USAID Zambia Enterprise Development and Growth Enhanced (EDGE) Activity Quarterly Report

The program aims to increase access to finance for agricultural small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including female-owned enterprises, and enhance the competitiveness of SMEs' products. The program's start date is August 3, 2020, and it is scheduled to end on August 2, 2025. During the first quarter of FY2021, ACDI/VOCA made significant progress toward Year 1 work plan activities and goals. The program's headquarters technical team contributed to start-up activities under Objectives 1 and 2, which focus on increasing access to finance and competitiveness for SMEs. The selection of five focus value chains for Year 1 was prioritized, resulting in six value chains being selected in discussions with USAID. Emphasis was also placed on contracting implementing partners, including Open Capital Advisors, Agova, and Dimagi, with all contracts in place by the end of Q1. The EDGE Director of Access to Finance joined the team in early September and has been providing technical leadership and guidance on Objective 1 efforts to engage with financial institutions. Under Objective 2, the SME Director has been working closely with Agova to identify value chain actors and potential SMEs and develop approaches for soliciting Business Advisors and incentivizing their contributions. The social inclusion team has been busy with the planning and implementation of the Gender, Youth, and Social Inclusion analysis, which is finalizing its report and accompanying action plans. The Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) and Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) began to work in earnest to finalize EDGE's Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan (AMELP) and engage with USAID's Zambia Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Platform (Z-MELP) to plan baseline efforts. EDGE has also rolled out a pilot expression of interest (EOI) process for fast-tracking SME identification and catching up on deliverables using previous lists of SMEs developed by EDGE, existing Agova networks, and findings from EDGE's value chain assessment. The MEL section of this report captures some early collaborative, learning, and adaptation pivots to amplify early results in capturing SMEs and developing private sector partnerships in 2021. The EDGE Director of Access to Finance has been exploring potential areas of collaboration with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) through initial exploratory calls. The social inclusion team's Gender, Youth, and Social Inclusion analysis is finalizing its report and accompanying action plans, which will inform the program's social inclusion strategy. The program's implementation partners, including Open Capital Advisors, Agova, and Dimagi, have been contracted and are working closely with the EDGE team to implement the program's objectives. The EDGE Director of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) and Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting (CLA) is finalizing the program's Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Plan (AMELP) and engaging with USAID's Zambia Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning Platform (Z-MELP) to plan baseline efforts. The EDGE Activity has made significant progress in its first quarter, with a focus on selecting value chains, contracting implementing partners, and developing approaches for soliciting Business Advisors and incentivizing their contributions. The program's social inclusion team has been busy with the planning and implementation of the Gender, Youth, and Social Inclusion analysis, which will inform the program's social inclusion strategy. The EDGE Director of Access to Finance has been exploring potential areas of collaboration with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) through initial exploratory calls.