert agronomic and veterinary consultations and assistance with inventory management, marketing, agriculture extension and outreach. In support of a wholesale buying cooperative approach, the CFSP team worked with the FSC owners and operators to legally establish and register a joint venture named EGAA Agricultural Input Supply PLC.

1. Established FSCs: Established six locally-owned retail farm service supply and service locations or FSCs with inventories, training, services and output market linkages.
2. Created APEX Organization: CFSP created a wholesale buying cooperative, owned by and dedicated to serving the inventory needs of the FSCs and linking them to national suppliers.
3. Supported Marketing and Business Development: Delivered trainings on uniform branding, business skills, technical and advisory capacity, quality standards and environmental and worker safety procedures across the network.
4. Improved Farmer Capacity: Promoted FSC-led farmer outreach activities, including training seminars, demonstration plots and field days to showcase the impacts of improved inputs and improve farmer production skills.

Overview:

The Partnership for Economic Growth (PEG) was a two-and-a-half-year, $10 million project funded by USAID (2011-2013), which supported the Somali people’s goal to improve economic growth and livelihoods in Somaliland and Puntland. Under the leadership of Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI), the project collaborated with the Ministry of Livestock, Ministry of Commerce and private sector groups to improve the environment for investment and export marketing and generate agricultural-based employment.

The livestock sector in Somaliland faced significant challenges including increased competition from neighboring nations, trade barriers due to disease control, lack of access to veterinary inputs and inefficient veterinary services. However, a strengthened livestock sector is vital, as 65% of the economy was comprised of livestock-related commerce. In partnership with private and public sectors, CNFA contributed its experience targeting all livestock value chains, assisting the sector in the following areas:

• Capacity building of local veterinary services
• Community Animal Health Workers (CAHW) training
• Improved animal feed and education for fodder farmers
• Commercial livestock feed supply systems and feedlot enterprises strengthening and improvement
• Dairy processing facilities’ development
• Analysis of livestock end-market
• Rural finance services

Approach:

1. Improved Capacity of Livestock Organizations and Enterprises: Under the Livestock Component, the largest of the PEG Project, CNFA advised local non-profit organizations and enterprises that were recipients of capacity-building and matching grants. These grants were utilized for the creation and implementation of demonstration farms, technical training in improved livestock care, dairy and fodder production techniques, livestock fattening programs and capacity building of local stakeholders.
2. Expanded Livestock Sub-Sectors through Matching Grants to Local Enterprises: The Livestock Component collaborated with four small and medium livestock enterprises under matching grants. The goal of the matching grants was to expand various subsectors of the Somali livestock industry, including commercial livestock feed supply systems and dairy production through local organizations. Some of the PEG matching grant recipients and illustrative activities included the following:
   • Al Husseini Farm and An’Aam Farm, two Somali feedlot enterprises, received PEG grants and technical training in improved fodder production techniques. An’Aam Farm was created by an association of multiple investors, who collectively contributed more than $1 million in funds to create the farm. Al Husseini Farm operated on a much small scale, but both were fully functional feedlots providing animal fattening services to local farmers.
   • Horumar Farm, a model dairy farm established with PEG support, specialized in camel milk and fodder production. The farm received a small matching grant to provide fodder production, dairy production and dairy processing training to increase the quality of milk in the surrounding area. Inspired by the success of Horumar Farm, one Somali woman purchased several camels purely to be able to take advantage of the growing market.
   • With PEG capacity-building assistance, Togheer Women’s Livestock Traders Association initiated a small ruminant buying scheme, which purchased ruminants in rural areas and transported the animals to urban areas, primarily Buroa, or exported them regionally to an area with increased demand and higher prices. Making only a three-dollar profit per head, the association applied for a PEG grant to begin a small-scale feedlot. The fattening station increased the weight o sheep and goats, resulting in a price increase of up to 20% per animal at the end market.
3. Expanded Regional Access to Micro-Finance and Start-Up Capital: Kaaba Microfinance Institution (K-MKFI) was able to open an office in the town of Gabiley through PEG funds, serving micro-enterprises and the informal markets in Western Somaliland. K-MKFI used an Islamic-compliant lending methodology which enabled a previously untapped market in rural areas to access finance. The majority of K-MKFI’s microfinance clients were small-scale livestock producers and traders.
4. Conducted a Market Analysis of the Somali Livestock Value Chain: PEG contracted AIMSm a local consultancy firm, to complete an end-market analysis of the livestock value chain in Somaliland and the larger region (Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen). This analysis and the subsequent PEG knowledge transfer activity highlighted both opportunities and constraints facing the livestock value chain in the region.
5. The Livestock Investment Chapter of the 2013 Somaliland Investment Guide: The findings of PEG’s Livestock End Market Study were synthesized in the 2013 Somaliland Investment Guide. The guide highlighted investment opportunities through a printed edition and website feature and provided a platform to expand access to investment capital and targets potential diaspora investors.

