Production_Plus_Sections_Draft_5_18.doc

Production Plus Draft Scope of Work, Instructions, and Evaluation Criteria

SECTION C – SCOPE OF WORK

C.1. Summary Agriculture is central to the Haitian economy, generating nearly 25 percent of GDP and employing more than 60 percent of the population. Although agriculture did not suffer the effects of the January 12, 2010 earthquake as severely or directly as other sectors, it is under increasing pressure to serve as a near-term engine for economic recovery and employment opportunities. The importance of jumpstarting agricultural productivity immediately has been echoed strongly by the Government of Haiti (GOH), the U.S. Government (USG), and throughout the international community.

In line with post-earthquake strategies of the GOH and USG, the objective of Production Plus is to increase agricultural incomes and exports in Haiti’s Northern Corridor. Two specific results will be achieved: 1) an increase in incomes for at least 40,000 rural households and 2) a doubling of export value for cocoa produced by supported farms. This objective and these results will be achieved through a market-based approach that boosts and protects production, strengthens value chains, and builds institutional capacity. Geographically, the project will work in the plains and their associated watersheds in the Northern (Cap Haitien) Corridor. Production Plus supports Feed the Future, the USG Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative.

Production Plus also supports the USAID Forward Initiative and its goal of increasing the number of procurements directly with local organizations. Concurrent to increasing incomes and exports, Production Plus will build the capacity of at least five Haitian organizations so that they are certified to receive USAID funding after two to three years. These organizations will then receive directed awards to implement USAID/Haiti’s agriculture programs in the Northern Corridor. During year three Production Plus will phase out of implementation of most agriculture programs, transitioning activities to these location organizations, and in years four and five its primary purpose will be to assist with coordination and provide support functions to the local organizations.

Haiti’s physical environment is unique, and a history of agriculture development projects in Haiti provides lessons for technical approaches, notably that efforts must consider entire watersheds in order to avert disasters that can destroy agricultural production, particularly in Haiti’s fertile plains. Such an approach will be more likely to provide a path to broad-based, inclusive, and sustainable rural growth.

In line with USG commitments, USAID regulations and initiatives, and technical best practices, Production Plus will adhere to and mainstream a number of project core principles: the project will be country-led, build capacity of Haitian institutions, coordinate with and leverage the work of other donors and stakeholders, be results-oriented, be market-driven, achieve scale through demonstration effects, and consider the gender and environmental implications of its work.

C.2. Objective and Scope The objective of Production Plus is to increase agricultural incomes and exports in Haiti’s Northern Corridor. Two specific results will be achieved: 1) an increase in incomes for at least 40,000 rural households and 2) a doubling of export value for cocoa produced by supported farms. This objective and these results will be achieved through work in four result areas relating to agricultural productivity, reduction of threats to production through watershed management, enhanced market opportunities, and building institutional capacities. This broad approach will provide the comprehensive set of interventions needed to spur pro-poor agricultural development in the region.

Broadly speaking, the project aims to make Haiti’s agricultural sector more competitive in both domestic and export markets by boosting production and strengthening critical value chains. In order to increase agricultural productivity, priority attention will be given to building the productive capacity of targeted fertile plains (identified below). To strengthen value chains, Production Plus will build the capacity of market actors, promoting trust and confidence among them, building market information systems, and establishing roads and other infrastructure necessary for making Haitian agriculture more competitive.

Production Plus also recognizes the natural, social, economic and ecological inter-connectivity between the uplands and lowlands within a watershed—in particular, the reality that Haiti’s degraded hillsides pose a major threat to agricultural productivity (as well as human safety). As such it seeks to integrate productivity of staple and high-value crops in fertile plains with strategic, market-driven land management activities in the hills and mountains. These land management activities will protect investments in the plains from flooding and sedimentation during the rainy season and increase supplies of water for irrigation in the dry season. Stabilizing hillsides will be achieved through a combination of market-driven and public works activities. Market driven activities will include the promotion of high-value tree crops, permaculture, and on-farm measures that harvest rainfall instead of letting it run-off. Public works will include the construction and maintenance of anti-erosion measures necessary for protecting high-potential lands but too large for individuals or producer groups to construct and maintain.

Production Plus supports the USAID Forward Initiative and its goal of increasing the number of procurements directly with local organizations. USAID Forward asserts that development can be more effective when undertaken by local organizations with local understanding of a country’s political, social, and historical context, and that investing in local organizations is part of the development process itself. To support this goal, concurrent to increasing incomes and exports, Production Plus will build the capacity of at least five Haitian organizations so that they are certified to receive USAID funding after two to three years. These organizations will then receive directed awards to implement USAID/Haiti’s agriculture programs in the Northern Corridor. During year three Production Plus will phase out of implementation of most agriculture programs, transitioning activities to these location organizations, and in years four and five its primary purpose will be to assist with coordination and provide support functions to the local organizations. It will retain, however, a few of its agricultural development activities.

