Agriculture

Projet d’appui à la filière halieutique (PAFHa) au Mali

Projet d’appui à la filière halieutique (PAFHa) in Mali is a project that aims to reduce food and nutrition insecurity in Mali by improving incomes through the development of the fishing industry.
PAFHa's goals include:
-Improved Conservation, enhancement and marketing of fish products
-Developed fish production (fishing/fish farming) through sustainable practices
- Strengthened government technical services and professional organisations are involved in the program and their capacities Read More...

Pathways Project End of Project Evaluation Report

Pathways aimed to increase productivity and income in equitable agriculture systems. CARE innovated an effective Theory of Change to address real issues affecting rural women farmers by providing them with capacities in agriculture; access to inputs, extension services and markets; empowerment to influence decisions; and an enabling environment for growth.

Pathways has met and, in most cases, surpassed targets set in its M&E framework. In the words of women themselves the project has worked very well, focusing on groundnuts and soybean as high-value cash crop substitutes for tobacco because of their high potential for markets, ability to replenish the lost soil fertility and strong nutritional value. It has grown from working with 9,000 to 14,282 farmers (hosting a population of 71,410 people), organising them into 1,528 groups. Women provide leadership to most of the groups after being transformed to become successful wives, farmers and entrepreneurs who can make independent decisions and speak in public.

In 2015 alone, collective sale revenues from groundnuts and soy amounted to MK128, 601,938 (US$233,821.7) and rose to MK854, 356,267 (US$751,511) by the end of 2017. Contract farming organized by the project contributed US$34,233 to these revenues. In 2014, the project conducted 188 community-wide gender dialogue sessions and reached out to 9,654 people, 7193 female and 2464 male, helping them to internalize and address gender inequalities. Men have generally started looking at women as partners in agriculture and development that is cementing marriage bonds and creating an enabling environment for women to succeed. Along with this, CARE Malawi linked women farmers to key players in the groundnut and soy value chains to help them excel.

As a consequence, by December 2016 a total of 246 farmer groups had accounts with OIBM and other banks through which they saved MK49, 175,577 and 6 VSLs accessed two group loans worth MK4,800,000 (US$7,804.88) which they invested in agriculture, business and VSL activities. VSLs profited and shared out US$871,178 in the year, with more benefits seen in 2017 when savings accumulated to US$3,756,435 e.g. earnings of MK47, 489.32 to MK204, 769.33 per household on average. In turn, per capita household monthly incomes and expenditures doubled by the time the project closed in December 2018. Although agricultural productivity continued to decline over the project life due to poor weather conditions, Pathways farmers remained food secure and continued to eat at least two meals a day. Household dietary diversity (HDDS) and women intra-household food access (AHA) data from this evaluation found levels of consumption to be acceptable and typical of food secure households. These results showcase that Pathways beneficiaries have grown their incomes, assets and food availability in the face of the changing climate and are better off even in difficult years. Read More...

Krishi Utsho Endline Evaluation

Krishi Utsho is a self-sustaining market based model that operates through a multi-stakeholder participatory approach, wherein stakeholders such as private sector, government bodies and extensions, local community level shop owners (enlisted as franchisees), and rural farmers all come together to form a network of interconnected business and market interactions and relationships that benefit all. Through its unique business model, KU provides support to rural smallholder farmers (especially women) in accessing quality agro-inputs, market information, and technical assistance to strengthen and realize their agricultural
potential and help to sustain livelihoods as well as ensure food security.
This impact assessment has been undertaken to identify Krishi Utsho’s impact (economic and social) on beneficiary groups, and to assess performance in terms of intended objectives and outcomes. To capture the information required, mixed methodology was used – quantitative survey was administered to 400 KU farmers, while 9 FGDs (with farmers), 9IDIs (4 KU franchisee shop owners, 2 private suppliers, financial institution representatives, and 1 Upazila Agriculture Officer (UAO) were conducted to supplement the
qualitative information to support the quantitative data.
Under the umbrella of KU, the project has successfully developed a network of 251 agro-input shops (franchisees), 25 private sector suppliers with quality agro-inputs, strategic partnerships with government extension agents and financial institutions. Through this extensive and interconnected network, the project is able to serve the agro-input, technical support and information needs of over 51,788 smallholding rural farmers, out of which (27% are women). Apart from this, KU has ensured employment, income and different social securities of project beneficiaries. To ensure that vulnerable women are also benefited through the KU project, it undertook EWYSEA - an initiative under the broad KU umbrella, to facilitate and engage women and youth in income generating activities especially in agro-business. To advance in agriculture and increase outputs, it is important to have access to finance – something that the vulnerable farmers often lack. As such, to address this issue, KU started another initiative, namely MEDA that promotes and facilitates access to non-traditional financing for rural farmers in the KU geographical areas. Read More...

