Agricultural Credit Enhancement (ACE) II Program Quarterly Report No. 2

The program builds on the Agricultural Credit Enhancement (ACE-I) program, also funded by USAID, with the fundamental objective of establishing and managing the Agricultural Development Fund (ADF). The ACE-II program aims to establish a sustainable and self-managed ADF, which will provide credit to the agriculture sector in Afghanistan. The ACE-II program has made significant progress in undertaking technical activities during the reporting period from July to September, 2015. Key personnel and program startup team were mobilized and arrived in Afghanistan on June 30th, 2015. The onboarding process of program local staff was seamless, with most staff members recruited from ACE-I, who had valuable experience and familiarity with the project. The recruitment of all local staff members was fully completed by the end of the quarter. The program office and guesthouse were set up and fully functional four weeks after the award of the ACE-II contract. The ACE-II offices are co-located with the ADF, and some new equipment was purchased for both the guesthouse and the office. The Annual Work Plan was drafted and submitted in August 2015, and the final version was approved on September 20th, 2015. The Grants Manual was completed and submitted to USAID for concurrence, providing specific implementation guidance for the Innovation Grants Program. The ACE-II program has achieved several key milestones during the reporting period. These include the approval of the Annual Work Plan, the concurrence of the Activity Monitoring and Evaluation Plan, the contribution of US$7 million to ADF by the Kuwait Fund for Arab Development, the facilitation of the Agriculture Credit Technical Working Group Workshop, and the approval of two loans for a total of US$3 million each for FMFB and ARFC to be utilized for promoting the agriculture sector. The onboarding of program local staff members was also completed during this period. The Agriculture Credit Technical Working Group Workshop was held on September 18th, 2015, with participation from 63 officials and representatives from the Afghan Microfinance Institution, private banks, and associations. The workshop was a significant success for ACE-II, both in terms of the number and level of participants and also the engagement shown by the agricultural credit community to collaborate, identify, and eliminate constraints to agricultural credit. The ACE-II program has made significant progress in establishing and managing the ADF, which will provide credit to the agriculture sector in Afghanistan. The program has achieved several key milestones, including the approval of the Annual Work Plan, the concurrence of the Activity Monitoring and Evaluation Plan, and the facilitation of the Agriculture Credit Technical Working Group Workshop. The program has also made significant progress in onboarding program local staff members and setting up the program office and guesthouse. The ACE-II program is a critical component of the USAID-funded initiatives in Afghanistan, and its success will have a significant impact on the country's agriculture sector. The program's objective of establishing a sustainable and self-managed ADF will provide credit to the agriculture sector, promoting economic growth and development in Afghanistan.