Performance evaluation of smallholder alliance for sorghum in Haiti (SMASH) activity : evaluation report

(BRANA), the Inter-American Development Bank, and United States Agency for International Development, administered by Papyrus S.A. SMASH’s goal was to improve livelihoods for up to 18,000 Haitian subsistence farmers by increasing sorghum yields to replace imported grain in BRANA’s Malta H beverage and strengthen the value chain. The evaluation report assesses whether SMASH achieved intended results and provides guidance for future programs. SMASH interventions to increase production were impeded by persistent effects of the 2014 aphid outbreak, natural disaster, and recurrent drought. SMASH training and extension services did not result in large-scale improvements of farmer sorghum production practices and yields. However, SMASH’s provision of aphid-resistant seed and pre-production financing positively contributed to sorghum production recovery in targeted communities. High logistics costs and low production quality led SMASH to consolidate its smallholder supplier numbers to a few hundred. Most smallholders continued to market their sorghum in local markets where prices rose due to high demand and low supply. SMASH opened a new, formal sector market for bulk sorghum, strengthened existing work on improved seed varieties, and created and sustained a central grain processing center. SMASH’s contributions to improving farmer income varied seasonally and were limited overall. SMASH had not developed or tested a clear sustainability strategy for many of its services at the time of the evaluation.