Incentives Driving Economic Alternatives for the North, East and West (IDEA-NEW) Monthly Report—May 2014

Launched in March 2009, IDEA-NEW's mission is to improve market access, increase processing capacity and catalyze investments into Afghanistan's agricultural sector. The program's activities support agribusinesses at different points of each value chain, with a focus on intensive value chain development that promotes income generation and job creation in poppy-prone areas. IDEA-NEW's program activities are concentrated in the Eastern region, covering Nangarhar, Kunar, Laghman, Kabul, Kapisa, Panjshir and Parwan provinces. The program provides targeted support to input suppliers and food processors that operate in the grape, orchard crop and vegetable value chains. In May 2014, IDEA-NEW reviewed proposals from 17 input suppliers, with two from the Central provinces and four from the East being accepted for matching in-kind grants. The accepted input suppliers include Prosperity Group of Companies, Sayed Khil Nursery Association, Nangarhar Afghan Agriculture Training Center (NAATC), Hamesha Bahar Agriculture Services Company, Mamoor Agriculture Company, and Pol-e-Behsud Agriculture Company. These grantees will receive support for various activities, including demonstrations, training, and infrastructure development, with a focus on improving the quantity and quality of crops. IDEA-NEW also hosted pre-application conferences for input wholesalers and promotional grant applicants in May 2014. The conferences provided information on the program's SMS pilot project and grant eligibility criteria, and allowed participants to engage in question and answer sessions. A total of 26 wholesalers attended the conferences, and 29 input suppliers attended the promotional grant conference in Kabul. In addition to the conferences, IDEA-NEW received proposals from five training providers for pesticide safety, accounting and marketing trainings, and 15 proposals for accounting and marketing trainings. The program's evaluation committee reviewed the proposals and requested that the firms submit their best and final offers by June 9, 2014. Overall, IDEA-NEW's program activities in May 2014 focused on supporting input suppliers and food processors, with a focus on improving market access, increasing processing capacity and catalyzing investments into Afghanistan's agricultural sector. The program's efforts aim to promote income generation and job creation in poppy-prone areas, contributing to the U.S. Government's stabilization and counternarcotics policy goals.