Overview:

The five-year, $7.4 million John Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer Program in Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia, funded through USAID, focused on select agricultural value chains, identifying needs at every level from production to marketing.

From 2008 to 2013, CNFA sent more than 340 volunteers focusing on fruits and vegetables, dairy and livestock value chains to Belarus, Georgia, Kosovo, Moldova, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

Approach:

CNFA relied on the expertise of U.S. volunteers from diverse backgrounds to respond to the needs of host country farmers and organizations. Volunteers were deeply experienced in their fields and represented all ages and industries as farmers, bankers, professors, civil servants and active and retired business people.

The assignments, ranging from two-to-four-week long projects, varied in scope, from training associated service providers and agribusinesses in financial management to marketing, cooperative development, agricultural production, post-harvest and processing technologies, international quality standards and rural finance.

Overview:

The five-year, $7.4 million John Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer program in East Africa, funded through USAID, focused on select agricultural value chains, identifying needs at every level from production to marketing.

From 2008 to 2013, CNFA sent over 320 volunteers to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, and a limited number of volunteers to Rwanda. The hard work put forth by volunteers and field staff made the program a success.

Approach:

CNFA relied heavily on the expertise of U.S. volunteers from diverse backgrounds to respond to the needs of host country farmers and organizations. Our volunteers possessed deep expertise in their fields and represented all ages and industries, including farmers, bankers, professors, civil servants and active and retired business people.

The assignments, ranging from two to four-week-long projects and varied in scope, trained associated service providers and agribusinesses in topics from financial management to marketing, cooperative development, agricultural production, post-harvest and processing technologies, international quality standards and rural finance.

Overview:

Access to inputs, such as improved seed varieties, fertilizer and crop protection products are imperative to the transformation the agricultural sector. The Seeds Project (2007-2012), part of the West Africa Seed Alliance (WASA), was created to transform West African agriculture from subsistence farming to profitable, self-sustaining and competitive commercial agriculture.

CNFA-implemented the five-year, $6.1 million project funded by USAID and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), with the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics and Iowa State University. The project sought to modernize seed distribution systems, facilitate smallholder farmer access to improved seed varieties, improve seed production technologies and strengthen links to credit and markets. The Seeds Project strengthened West Africa’s seed system across Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Niger and Senegal.

Approach:

Through the Seeds Project, WASA advanced the development and implementation of national seed laws and regulations, created and strengthened private seed enterprises, provided business management and technical trainings, produced a foundation for certified seed available for distribution and conducted seed variety trials for cereals and vegetables through the following approach:

1. Provided Business Management and Technical Trainings: The project’s Agrodealer Business Training Program built the business capacity of local seed company managers through training in business planning, supply chain management and marketing. The six-module training model included: managing working capital, managing stocks, costing and pricing, selling and marketing, record keeping and managing business relationships.
2. Increased Agricultural Productivity: WASA worked with local institutions to build agricultural potential in specific focus areas. Bringing improved access to input supplies, availability of technology and technology transfer to farmers and increased access to credit for rural smallholders, the alliance had a significant impact on production practices throughout WASA countries. Field days were an effective medium in spreading awareness of improved farming methods. With participants spanning from local agrodealers to government officials and major supply companies, the input systems in target countries saw marked improvement.
3. Created and Strengthened Private Seed Enterprises: WASA developed viable agricultural inputs systems and supported the overall growth of the West African agricultural sector by creating a sustainable commercial seed industry that provided small-scale farmers with affordable, timely and reliable access to high-input quality seeds and planting materials. In cooperation with input supplies, WASA organized demonstration plots and farmer field days to enhance awareness about new products and technologies.
4. Improved Technical Training of Seed Enterprises: CNFA worked through input-supply companies and commercial trainers to build capacity for the safe usage and handling of products. WASA field demonstrations also provided an excellent educational tool to teach both agrodealers and farmers about new varieties and correct herbicide and fertilizer application.
5. Improved Seed Output Marketing: WASA linked agrodealers and farmer producer groups to commodity traders and crop processors to create market pull for farmer production. It also assisted seed companies and associations in establishing seed marketing strategies.

Overview:

Launched in 2009, the three-year, $2.9 million Commercial Strengthening of Smallholder Cocoa Production (CSSCPP), funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (2009-2012), aimed to stimulate capital investment and enhance the lives of farmers in the Ghanaian cocoa business. CSSCPP promoted improved production techniques and increased access to inputs, finance and crop diversification. Through the use of strategically designed matching grants, the project also leveraged $5.8 million in private investment.

CNFA, in collaboration with the National Cocoa Producer Association, Kuapa Kokoo Farmers Union and Chemico Limited, provided support to cocoa farmers through training, certification programs, land tenure and association development.

