Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT Feed the Future Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition Activity

FISCAL YEAR 2020: OCTOBER 2019–SEPTEMBER 2020 COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT NUMBER: AID-388-A-15-00005 USAID AOR: CHIEF OF PARTY:

COVER PHOTO The photo highlights the annual performance areas (October 2019 to September 2020) before and during COVID-19 including, improving smallholder farmers’ access to affordable cattle feed, linking small and medium enterprises to financial services, strengthening the capacity of livestock service providers through mobile application, raising nutrition awareness through social media campaigns and encouraging private sector partners to lead social behavioral change campaigns.

DISCLAIMER This report is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of ACDI/VOCA and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 CONTENTS

1. Activity Summary ...... 1 2. Summary of Progress in FY20 ...... 5 2.1. Other higher level results from the Activity ...... 5 2.2. Progress against the Activity indicators ...... 5 3. Adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic ...... 12 3.1. COVID-19 Analysis ...... 12 3.2. Accomplishments ...... 12 3.3. Challenges...... 14 3.4. Lessons learned ...... 14 3.5. Way Forward ...... 15 4. Intermediate Result (IR) 1: Increased Livestock Productivity ...... 16 4.1. Improved fodder and forage demonstration and dissemination ...... 16 4.2. Improved Livestock Practices and Technologies ...... 18 4.3. Collaboration with GOB livestock agencies (DLS and BLRI) ...... 22 5. IR 2: Improved Access of Rural Households to Hygienic, Diverse, and Quality Food ...... 24 5.1. Enhanced preservation of livestock products ...... 25 6. IR 3: Improved Nutrition-Related Behaviors of Rural Households ...... 28 6.1. Improved nutrition awareness and practices ...... 29 7. Private Sector Partnerships ...... 35 7.1 2019-2020 Grants Program ...... 35 7.2. 2020-2021 Grants program ...... 38 8. Gender ...... 38 8.1. Progress on gender integration ...... 38 8.2. Role transformation and expanding opportunity for women in the livestock sector ...... 40 8.3. Women’s entrepreneurship and increasing/diversifying income opportunities ...... 40 8.4. Decision making in livestock producing households ...... 41 8.5. Control over income ...... 42 8.6. Youth engagement ...... 42 8.7. Men’s engagement ...... 43 8.8. Gender-Sensitive SBCC Material Development and Dissemination ...... 43 8.9. International Women’s Day celebration 2020 ...... 43 9. Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning ...... 44 9.1 USAID Data Quality Assessment (DQA) ...... 44

i Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

9.2. Internal DQA ...... 44 9.3. Annual survey ...... 44 9.4. Steps taken to collect data and monitor during COVID-19 pandemic period ...... 44 9.5. Planning to conduct farmers’ training during the COVID-19 pandemic ...... 45 9.6. Document management protocol during COVID-19 pandemic ...... 46 9.7. Review and update the MEL system ...... 47 10. Strengthen activity effectiveness through monitoring and collaborating, learning, and adapting (CLA) ...... 48 11. Environmental compliance ...... 49 12. Communications ...... 50 13. Successes ...... 51 14. Challenges ...... 52 15. Lessons Learned...... 53 16. Year 6 Plan ...... 54 Annex 1: Performance Data Table ...... 55 Annex 2: Case study ...... 77 Empowering Women through Financial Inclusion ...... 79 Annex 3: Annual Media Coverage ...... 80 Annex 4: Grants Summary ...... 82

ii Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 TABLE LIST TABLE 1: ANNUAL OVERALL PERFORMANCE AND PROGRESS AGAINST THE INDICATORS ...... 6 TABLE 2. COMMUNITY AGENTS AND LIVESTOCK SERVICE PROVIDERS WHO RECEIVED TRAINING ...... 18 TABLE 3: SERVICE DELIVERY AND PERFORMANCES OF LSPS (SOURCE: LSP TRACKER AND ANIMAL HEALTH CAMPAIGNS) ...... 20 TABLE 4: WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION IN THE ACTIVITY ...... 39 TABLE 5. TECHNOLOGY UPTAKE BY WOMEN AND MEN PRODUCERS ...... 39 TABLE 6: DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT PROTOCOL DURING THE PANDEMIC PERIOD ...... 46