To support this process, the primary implementation tool of Production Plus will be Partner Implementer Sub-Awards (PISAs) . These sub-awards will be directed toward Haitian firms and other organizations to the extent possible. Awards will serve the dual purpose of program implementation and preparation for local firms to become certified to receive USAID funding directly. Production Plus will serve as a management unit overseeing sub-awardees. A minimum of 70% of all project funding will be spent through the PISAs during years 1-3, and a minimum of 55% in years 4 and 5.

Capacity building will be a major focus of Production Plus, not just in relation to the goals of USAID Forward but in all activities. At the end of the project, it is anticipated that farmers and producer groups will be using more productive agricultural practices and technologies and applying sustainable business principles to their work; key actors in critical value chains will have formed effective and mutually-beneficial business relationships; and watershed management governing bodies will be working in concert with the Haitian government to establish and implement watershed management plans aimed at increasing and protecting the productivity of the high-potential zones in the river system.

Annex 1 provides a discussion of the background of USAID in sustainable agriculture in Haiti with a particular emphasis upon market-driven production and marketing systems that both increase productivity and protect productive lands. Section C.4. presents USAID’s desired results and proposed intermediate results.

C.2.1. Geographic Focus The northern corridor consists of the Massif du Nord (Northern Massif) and the Plaine du Nord (Northern Plain). The Massif du Nord, an extension of the central mountain range in the Dominican Republic, begins at Haiti's eastern border, north of the Guayamouc River, and extends to the northwest through the northern peninsula. The Massif du Nord ranges in elevation from 600 to 1,100 meters. The Plaine du Nord lies along the northern border with the Dominican Republic, between the Massif du Nord and the North Atlantic Ocean. This lowland area of 2,000 square kilometers is about 150 kilometers long and 30 kilometers wide. There are six watersheds in the northern corridor. Five described below represent the geographic area for Production Plus; the sixth, the Grande Rivière du Nord watershed is an investment area for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

Production Plus will work in two separate geographic areas divided by the Grande Rivière du Nord. To the west, this will include the Zone du Cap Haïtien watershed with 28,184 hectares of low, high and alluvial plains, and 1,195 mapped hectares of extended irrigation and the Limbé watershed with 31,300 hectares are included in the northern corridor intervention area. To the east, this will include Trou du Nord with 28,184 hectares of low, high and alluvial plains, with no mapped hectares of extended irrigation; Marion/Maribaroux with 8,235 hectares of low, high and alluvial plains, with 220 hectares in extended irrigation, terminating in a bay near Fort Liberté; and Jassa with 32,442 hectares of low, high and alluvial plains, and 1,136 hectares in extended irrigation.

Communes (local government units) involved include Acul du Nord, Bas-Limbe, Cap Haitien, Caracol, Ferrier, Fort-Liberté, Limbé, Limonade, Milot, Ouanaminthe, Plaine du Nord, Quartier Morin, Terrier Rouge, and Trou du Nord. Note that in some cases only portions of the listed communes will be in the target watershed.

The Offeror shall determine and describe their phased approach to increasing the productivity and income of the targeted areas. This allows the Offeror to determine with relevant organizations and agencies where they feel the USG investments can have the most impact. Note that Production Plus will not work in the Limbé watershed initially. Currently, the USAID DEED project (see relevant section below) is providing support in that region that is similar to the kind of support Production Plus will provide. DEED is scheduled to end on January 15, 2012, at which point Production Plus will take over responsibility for of its activities in Limbé and the Offeror should budget accordingly. This will require the Production Plus to work closely with DEED to ensure a smooth and effective transition.

To clarify, though the large majority of project activities will take place in the above defined regions, certain specific activities relating to getting goods to markets will not be geographically limited. That is to say, beneficiary organizations (producer groups, agribusinesses, etc.) in the targeted geographic area will be supported to find buyers and markets for their products, and those buyers/markets do not need to be in the Northern Corridor region; in fact, it is the hope that products originating in the Northern Corridor will find markets throughout the country, the region, and beyond.

Additionally, and as described below, work in the production and export of cocoa will extend beyond the corridor.

The map below shows the region described above.

C.3. Background and Approach C.3.1. Earthquake and GOH Response

On January 12, 2010, Haiti experienced its most powerful earthquake in two hundred years. This was the worst humanitarian and economic disaster recorded in the Western Hemisphere, killing more than 230,000 people, injuring many more, and destroying infrastructure, homes, and livelihoods, mostly in the areas in and surrounding Port-au-Prince, the country’s capital and social and economic center.

