Georgia

Georgia Agricultural Risk Reduction Program

Overview:

The one-year (2008-2009), $19.5 million USAID-funded Georgia Agricultural Risk Reduction Program (GARRP) impacted the needs of roughly 40,000 farm families in their recovery from the economic impact of the Georgian-Russian conflict. The project addressed crucial food security and income generation issues in the affected communities of the Gori, Kareli and Kaspi districts.

Through GARRP, CNFA provided livelihood assistance to local farmers, as well as resettled internally displaced persons (IDPs) who had been issued agricultural land, to ensure successful spring crop planting and orchard assistance. In addition, CNFA operated a three-track voucher system for corn, orchards and winter wheat.

Approach

  1. Improved Yields: Vouchers for seed, fertilizer and machinery were distributed to more than 10,000 farm families, including 2,300 IDP families. CNFA mobilized local machinery service providers and organized the provision of plowing, cultivation, planting and fertilizer application services.
  2. Provided Electronic Voucher Cards: More than 17,900 farm families received electronic voucher cards for orchard inputs to be used in eight retail locations, modernizing orchard production.
  3. Supported Farmers in Harvesting Winter Wheat: The third prong of the voucher program targeted families either late in receiving land or whose land had been recently decontaminated from unexploded ordinances. This component distributed vouchers for seed and machinery services for 700 IDP families and 2,670 farm families.

By winter, 2009, the wheat planted at the beginning of GARRP was fully harvested, adding up to more than 41,000 metric tons and worth $10.1 million for program beneficiaries. Not only did this represent a vital return to self-sufficiency for the 7,862 wheat beneficiaries, but due to the failure of the wheat harvest in the east of the country, the total yield amounted to two-thirds of the total Georgian wheat harvest for the year, making it critical for the food security of the country.

In the last phase of the program, 32,000 farm families received vouchers to plant 2,750 hectares of winter wheat and 12,650 hectares of wheat fertilizer. Over 95,000 individuals benefited from the final phase, representing the completion of delivery of critical livelihood support to every farm and IDP family affected by the conflict