The Strategic Alliance for Agricultural Development in Africa (SAADA), funded by the Netherlands' Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS), began in 2006 and ran through 2010. IFDC, as the implementing partner, was charged with organizing a strategic alliance of international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to facilitate regional, national and multinational agricultural intensification and agribusiness programs with an initial focus in West Africa.
The SAADA project was comprised of three components – each addressing a focused set of issues while sharing broader common objectives. These components included: SAADA-A – the implementation of the From Thousands to Millions (1000s+) project in West Africa; SAADA-B – the expansion of these activities to select East and southern African countries; and SAADA-C – agricultural intensification combined with a holistic approach to socio-agricultural issues.
The AAA-Bridge project was an extension of SAADA-B activities. The objective of AAA-Bridge was to expand IFDC activities and best practices developed in West Africa, such as Competitive Agricultural Systems and Enterprises (CASE), Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM), fertilizer deep placement (FDP), fertilizer resource assessment and market information systems (MIS), into other regions of Africa. Specifically, this project expansion was designed to replicate the CASE approach and other aspects of the IFDC agribusiness model in select countries of eastern and southern Africa.
Prior to the initiation of these AAA-Bridge activities, IFDC prepared the groundwork to establish long-term projects in Malawi, Mozambique and Uganda. For this purpose, IFDC developed a framework to strengthen the agro-input markets and conducted country assessments in these pilot countries as well as in Angola, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia. IFDC also studied the agricultural situations in Ethiopia and Rwanda. IFDC’s methodology in these efforts has been proven over its 37-year history, with agribusiness development models and a package of concepts, approaches and management systems that have been recognized for their effectiveness in Africa and other parts of the world.
The AAA-Bridge program included the following components:
- Replicating the CASE solution utilized successfully in West Africa to thousands of farm families in the Horn of Africa, the Central Africa’s Great Lakes Region and other regions.
- Implementing a framework for agro-input supply systems to increase awareness of, and progress toward, efficient agro-input markets.
- Expanding MIS and the use of decision support systems.
- Strengthening the capacities of private sector producer and trade organizations.
- Developing national legislation supporting the marketing of agro-inputs and encouraging the adoption of market-friendly policies and regulations for agro-input markets.
- Supporting regional organizations in the creation of regional agro-input markets.
- Creating public-private partnerships with international and multinational companies.
- Accelerating the implementation of Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) plans related to sustainable agribusiness.
AAA-Bridge Project Summary
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