Although agriculture did not suffer the effects of the earthquake as severely or directly as other sectors, it is under increasing pressure to serve as a near-term engine for economic recovery and employment opportunities. Furthermore, as the source of livelihoods for the majority of Haitians, and with land representing the most productive asset accessible to many, agricultural development will by necessity be central to Haiti’s recovery and growth.

In March, the GOH issued the Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti. Used as a guide by the donor community, the Plan places agriculture as the top focus in regard to the economic rebuilding of Haiti. In May, the GOH came out with a country-owned, results-focused agriculture investment plan: the National Agricultural Investment Plan (NAIP), which was validated by the donor community in June. Investment activities under the Plan are organized around 30 watersheds in the country. The strategic approach has three axes agreed upon by major donors, civil society, and the private sector: 1) development of rural areas/infrastructure, including watershed management, irrigation, and rural infrastructure; 2) production and development of competitive value chains; and 3) the strengthening of research, education, land tenure, and the agricultural services and institutions of the Ministry of Agriculture.

The GOH’s Action Plan summarizes the strategic approach to which this RFP will align:

· Increase local production of staples to ensure food security

· Increase farmer’s income and create jobs in rural areas

· Increase foreign exchange earnings from agriculture

· Reduce post-harvest losses by 50% in priority watersheds

· Improve health and nutrition of the Haitian population, especially the vulnerable

· Reduce vulnerability to natural disasters.

C.3.2. USG Response and Relevant USG Activities The USG has followed the GOH’s lead in re-assessing its approach to supporting the development of Haiti. Its recently-published Post-Earthquake USG Haiti Strategy is based around principles of supporting country ownership and building country capacity, providing assistance that is comprehensive and integrated, coordinating and leveraging investments with other donors and partners, and focusing on sustainability and accountability. It will focus its investments in four core development pillars, the second of which is Food and Economic Security. It seeks concrete and substantial impacts through working in three key geographical corridors: the Port-au-Prince Corridor, the Saint Marc Corridor, and the Northern (Cap Hatien) Corridor, the last of which will be the geographic focus of this project.

Feed the Future (FTF) is a major initiative of the USG, the Goal of which is to “sustainably reduce global poverty and hunger” through inclusive agricultural sector growth and improved nutritional status of women and children. Haiti is one of 20 FTF focus countries worldwide, meaning that it is seen as having substantial potential for agricultural-led growth and that it will be receiving significant resources to help realize this potential. Production Plus is part of USAID/Haiti’s Feed the Future Program, and as such it will be working closely with USAID’s nutrition activities to ensure that increased productivity and incomes are translated into better health and nutrition. More information on the initiative can be found at www.feedthefuture.gov.

USAID Forward is an ambitious reform effort to change the way the Agency does business—with new partnerships, an emphasis on innovation and a relentless focus on results. It gives USAID the opportunity to transform its agency and unleash its full potential to achieve high-impact development. Announced by USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah, USAID Forward is critical to achieving President Obama’s vision of the United States as the global leader in international development. This initiative is an early outcome of the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) led by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, and will help modernize and strengthen USAID so that it can meet the most pressing development challenges and work more efficiently towards its ultimate goal—creating the conditions where its work is no longer needed. USAID Forward is a comprehensive package of reforms in seven key areas, the first of which is implementation and procurement reform. USAID will change its business processes—contracting with and providing grants to more and varied local partners, and creating true partnerships to create the conditions where aid is no longer necessary in the countries where the Agency works. To achieve this, USAID is streamlining its processes, increasing the use of small businesses, building metrics into its implementation agreements to achieve capacity building objectives and using host country systems where it makes sense. Such an approach is supported by current efforts to increase the size of USAID procurement and technical staff.

USAID’s draft Food and Economic Security strategy (Activity Approval Document) includes three Intermediate Results (IRs):

IR 1: Agricultural Productivity Increased

IR 2: Watershed Stability above Selected Plains Improved

IR 3: Agricultural Markets Strengthened

Production Plus will directly contribute directly to each of the above IRs. It will also contribute to an additional result area related to capacity building.

USAID/Haiti has two ongoing projects with agriculture development goals similar to Production Plus but located in other geographical areas: the Watershed Initiative for National Natural Environment Resources (WINNER) and Development for a Sustainable Environment project (DEED). Production Plus can leverage experience and new tools from these projects.

C.3.2.1. Other Donors The main donor working in agriculture in the Northern Corridor is the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), which is planning activities focused in the Grande Riviere du Nord watershed, but in other parts of the Northern Corridor as well. The EU also has plans for agriculture activities in the region. Additionally, a number of international and local NGOs are present throughout the region.

C.3.3. Project Core Principles

In accordance with U.S. Government development commitments, including the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, the U.S. post-earthquake Haiti strategy, and USAID policies, the project is committed to and seeks to mainstream the following principles:

Country-Led: The project will align itself with Government of Haiti priorities as articulated in the Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti and the National Agricultural Investment Plan and work in partnership with the GOH during its implementation.

