Offering Technical Assistance in Ghana, Liberia, Senegal, and DRC
RELATED NEWS
Summary
USAID awarded ACDI/VOCA the West Africa Farmer-to-Farmer program in September 2013. Through this five-year program, ACDI/VOCA, along with partner NCBA CLUSA, fought hunger and poverty in the core countries of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Liberia, and Senegal by connecting farmers with mid-career U.S. volunteers who are experts in their fields. The program focused on working with women farmers and entrepreneurs and applying environmentally friendly practices, building on successes from ACDI/VOCA’s previous work in the targeted countries.
ACDI/VOCA was the first Farmer-to-Farmer implementer and continues to be a leading implementer today. Its efforts build the capacity of farmers, farmer organizations, rural agribusinesses, agricultural service providers, extension providers, trade associations, and rural finance providers to become commercially viable participants in domestic and regional economies–and even the global economy.
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
1. Promoted sustainable, rapid, and broad-based food security and economic growth in the agricultural sector
2. Increased American public understanding of international development issues and international understanding of U.S. Government (USG) and USG development programs.
F2F WA reached its objectives by contributing to the following Foreign Assistance sub-elements:
1. Increased agricultural sector profitability and productivity
2. Strengthened agricultural sector institutions
3. Expanded access to financial services
4. Improved conservation and sustainable use of natural resources
PROJECT ACTIVITIES AND APPROACHES
- In Ghana, the Farmer-to-Farmer program helped strengthen staple and horticulture crop value chains.
- In Senegal, ACDI/VOCA and its partners focused on millet and horticultural crops to develop the agriculture sector and promote nutritious foods.
- In the Democratic Republic of Congo, ACDI/VOCA increased agricultural productivity, focusing specifically on poultry and cassava, in order to restart the country’s rural economy, which has been weakened by a protracted civil war.
- In Liberia, the the program improved animal husbandry, food safety, and meat processing practices by focusing on livestock, poultry, and fish production. It also focused on youth involved in agriculture by working with local youth groups, developing school gardens, and strengthening agricultural curricula at vocational schools and universities.
PROJECT RESULTS
- The program reached over 78,000 direct and indirect beneficiaries across all four core countries and helped net incomes for farmers increase by $3.5 million.
- The F2F DRC project’s technical assistance resulted in the creation of a cooperative named Cooperative of Kinshasa Farmers. The volunteers trained the cooperative’s Board of Administration on the necessary skills for contract negotiation with third parties and government services. As a result of the training by volunteers, the cooperative was able to make key negotiations to strengthen their operations. As an example, they successfully negotiated a contract with a Dutch firm to supply the cooperative with concentrate for poultry feed at a relatively low price.
Learn more about ACDI/VOCA’s volunteer program.
Funder: USAID
Contact: Ricardo Blanco, rblanco@acdivoca.org
