The purpose of AgroInvest is to provide technical assistance to accelerate and broaden economic recovery in Ukraine and increase the country’s contribution to global food security efforts. AgroInvest will achieve this objective by supporting a stable, market-oriented agricultural policy environment, stimulating access to financial services for small and medium producers (SMPs), and facilitating a more effective market infrastructure for SMPs.
The scope of work identifies three main components, refined into six tasks, as follows:
- Component 1: Support a Stable, Market-Oriented Environment
Task 1-a: Accelerate Market Oriented Reforms
Task 1-b: Strengthen Industry Associations
Task 1-c: Provide Public Education for Land Rights - Component 2: Stimulate Access to Finance
Task 2-a: Sustainable Access to Financial Services for SMPs Provided - Component 3: Facilitate Market Infrastructure for Small and Medium Producers
Task 3-a: Producer Organization Development
Task 3-b: Develop Wholesale Markets and Other Market Infrastructure
AgroInvest is a five-year project, extending to an estimated completion date of January 24, 2016. The scope of this project encompasses the following US Foreign Assistance Framework Program Areas: 4.2 Trade and Investment, 4.5 Agriculture, 4.6 Private Sector Competitiveness, and 4.7 Economic Opportunity.
QUARTERLY HIGHLIGHTS
In the months April, May and June 2011, the project team launched technical implementation activities in project focus areas and continued with technical and administrative start-up activities that included recruiting local staff, project registration, project introduction to local partners, selection of office space, and procurement of office equipment. Key activities and accomplishments during this reporting period include:
- A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was prepared and negotiated with the Ministry of Agricultural Policy and Food. The MoU was signed on May 11, 2011.
- An Agricultural Policy Environment Assessment was undertaken with a main objective of providing an up-to-date and effective policy analysis and reform agenda as well as to identify the most appropriate way to address policy issues with human and budgetary resources available to the Project. A final version incorporating the Mission’s comments was sent to USAID on June 8, 2011.
- A position paper titled, “Potential for Ukraine to Participate in USAID’s Feed the Future (FTF) Initiative” was developed to inform the Office of Economic Growth (OEG) of opportunities and challenges for Ukraine to become a FTF Partner Country. The paper was discussed with Mission OEG staff on June, 29 2011.
- Three technical assessments were conducted: Rapid Assessment of Legal and Institutional Framework for Industry Associations (Component 1), Assessment of Regulatory and Institutional Barriers for Increasing Access to Finance for Small and Medium-Scale Producers (Component 2) and Wholesale and Regional Markets Assessment (Component 3). These reports were submitted to USAID on June 30, 2011.
- An Implementation Agreement between Chemonics International Inc., USAID Mission to Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova and Agrarian Markets Development Institute (AMDI) was signed on April 4, 2011.
- The AgroInvest Grants Manual was approved by USAID.
- AgroInvest finalized its Subcontracts Manual.
- AgroInvest completed its internal Procurement Procedure Guidelines.
- A grants/subcontracts training for AgroInvest staff was completed.
- A pre-award responsibility determination was conducted for potential grant recipient AMDI.
- Key technical and administrative staff were hired.
- The Project was registered with the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade on June 8, 2011.