Building Capacity of Local Institutions: Production Plus will work to increase the effectiveness and self-sufficiency of Haitian institutions, including government, businesses, and community-based organizations, to ensure sustainability after the project ends.

Coordinated: The project will coordinate with and leverage resources of other donors and development projects, the GOH, multilateral organizations, the business community, and civil society.

Increasing Non-Traditional Partnerships: In line with current efforts in USAID procurement reform, USAID/Haiti desires to increase contracts and grants to Haitian and Haitian-American organizations, as well to U.S. small, minority, and women-owned businesses. Through Partner Implementer Sub-Awards, the project will maximize use of local partners in order to leverage expertise and build long-term capacity to receive USAID funding directly. It will also strengthen business and managerial capacity of these local partners as they implement activities.

Results-Oriented: USAID is committed to doing all it can to achieve the desired project outcomes. Project impact will be measured through monitoring and evaluation. Through comprehensive data collection and analysis, the project will track progress, learn and make adjustments to improve outcomes, and publish results.

Market- and Demand-Driven: Sustainability of project investments requires buy-in from stakeholders. As such, the project will ensure that its activities are demand-driven and demonstrably supported by project beneficiaries; one way that beneficiaries can demonstrate support is through contributing their own resources toward project activities. Further, sustainability cannot be achieved without ensuring that activities are linked to viable markets, taking into consideration demand for products, availability of inputs, and the process of getting products to buyers.

Achieving Scale through Demonstration: Drawing upon past agricultural development experience in Haiti, it will not be Production Plus’s task to fill every dangerous ravine or revegetate every public field. Production Plus’s task is to provide viable, compelling, and innovative models and build the capacity of relevant Haitian institutions to extend those models.

Gender Sensitive: USAID has long recognized that increasing investments in women and girls are more likely to improve household living standards, including nutrition outcomes; this understanding has been built into the structure of the Feed the Future Initiative. The project shall integrate gender issues and approaches into its activities as appropriate.

Environmentally Aware: The implementer shall ensure that all project activities are undertaken in accordance with the US Government’s Code of Federal Regulations (22 CFR 216) regarding environmental soundness. The USAID COTR will be responsible for ensuring that the implementing partners prepare an Environmental Mitigation Plan and Report (EMPR) before project implementation as required by the Environmental Threshold Decision/Initial Environmental Examination (ETD/IEE) and submit the EMPR table as part of their annual report. In the case where the activity will be working with sub-grants, the COTR will ensure that an IEE is prepared for each sub-grant.

Offerors will be scored in part based on the degree to which their technical approach embodies these principles.

C.3.4. Target Crops

In line with the USG’s post-earthquake strategy and the Feed the Future Initiative, Production Plus will focus energies on a limited number of value chains to maximize project impact. The implementer will select two or three value chains aimed at local consumption (though this does not exclude the possibility that such crops could be exported). The implementer will select these value chains based on criteria it establishes, with the broad aim of supporting the objective of Production Plus. Specifically, selection criteria will at minimum include the following: productive potential, market demand, impact on income and job creation, impact on local consumption and nutrition, environmental consequences, and gender dynamics. One source of sector analysis that encompasses some (but not all) of these criteria is a recent study described in Annex 2.

The implementer will also work in cocoa, with the vision of doubling export values for supported farmers in five years. This work will not be excluded to the strict definition of the target geographic corridor, but rather can extend to all cocoa production areas in northern Haiti. USAID estimates that there are 12,000 to 13,000 farmers cultivating cocoa in this region. Production Plus will raise export values for at least 7,000 of these, though because of the high income potential of cocoa, the implementer is encouraged to target a higher number.

Note that while work Production Plus will focus its work in the above crops, it may need to work to a lesser degree in other value chains in order to meet the project’s goals. This may occur when working in agro-ecological zones that do not lend themselves to the focus crops, stabilizing target hillsides, or transitioning to new production systems (note this is not an exhaustive list). Such work outside of the target value chains will have to be justified by the implementing partner and agreed to by the COTR.

C.4. Project Objective and Results

In support of the strategies and initiatives discussed above, the objective of Production Plus is to increase agricultural incomes and exports in Haiti’s Northern Corridor. Specifically, it will increase incomes for at least 40,000 thousand rural households and double the export value for cocoa produced by supported farmers. This objective is organized into four results and associated sub-results, which are listed below. USAID recognizes that these results and sub-results are interdependent and can be organized differently. As long as the Offeror responds to the given results and sub-results, they are free to reorganize them in their response. Consideration will be given to how the Offeror demonstrates how synergies will be developed across the results and sub-results. The Offeror is also free to propose additional sub-results if they are seen as necessary for achieving the project’s objective.

