Addressing Value Chain Constraints to Empower Producer Groups
ACDI/VOCA addressed value chain constraints in Mali under a three-year USAID-funded Integrated Initiatives for Economic Growth in Mali (IICEM) subcontract from Abt Associates.
Producers, producer groups and the private sector in Mali are faced with limited opportunities to make investments in irrigation and other technologies that would add value and increase the production and sales of their agricultural products.
To overcome these constraints, ACDI/VOCA worked toward the following goals:
- Assist in the development of associations all along the target value chains through capacity building at different levels in those skills and functions that need strengthening.
- Assess the capacity of IICEM staff, implementing agency staff and key partners to assess the needs of collaborating associations along the target value chains, and to provide the capacity building that they require.
- Improve processes for implementing market and value chain assessments, develop a vision and strategy for the value chains and various segments within the value chain, and determine how best to work with stakeholders.
- Assist with emergence of value chain networks and support their development.
- Assess the capacity of staff, associations and partners to address the needs of women and youth and integrate them into their respective activities.
- Assess the integration of gender and youth considerations and provide the capacity building required to help address the needs of women and youth.
- Strengthen local institutional and management capacities of water user associations.
