Farmer-to-Farmer in Colombia’s Orinoquia Region Annual Report FY 2016

The program has three core interdependent objectives: to increase farm productivity, strengthen regional agricultural economies through value-added processing and sustainable innovations, and enhance networks to support small farms and markets for local food systems. To achieve these objectives, the program focuses on providing technical assistance to smallholder farmers through volunteer assignments. During FY 2016, 15 volunteer assignments were completed, resulting in 86 recommendations for host organizations. When combined with recommendations from FY 2015, host organizations have received a total of 143 recommendations, with 64 implemented to date. The program has made significant progress in leveraging volunteer time, with a total of 345 volunteer days recorded in FY 2015 and FY 2016. This is in line with the life-of-project goal of 560 days. Additionally, the program has exceeded its goal of $1,000 in host contributions, with an estimated $7,788 contributed by hosts, including $4,050 in FY 2016. The program has also made progress in developing relationships with host organizations, with 16 organizations participating in volunteer assignments to date. Notably, the host organizations with whom the project has developed the most sustainable relationships are smaller than originally projected, with an average of 22.25 members. This has allowed for more individualized training and has resulted in a multiplier effect, with family members benefiting from the training. One notable example of a F2F volunteer assignment is the agritourism project in the Macarena and Ariari areas of the Meta Department. This project aims to build an industry while protecting farms, which have been affected by the Colombian armed conflict. The project has the potential to promote sustainable agriculture practices and provide economic benefits to local communities. The program has also made efforts to increase volunteer recruitment, particularly targeting women and minority volunteers. Outreach efforts have been directed towards university networks supporting women and minorities in agriculture, and speaking engagements have been scheduled for FY 2017. Overall, the F2F program in Colombia's Orinoquia Region has made significant progress in achieving its objectives and has demonstrated its potential to create a sustainable and equitable local food value chain.