Objective: Increased Agricultural Incomes and Exports Result 1: Agricultural Productivity Increased Sub-Result 1.1: Knowledge and Availability of Improved Production Technologies and Systems Increased

Sub-Result 1.2: Extension Strengthened Extension of Agricultural Technologies and Nutrition Information Sub-Result 1.3: Access to Technical Assistance for Production Increased

Sub-Result 1.4: Access to Inputs Increased

Sub-Result 1.5: Capacity of Users to Manage Irrigation Systems Increased

Sub-Result 1.6: Property Security Strengthened

Result 2: Watershed Stability above Selected Plains Improved Sub-Result 2.1: Watershed Governance Bodies Established at the Sub-Watershed Level

Sub-Result 2.2: Critical Slopes Stabilized through Public Works Sub-Result 2.3: Critical Slopes Stabilized through Farmer-Level Investments

Sub-Result 2.4: Crisis Management Capacity Established

Result 3: Agricultural Markets Strengthened Sub-Result 3.1: Improved Transportation Infrastructure

Sub-Result 3.2: Improved Access to Storage and Processing Facilities

Sub-Result 3.3: Increased Access to Financial Products

Sub-Result 3.4: Improved Market Information Systems

Sub-Result 3.5: Plant and Animal Health Systems Established and Implemented Sub-Result 3.6: Relationships in Targeted Value Chains Strengthened Result 4: Critical Capacities Strengthened

Sub-Result 4.1: Local Organizations Certified to Receive Direct USAID Funding

Sub-Result 4.2: Public-Private Partnerships Established

Sub-Result 4.3: Business and Management Capacity of Producer Groups Strengthened

Sub-Result 4.4: Business and Management Capacity of Small and Medium Agricultural Firms Strengthened

Production Plus Suggested Results Framework:

The first three results are free standing and aim to increase productivity, stabilize hillsides, and strengthen markets for Haitian produce. The fourth is cross-cutting and aims broadly to build business and institutional management skills for producer groups and agribusinesses.

Achieving sub-results under Result 1 will increase farmers’ yields, particularly in the plains, through access to improved technologies, technical assistance, and inputs and improving management of irrigation systems.

Achieving Result 2 will simultaneously protect people and crops on the fertile plains while helping farmers on steep hillsides to improve their livelihoods. This will be accomplished through helping watershed stakeholders to come together and collaborate with the government in establishing and implementing watershed management plans, as well as assisting hillside farmers to reduce runoff through investment in productive assets.

Outcomes under Result 3 will enable farmers to move their increased harvests to new and bigger markets. It will also increase demand and value added through processing, bringing higher incomes to farmers, and creating off-farm employment opportunities.

The cross-cutting Result 4 will build business relationships and help local organizations acquire skills necessary to achieve Results 1-3.

The design of Production Plus recognizes that there is a substantial body of knowledge and experience in the development community about Haiti and Haiti’s development experience. For that reason, USAID aims to be clear about the results it envisions and flexible in allowing the Offeror to formulate technical approaches to achieve those results.

Descriptions and illustrative outcome indicators are listed under the relevant results and sub-results. Unless otherwise indicated, listed indicators are not required in the Offeror’s proposal; they serve simply to further illustrate USAID’s desired outcomes and thinking regarding potential interventions. Offerors are asked to select their own indicators (in addition to those required; see Measuring Impact). Rather than constrain the Offeror, these are offered to serve as a catalyst for further critical thinking.

Finally, it is not the intent of Production Plus to use its resources to increase crop yields on every single hectare of irrigated plains, or stabilize every critical hillside or make the majority of upland fields more productive in the targeted watersheds. Ultimately that can only be accomplished through demonstration effects (one farmer, or one community, following the best practices of another) and broad-based investments by the stakeholders. Production Plus will contribute by demonstrating productivity-enhancing technologies, strengthening necessary institutions, building critical skills, improving markets and marketing information systems and strategically using public works and “smart subsidies” to catalyze local investment. In its approach, the Offeror should show how its selection of sites and partners will have the best chance to provide the most viable examples of enterprise/economic based interventions while avoiding the creation of project dependencies.

C.4.0. Objective: Increased Inclusive Agricultural Sector Growth in Haiti’s Northern Corridor

Vision: Quality of life for 40,000 thousand households the Northern Corridor will improve through increased incomes. This will result from an increase in farm production, growth in agribusinesses, a doubling of cocoa exports, and new off-farm employment opportunities.