Tufaidike Wote

Le but global du projet a été de renforcer la stabilité socio-économiques des populations dans les communautés à travers la promotion des mécanismes de gestion et prévention des conflits, de bonne gouvernance et les moyens de subsistances avec un accent particulier sur le statut de la femme. Le but de cette évaluation a été de mieux comprendre les stratégies qui ont bien marché et les changements produits au cours de l’exécution du projet ‘Tufaidike Wote’ afin de mieux informer la programmation d’un tel projet dans le futur. De manière spécifique, l’évaluation a voulu déterminer dans quelle mesure le projet a eu un impact, notamment en ce qui concerne la dynamique sociale et la dynamique économique et évaluer dans quelles conditions et contextes et pourquoi ces changements ont eu lieu. Elle a voulu aussi analyser la mise en œuvre de la stratégie à réponse rapide par le mécanisme de fonds flexible, si oui ou non elle a contribué à la cohésion sociale dans les communautés à potentiel conflictuel. Read More...

Socio-Economic and Financial Profitability Analysis of Rice Seed Production by Women Groups “Nawe Nuze” in the framework of “Win Win” Program in Burundi

mplemented in 6 communes of Kirundo and Gitega provinces in Burundi, the 4-year research program tests an innovative approach « gender transformative » for the agriculture sector. The approach begins with the development of critical thinking aiming at defying discriminatory social beliefs and norms, via a reflective model, community dialogue and collective action. CARE is evaluating how this innovative approach could improve gender equity and the way a particular attention on power relations and a wake of conscience could produce durable effects on food security, nutrition and population economic well-being. The ultimate goal of this research is to compare (1) a model of gender transformative (EKATA4 model) for gender equity and (2) a typical gender integration approach in the agriculture model (gender light model (light, normal or usual). [63 pages] Read More...

The Win-Win for Gender, Agriculture and Nutrition Project Midline Assessment

Results of the midline assessment report for The Win-Win for Gender, Agriculture and Nutrition Project. [18 pages] Read More...

A Win-Win for Gender, Agriculture and Nutrition

The project “A Win-Win for Gender, Agriculture and Nutrition: Testing a Gender- Transformative Approach from Asia in Africa” is a four-year research program, implemented in six communes in the provinces of Kirundo and Gitega in Burundi, to test an innovative, gender-transformative approach for the agriculture sector that starts with developing critical consciousness and challenging discriminatory beliefs and social norms through a model of reflection, community dialogue and collective action. CARE and partners are testing how this approach improves gender equality and how a focus on power relations and consciousness-raising may also yield sustainable effects on food security, nutrition and economic well-being. The project is testing two key approaches (1) a gender-transformative model (the “EKATA”- Empowerment through Knowledge And Transformative Action- model) for gender equality and (2) a typical gender-mainstreamed approach in the agriculture sector (“Gender-Light” model), in which basic gender activities are integrated into a program that has a principal focus and measures of success on women’s economic empowerment through agriculture and micro-enterprise development. The key research question is “What is the added value, and what are the associated costs of applying a gender-transformative approach within a livelihoods intervention, in terms of accelerating lasting transformations in gender equality, food security and economic well- being?”[66 pages] Read More...

Mali Pathways Final Evaluation

CARE projet Pathways, connu au Mali comme projet Nyéléni, a été financé par la Fondation Bill et Melinda Gates (FBMG) depuis 2012. Il travaille principalement avec des femmes pauvres petits agriculteurs qui sont actuellement membres d'associations d'épargne et de crédit de village (VSLA), avec un objectif de 442 groupes et 15 000 participants dans 106 villages de Ségou et régions de Mopti. Au Mali, Pathways est mis en oeuvre grâce à une solide approche de programme, étroitement intégré avec d'autres interventions, dont les CARE a été élaborer avec soin des depuis plus de cinq ans, et ce fut précisément une approche destinée à Pathways à l'échelle mondiale. Le projet est mis en oeuvre par l'intermédiaire de partenaires, AMAPROS, ASAFE, GRET et YA-G-tu, et cela est en soi une initiative de renforcement des capacités positives. [114 pages] Read More...

Pastoralist Areas Resilience Improvement through Market Expansion (PRIME) Endline Survey Report

Beginning in 2012, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched a 5-year project, named the Pastoralist Areas Resilience Improvement through Market Expansion (PRIME), to increase vulnerable communities’ resilience to climate change and reduce hunger and poverty. This endline report presents findings on whether PRIME achieved its overall objective in the Afar, Oromiya and Somali woredas where it was implemented. It also recommends further investigations prior to developing additional interventions (e.g. PRIME Phase Two), and considerations for defining any future monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plan. [64 pages] Read More...

Stabilité au sahel comment accompagner une parole citoyenne des sociétés pastorales

This 31 page documents highlights learning from CARE Niger's PROGRESS project focusing on how to bet... Read More...

Filter Evaluations