J.6_-_IEE.pdf

REQUEST FOR CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION

PROGRAM/ACTIVITY DATA:

Program/Activity Number: ( TBD) Country/Region: East Africa Program/Activity Title: Resilience Learning Project

Foreign Assistance Objective 4: Economic Growth Program Area: 4.5 Agriculture Program Element: 4.5.1 Agricultural Sector Capacity Program Element: 4.5.2 Agricultural Enabling Environment

Funding Begin: FY 2012 Funding End: FY 2018 LOP Amount: $10,000,000

IEE Prepared By: David Kinyua USAID/EA Regional Environmental Procedures and Policies Specialist

Current Date: April 16, 2013

IEE Amendment (Y/N): N If "yes", Filename & date of original IEE

ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION RECOMMENDED: (Place X where applicable) Categorical Exclusion: X Negative Determination:

Positive Determination: Deferral:

ADDITIONAL ELEMENTS: (Place X where applicable)

CONDITIONS PVO/NGO:

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS:

The new USAID/East Africa knowledge management and learning activity, Resilience Learning Project (RLP) is a key component of a larger multi-institutional initiative to build resilience and growth in the drylands of the Horn of Africa. Part of the regional portfolio of Feed the Future, the project will work closely with and encourage buy-ins from USAID/Kenya, USAID/Ethiopia, Food for Peace, and OFDA, as well as other development partners.

The activities described justify Categorical Exclusions, pursuant to 22 CFR §216.2(c)(1) and (2), for which an Initial Environmental Examination, or an Environmental Assessment are not required because the actions do not have an effect on the natural or physical environment.

REQUEST FOR CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION

RESILIENCE LEARNING PROJECT (RLP)

1. Background and Activity Description

The Resilience Learning Project (RLP) is key component of a larger multi-institutional initiative to build resilience and growth in the drylands of the Horn of Africa. It is Part of the regional portfolio of Feed the Future, the project will work closely with and encourage buy-ins from USAID/Kenya, USAID/Ethiopia, Food for Peace, and OFDA, as well as other development partners. The project will support the establishment of joint planning cells (JPC) in the Kenya, Ethiopia, and East Africa Regional missions as well as the Bureaus for Africa, Food Security, Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance, and Policy, Planning and Learning. The strategy will include:

Planning across economic growth and humanitarian programming units, Regional investments to support and enhance country-level impacts, Joint programming with government and development partners to increase scale, effectiveness & impact, and * Applying common programmatic lenses: risk, resilience, governance and growth across all program interventions for increased coherence and impact.

Program Activities:

The Resilience Learning Project will be managed by the USAID/East Africa regional mission. Optional buy-ins for country-specific services will be available to USAID/Kenya and USAID/Ethiopia. Through both core funds and buy-ins, RLP will support bi-lateral programs in Kenya and Ethiopia, as well as regional activities linked to the IGAD platform

The ultimate goal of JPC investments in the drylands of the Horn of Africa is to contribute to country-led programs that foster improved resilience to drought and inclusive economic growth.

Contributing to this goal, the following components of the Resilience Learning Project will facilitate mutual learning and knowledge management to:

1. Facilitate and catalyze widespread adoption of effective models using the Collaboration, Learning, and Adaptation (CLA) approach

2. Facilitate the adoption of resilience-enhancing technologies and innovations

3. Develop and test models for integrating humanitarian and development assistance

4. Strengthen the capacity of regional, national, and local institutions to translate learning into programs and policies, and

5. Address gender issues that are key to achieving growth and resilience across the humanitarian and development assistance continuum.

The program will have several components:

Component 1: Facilitate and Catalyze Widespread Adoption of Effective Models This will include: conducting mapping of who’s doing what where, develop a collaboration plan, and facilitate/catalyze coordination and collaboration;

providing technical assistance (TA) to build capacity in collaborative learning.

Many organizations know about traditional knowledge management that captures and disseminates knowledge but know less about how to create incentives for applying and adopting knowledge that leads to change; Facilitating collaborative networks to learn about effective new technologies, innovations, and implementation models; and promoting learning about adaptive management in light of unpredicted changes and shocks .

Component 2: Increase the Adoption of Resilience-Enhancing Technologies and Innovations RLP will identify, evaluate, synthesize, and learn about how best to collaboratively apply existing and new evidence related to technologies or innovations.

Component 3: Develop and Test Models for Integrating Humanitarian and Development Assistance RLP will bring together organizations with different objectives and incentives to encourage joint efforts. It will assist organizations with various specific objectives along the humanitarian to development continuum to collaborate and coordinate, learn through peer-to-peer and other methods, and to adapt their activities based on evidence-based learning.

Component 4: Strengthen the Capacity of Regional, National, and Local Institutions The Resilience Learning Project will facilitate the adoption of new policies and programs across the region through demand-driven technical assistance to regional institutions, including IGAD Drought Resilience and Sustainability Platform and African Union- InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-

IBAR).

Component 5: Address Gender Issues Key to Resilience and Growth RLP will adopt a regional focus on learning and collaboration in addressing gender issues that can create momentum in reducing disparities between men and women in the ownership and control of resources and opportunities.

2. Justification for Categorical Exclusion Request The activities described justify Categorical Exclusions, pursuant to 22 CFR §216.2(c)(1) and (2), for which an Initial Environmental Examination, or an

Environmental Assessment are not required because the actions do not have an effect on the natural or physical environment.

Specifically, the RLP interventions, as currently planned, fall into the following classes of action:

(a) education, technical assistance and training (216.2(c)(2)(i));

(b) analyses, studies, and workshops (216.2(c)(2)(iii));

(c) document and information transfer (216.2(c)(2)(v)); and

(d) activities that will develop the capability of recipient countries to engage in development planning (216.2(c)(2)(xiv)). As currently planned, no interventions will directly affect the environment.

If during implementation, activities are considered under RLP that are outside the above framework, activities other than those described in the subject categorical exclusions, and that may directly affect the environment (such as construction or rehabilitation of facilities), an IEE or amended Request for a Categorical Exclusion shall be submitted, as appropriate.