Required Indicators:

· Expenditures of rural households (proxy for income) as a result of USG assistance, disaggregated by watershed/region and by income bracket (required FTF indicator)

· Value of exports of targeted agricultural commodities as a result of USG assistance (required FTF indicator)

· Number of jobs attributed to FTF implementation disaggregated by sex and sector, agriculture versus non-agriculture (required FTF indicator) C.4.1 Result 1: Agricultural Productivity Increased Vision: Peoples’ livelihoods will improve by enabling farmers to make their own choices from a set of multiple, sustainable and profitable agricultural production options.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Total and average (per farmer and per Ha) increase of crop production (volume and value) as a result of USG assistance, disaggregated by crop and watershed/region

· Increase in yield/cost

C.4.1.1. Sub-Result 1.1: Knowledge and Availability of Improved Production Technologies and Systems Increased

Farmers cultivating land in the fertile plains and in the targeted watersheds face multiple technical obstacles to increasing production. These include challenging topography, climatic fluctuations, fragmented and small holdings, and threats of flooding. In addition, small farmers have little margin for loss and will protect against catastrophic losses before maximizing yields. These difficulties are exacerbated by the fact that Haiti and its various regions are physically unique and lessons from other countries aren’t always applicable.

A broad and creative range of technical solutions have been implemented to varying degrees of success in different parts of the country. One example is the use of permaculture techniques that involve a mix of perennial and annual crops on slopes to increase productivity, maintain crop cover, and reduce erosion and flooding. Unfortunately, various techniques and systems have not been extensively documented. The Offeror will describe how its approach will identify, document, and make available technologies, inputs and systems that address the full range of crop and livestock production challenges faced by farmers in the targeted plains and watersheds. The approaches should strengthen resiliency to natural challenges as well as increase production of crops and livestock. Special recognition will be provided for innovative approaches that turn liabilities, such as slopes and substantial rainfall, into assets.

The Offeror’s discussion should include how it will leverage knowledge and expertise from existing institutions (e.g., centers of applied research in Haiti, NGO’s, etc.), both public and private, and ways for supported institutions (if any) to continue operating following the project’s end.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of techniques/technologies/production systems documented and made publicly available C.4.1.2. Sub-Result 1.2: Strengthened Extension of Agricultural Technologies and Nutrition Information Making more technologies and systems available (Sub-Result 1.1) is only an initial step. The Offeror will describe how it proposes to extend these technologies and systems to farmers through out the targeted areas. The proposal should show how institutions extending the technologies would be sustained following the end of the project.

On the slopes, the models should demonstrate that systems that reduce run-off can also increase productivity and resiliency. On the plains, the models should demonstrate to large landowners with unused arable land that investments in production agriculture can be profitable. It is the expectation that these models will be adopted and adapted by a significant proportion of the population during and after the project. Therefore, in its approach, the Offeror must describe how it will strategically establish demonstrations and communicate the benefits of new technologies and systems to convince and educate farmers on both the slopes and plains of the targeted watersheds. The Offeror is invited to provide the critical percentage of farmers that should be exposed to the extension messages to make a difference over time.

Extension of agricultural techniques and systems also provides an excellent platform for the dissemination of information about proper nutrition. In line with supporting FTF key objectives relating to nutrition, Production Plus will integrate nutrition education with agricultural extension services, focusing on improved nutrition for women and children, particularly pregnant women and children under 2.

Additionally, there is currently an effort beginning by USAID, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the World Bank, and the IDB to rebuild the GOH’s agricultural extension system. The technical approach proposed under this and the next sub-result should discuss how activities would relate to this effort.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of farmers receiving extension messages in regard to new techniques/technologies/production systems

· Number of farmers and others who have applied new technologies or management practices as a result of USG assistance disaggregated by sex (required FTF indicator)

· Number of households receiving extension messages in regard to nutrition C.4.1.3. Sub-Result 1.3: Access to Technical Assistance for Production Increased While achieving Sub-Result 1.2 will introduce farmers to new technologies and systems, getting maximum benefits from those technologies may require specialized technical assistance and advice that apply to their circumstances (e.g., application of inputs, design of anti-erosion systems, improved management of tree crops, post-harvest treatment, etc.) The Offeror shall describe its approach to building the capacity of Haitian institutions, both private and public, to deliver such technical assistance. The proposal should show how these institutions would sustain themselves following the end of the project. Given that these institutions should have both technical and business skills, the Offeror’s approach should show how it will help these institutions build these capacities.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of technical assistance institutions/entities receiving assistance from USG

· Number of farmers receiving technical assistance as a result of USG assistance

C.4.1.4. Sub-Result 1.4: Access to Inputs Increased

Access to improved technologies and technical assistance (the above sub-results) will have a beneficial impact on productivity in and of themselves, but, in some cases, optimal yields will not be attained unless a consistent supply of affordable, appropriate and high quality inputs are available. The Offeror shall present a sustainable, market-driven approach for providing improved seeds, fertilizers and pesticides to farmers or farmer associations. The Offeror shall also provide illustrative agricultural practices that would increase the efficiency of these inputs. While initial subsidies may be utilized as a means to reduce risks to farmers as they gain trust and confidence in inputs, a clear and actionable plan to transition rapidly to a market-driven approach should be presented.