Approach:

1. Improved Association Development: To promote more convenient access to inputs, training, finance and collective marketing, CNFA supported farmers in organizing into groups, clusters and associations, allowing for better service of the maximum number of farmers through project activities to give farmers easy access (within six kilometers) to products and services.
2. Developed Integrated Warehouse: CNFA collaborated with agro-input suppliers and farmer associations to build model pilot mini-warehouses to serve cocoa producers. Each mini-warehouse had two separate areas: a cocoa buying and certification area operated by local buying companies, and a room for the producers to use for association meetings, trainings and other events. A small, independent agro-dealer shop selling agro-inputs (seeds, fertilizers and crop protection chemicals) was typically located nearby. By offering inputs for many crops rather than just cocoa, these agrodealers encouraged crop diversification.
3. Improved Technical Capacity and Certification: Farmers and agro-dealers received technical training on cocoa production. In addition, demonstration plots and farmer field days organized with input suppliers encouraged crop diversification and improved cocoa production practices. After determining the cost-benefit tradeoffs of various certification schemes, the project provided information and training for farmers who chose to secure internationally recognized certifications like Fair Trade, UTZ and Rainforest Alliance. As a result of project training and certification services, beneficiary farmers’ yields increased by 189% and incomes increased by 309%.
4. Stimulated Capital Investment: CNFA conducted an extensive study of land tenure issues as they impact the cocoa industry, focusing on the impact on the very small-scale producers, women and sharecroppers. In addition, CNFA piloted land-titling training for landowners and worked with financial institutions to pilot new credit and crop insurance to mitigate farmer risk.

Overview

Through the three-year (2009-2012), $5.1 million USAID-funded Access to Mechanization Project (AMP), CNFA used a commercially sustainable and market-oriented methodology to develop machinery service providers across Georgia. Building on CNFA’s existing nationwide presence, AMP combined matching investments, commercial finance and technical training to establish Machinery Service Centers (MSCs) and provide custom machinery services to small farmers.

Approach

1. Provided Volunteer Technical Assistance: Utilized local consultants and F2F volunteers to provide technical assistance to ensure sustainable operation and long-term availability of services.
2. Improved Competitive Environment for Machinery Services: AMP improved the competitive environment for machinery services by reducing the cost to farmers as a result of increased supply of machinery and service businesses.
3. Improved Access to Finance: Leveraged grant funds with local partner matching investment, including large-scale involvement of commercial finance to maximize impact and investment in rural economy.

Ongoing support from CNFA Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteers was an integral part of implementing AMP. A total of 25 volunteer assignments, focused primarily on conducting various types of trainings, were completed during the project. Through F2F, AMP:

1. Business Management Training Sessions: F2F volunteers conducted a wide array of trainings on business management. With the assistance of the AMP Training Coordinator, volunteers selected local trainers, finalized business and extension training topics and developed standardized training materials for dissemination.
2. Financial and Credit Trainings: F2F volunteers led basic financial trainings for AMP’s farmers on credit lending, record keeping and risk assessment, which were especially useful for farmer clients looking to better understand their budgets and recognize when they could rent equipment from MSCs.
3. Environment Trainings: AMP organized volunteer-led trainings focused on environmentally friendly agricultural practices for MSC owners and trainers of a local extension training provider consortium. Training was conducted on irrigation and drainage systems, pest and disease control, technologies of land cultivation and agricultural mechanization.
4. Marketing and Communications Support: AMP fielded volunteers to help develop communications and marketing strategies for MSC owners, demonstrating the services they could offer. Additionally, volunteers worked with the Georgian Public Broadcaster to design the format of the Agricultural TV show “Farmer’s Day” and create a full-scale business plan to facilitate the funding of the show.

Overview:

CNFA implemented the four-year (2006-2010), $20 million Agribusiness Development Activity (ADA), funded under the Millennium Challenge Georgia Fund (MCG) as part of the Compact between the Government of Georgia and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), to catalyze local matching investments from Georgian partner enterprises and farmers. Through matching grants, farmers received access to innovative agricultural production technology, inputs, quality control practices and output marketing as well as stronger market linkages and reliable sources of inputs and methods to market higher-value products.

Approach:

1. Supported Local Enterprise Development: ADA awarded resources to groups of farmers and enterprises applying innovative business solutions and technology to boost household incomes and net revenues. Applications submitted included a business plan built for domestic market demand.
2. Facilitated Improvements to Agricultural Value Chains: Value chain improvements were accomplished through technical assistance via long- and short-term consultants and volunteers, formal and informal training and access to grants and capital mobilization proposed by bidders responding to ADA’s request. The Value Chain Initiative built strategic commercial linkages between producers, processors and markets in promising Georgian agricultural sectors, including dairy, meat and poultry products, fruits, citrus, nuts, vegetables and potatoes.
3. Conducted Rural Outreach: ADA launched a mass media campaign to empower Georgians to make better choices about their business environment and families through access to information.