Ethiopia
Commercial Farm Service Program
Overview:
CNFA implemented the Commercial Farm Service Program (CFSP) (2012-2014), a two-year project funded by USAID’s Innovation Fund for Ethiopian Agriculture (IFEA), adapting its proven Farm Service Center (FSC) model to the Ethiopian context for the first time. By establishing FSCs as “one-stop shops” in their communities, entrepreneurs provided a complete range of inputs, services, information, and output marketing linkages to Ethiopian smallholders. This model continues to support farmers in making the transition from subsistence to commercial production as part of the Feed the Future Farm Service Center Program, launched in 2015.
Program Approach:
Through mentoring and training, the program has provided these locally-owned businesses with uniform branding, technical and business management training, expert agronomic and veterinary consultations, and assistance with inventory management, marketing, and agriculture extension and outreach. In support of the wholesale buying cooperative, CFSP staff worked with the FSC-owners and operators to legally establish and register a joint venture named EGAA Agricultural Input Supply PLC.
- Established six locally owned retail farm supply and service locations (FSCs) with inventories, training, services, and output market linkages;
- Created a wholesale buying cooperative, owned by and dedicated to serving the inventory needs of the FSCs and linking them to national and international suppliers;
- Delivered uniform branding, business skills, technical/advisory capacity, quality standards, and environmental and worker safety procedures across the network;
- Promoted FSC-led farmer outreach activities, including training seminars, demonstration plots, and field days to showcase the impacts of improved inputs and improve farmer production skills.