(Currently, input subsidies are a part of the Ministry of Agriculture’s national policy, although the Ministry of Agriculture has indicated that they will seek to phase out subsidies over several years. The Offeror is free to assume that subsidies, as part of national policy, are being phased out during the life of the project.)

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of farmers accessing new inputs (improved seeds/fertilizers/pesticides) as a result of assistance

· Number of farmers correctly utilizing new inputs as a result of assistance

C.4.1.5. Sub-Result 1.5: Capacity of Users to Manage Irrigation Systems Increased Lack of efficient water-management systems is another substantial challenge to increasing agricultural productivity. The Offeror will describe the potential for increased production and value from more efficient irrigation systems in the targeted plains and associated hillsides; identify the main barriers to achieving that potential; and provide an approach for addressing those barriers and increasing productivity.

Given the cost of building and rebuilding irrigation systems, it is anticipated that the project would cover some these initial costs as a way to catalyze future investments. Production Plus’s intent is that irrigation user groups will take a market-driven approach to managing these new or rebuilt systems and assume responsibility for the costs of operation, management and maintenance. The Offeror will show how its approach will ensure that such undertakings are demand-driven, as well as how they strengthen the capacity of users groups to analyze, develop a business plan, implement the plan and pay for operational and recurring costs of irrigation systems. The approach should include a time line for the transfer of financial and managerial responsibility.

Currently, the Ministry of Agriculture has partial responsibility for irrigation infrastructure. Given the Ministry’s lack of resources, the Offeror should provide a plan that would ensure that the lack of resources does not hinder operations and maintenance, and that would work along side and reinforce the capacities of the Ministry where appropriate.

Since the irrigation systems can and likely will be threatened by floods that start upstream in the watershed, the Offeror will provide its approach to mitigating those threats that have been specifically identified as potentially damaging to the planned irrigation investments. The Offeror can discuss the approach in this section and/or under Result 2, which deals with watershed and flood management.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of institutions formed to manage water/irrigation systems

· Number of water/irrigation systems constructed or rebuilt

· Number of institutions supported to manage water/irrigation systems

· Number of supported institutions that have become self-sustaining through collection of user fees or other market-driven approaches

· Number of farmers utilizing new or improved irrigation/water management systems

· Number of hectares under new or improved irrigation/water management systems C.4.1.6. Sub-Result 1.6: Property Security Strengthened

Land tenure is a major challenge in Haiti. National government policies on property rights need to be reformed, strengthened, and enforced, and this needs to be done in a transparent and fair manner. This country-level issue is currently addressed by other donors (such as the IDB) and will be a focus of USAID’s Democracy and Governance Program.

Within the context of these policy and institutional constraints at the national level, Production Plus will seek ways to increase land and crop security in the targeted regions for both land owners and land users. The Offeror shall outline its approach for achieving this. Different models are possible. For example, USAID/Haiti has had success in the past encouraging large absentee land owners in the plains to allow cultivation of their unused land by farmers previously planting on marginalized slopes. Such a relationship can assure landowners a reliable tenant (as opposed to possible squatters) while giving poor farmers access to secure, productive land. This approach also has the advantage of putting previously unproductive land to use while allowing hillsides to regenerate.

When designing such an intervention, there needs to be a clear understanding as to who has rights (both short- and long-term) to the land in question. Land-related interventions are often complicated and they can leave both land owners and land users in vulnerable positions. Proactive efforts may be needed to avoid situations that inadvertently “legitimize” an unfounded claim against a land owner or place land users in a position of powerlessness. Written agreements between land users and owners are one approach to mitigating such risks. In general there are three prevailing forms of land tenancy in Haiti: ownership, lease/sublease, and sharecropping. In view of the challenge of encouraging large landowners in the plains to convert their lands from poorly productive woodlands or pasture to intensified production, the Offeror is asked to show how its approach would increase land and crop security for both absentee landowners and small farmers.

Additionally, under this Sub-Result, Production Plus may be asked to provide technical assistance to the national government to help address broader land tenure issues. This could be related to how to engage local and national government entities to provide the property rights regimes required for farmers to make necessary and long term investments in their land that are prerequisites for sustainably increasing productivity.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of previously insecure farmers now farming on secure land

· Area of previously unused arable land under cultivation

· Increase in household incomes as a result of alternatives to hillside agriculture

C.4.2 Result 2: Watershed Stability above Selected Plains Improved Vision: The watershed’s population, economy, and infrastructure will be less threatened by flooding and degradation through the restoration and maintenance of critical infrastructure and establishment of perennial vegetation in critical areas. Watersheds will see the replenishment of local water tables, the production of high value crops, the changing of hillside farming practices, the shifting of responsibility for the management and monitoring of infrastructure projects to watershed-based bodies, and a gradual shift from donor and national to stakeholder maintenance of infrastructure.

Illustrative Indicators:

· Estimated number of households protected

· Estimated value of crops and livestock protected

· Estimated area of land under cultivation protected

· Percentage change in runoff in target areas C.4.2.1 Sub-Result 2.1 Watershed Governance Bodies Established at the Sub-Watershed Level

Key to increasing economic growth and food security in Haiti will be the role played by watershed stakeholders (both lowland and upland residents) in managing Haiti’s watersheds. As per the Ministry of Agriculture’s vision, their role will be most effective when populations throughout the watershed work together to develop and implement a watershed-wide management plan. However, given the complexity and lack of precedent for a management organization at the level of the entire watershed, it is recognized that establishing a watershed-wide governing body would require a step-wise process led by the GOH. The purpose of this sub-result is to inform that process by supporting the development of sub-watershed management bodies (SWMB) that will work with farmer groups in the fertile plains to identify specific soil erosion control measures that are required to protect “downstream” investments in the plains.

Production Plus, using the principle of subsidiarity, will work with stakeholders of fertile plains and associated sub-watersheds in setting up and/or strengthening representative, democratic, accountable and market-driven sub-watershed governance bodies. These bodies should build upon Haiti’s existing decentralized governments and possibly other existing local organizations. Given that a sub-watershed may cross local government boundaries, the Offeror should describe how its approach would help such governments work together along the boundaries of a sub-watershed.

The Offeror’s proposal will describe how it will help build coalitions to manage sub-watersheds and the transfer of necessary skill sets to stakeholders to ensure improved watershed management that will protect investments in the plains and associated hillsides. It will identify the skills to be strengthened, its training approach (including the use of Haitian training firms), and technical assistance during the life of project. It will also discuss how to ensure post-project SWMB sustainability through market-driven approaches. (This discussion may overlap with that under Result 4.)

Illustrative Indicators:

· Number of SWMBs formed

· Number of SWMBs supported

· Number of SWMBs that have become self-sustaining through collection of user fees or other market-driven approaches as a result of assistance

C.4.2.2 Sub-Result 2.2: Critical Slopes Stabilized through Public Works As noted, the slopes of Haiti’s watersheds are a source of substantial amounts of water that can either be a source of wealth or destruction, depending on how the watersheds are managed. In order to increase infiltration and productive use of rainwater and reduce uncontrolled run-off and flooding, this and the following sub-result will support the establishment of large-scale anti-erosion infrastructure and vegetative cover on critical slopes through public works.

Stabilizing hillsides will require both farm-level investments and larger public works. The public works activities will focus on measures that individual farmers or producer groups would not likely be able to support, either because they lack the means or because they do not control the land. Public works will target large ravines and non-productive slopes that threaten the productivity of the fertile plains and investments made to increase the productivity on these plains such as irrigation systems, rural roads and bridges, direct investments in productive land, etc. A challenge to Production Plus will be to support the public works sub-result without undercutting farmers’ incentives to invest in anti-erosion measures on their own lands. A second challenge will be to set-up systems and mechanisms to pay for public works recurring costs. The Offeror should clearly show how its approach will address both of these challenges.

In order to convey ownership and ensure follow-up, both infrastructural work (e.g., gulley plugs, rock walls, etc.) and reforestation will take place in the context of a management plan developed and implemented by the appropriate SWMB’s and local and regional GOH authorities. The development of the plan will include consultations with the relevant stakeholders in the affected area in order to determine if they perceive a need for such measures and to get their ideas on priority areas to treat. The plans will include provisions for paying recurring costs for management and maintenance. Reforestation activities should include a sustained-yield management plan with clear rules on how the benefits are distributed. Criteria for selection of sites should include a clear commitment from both the SWMB and local populations to assume responsibility for maintaining and managing the infrastructure and reforestation. For large infrastructure projects, cost-benefit analysis should be undertaken to ensure that limited funding is being used as effectively as possible.

This sub-result will aim to establish viable models for stabilizing hillsides. Selecting sites for building infrastructure and reforesting public lands must be done strategically in order to most effectively demonstrate the effects of such treatments (e.g., ravines which pose the greatest threat to productive lands in the fertile plains). The Offeror’s proposals should provide the criteria that it would use to select the sites for both stabilization and reforestation.

In addition to providing high-levels of engineering and technical skills required to achieve this requirement, Production Plus will build the capacity of the SWMB’s and other relevant parties to progressively take on planning and management functions.