iii Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 FIGURE LIST FIGURE 1. THE ACTIVITY’S WORKING AREAS ...... 1 FIGURE 2: INDIVIDUALS PARTICIPATING IN THE LIVESTOCK AND NUTRITION ACTIVITY ...... 2 FIGURE 3: HIGHLIGHTS OF THE LIVESTOCK AND NUTRITION ACTIVITY ...... 3 FIGURE 4: FARMERS’ UPTAKE RATE OF IMPROVED LIVESTOCK TECHNOLOGIES IN DIFFERENT FISCAL YEARS ...... 18 FIGURE 5: COMPARISON BETWEEN APP AND CALL CENTER-BASED TELE VETERINARY SERVICES FROM MPOWER ...... 19 FIGURE 6: MILK PRODUCTION IN LITER PER DAY PER COW ...... 21 FIGURE 7: MEAT PRODUCTION IN KG PER CATTLE ...... 21 FIGURE 8. PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS THAT CONSUMED MEAT, MILK, AND DAIRY PRODUCTS AT LEAST ONCE IN A WEEK ...... 24 FIGURE 9: SALES PATTERN OF DAIRY PROCESSORS DURING COVID AND AFTER ENGAGING WITH FOODPANDA ...... 26 FIGURE 10: MINIMUM DIETARY DIVERSITY OF WOMEN IN ACTIVITY IMPLEMENTATION AREA ...... 29 FIGURE 11: HANDWASHING AT SELECTED CRITICAL TIMES TO MAINTAIN HYGIENE PRACTICES ...... 29 FIGURE 12: WOMEN’S PRODUCTIVE DECISION MAKING ACROSS LOA ...... 42 FIGURE 13: WOMEN’S CONTROL OF INCOME ACROSS LOA ...... 42 FIGURE 14: PROCESS MONITORING PROTOCOL FOR THE FARMERS TRAINING ...... 46 FIGURE 16: SNAPSHOT TO APP TO COLLECT GPS COORDINATES ...... 47 FIGURE 16: LOCATION OF FODDER PLOTS USING ITS GPS COORDINATES UTILIZING BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE TOOLS ...... 47

iv Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 ACRONYM LIST

AFBL Akij Food and Beverage Ltd AHHN Animal Health and Household Nutrition AMEL Activity Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning AOR Agreement Officer’s Representative BDDF Bangladesh Dairy Development Forum BDT Bangladeshi Taka BLRI Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute BSCL Bangladesh SME Corporation Ltd. CA Community Agent CLA Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting CMSME Cottage, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises CT Cascade Training DLS Department of Livestock Services DMM Data Management Manual DQA Data Quality Assessment FAO-ECTAD United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases FC Field Coordination FF Field Facilitator FDG Focus Group Discussion FIC Financial Inclusion Center FSP Financial Service Provider FTF Feed the Future FY Fiscal Year GOB Government of Bangladesh Ha Hectare ICT Information, Communication, and Technology IR Intermediate Result LDDP Livestock and Dairy Development Project LEAP Learning, Evaluation, and Analysis Platform LOA Life of the Activity LSD Lumpy Skin Disease LSP Livestock Service Provider kg Kilograms MDDW Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women MEL Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning MIS Management Information System MFI Microfinance Institution MoU Memorandum of Understanding MT Metric Tons ULO Livestock Officer SBC Social and Behavior Change SBCC Social and Behavioral Change Communication SDC Society Development Committee SME Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises

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ToT Training of Trainers USAID United States Agency for International Development

USG United States Government ZOI Zone of Influence ZOR Zone of Resilience

vi Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 1. ACTIVITY SUMMARY The Feed the Future Bangladesh Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition (hereinafter referred to as the Livestock and Nutrition Activity) aims to increase livestock productivity for improved nutrition and income generation among rural households in the Feed the Future (FTF) zone of influence (ZOI) and zone of resilience (ZOR). The six-year (June 2015 to June 2021) Activity, implemented by ACDI/VOCA1 and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has three key components: livestock productivity; access of rural households to hygienic, diverse, and quality food; and nutrition awareness and practices. The Activity engages with the private sector and livestock service provider (LSP) networks2 to make livestock services available in farming communities, increase access to livestock inputs (feed and animal health care, etc.), improve market access for dairy and beef cattle, and enhance access to information. The Activity promotes improved nutrition behaviors among rural households through nutrition education on hygienic, diverse, and quality food. Finally, the Activity collaborates with the Government of Bangladesh’s (GOB) livestock agencies including, the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) and Bangladesh Livestock Research Institution (BLRI), to expand livestock services to farmers. The Activity targets 178,400 cattle-owning (beef and dairy) households ) across the ZOI and ZOR (Figure 1) during the life of the activity (LOA).

Figure 1. The activity’s working areas

1 For more information, please visit https://www.acdivoca.org/. 2 LSP networks include artificial insemination technicians, fodder entrepreneurs, feed and medicine sellers, livestock health workers, and milk collectors. 1

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 2. SUMMARY OF PROGRESS IN FY20 2.1. Other higher level results from the Activity The Activity partnerships and market access efforts have improved farmers access to output markets. About 51percent of the farmers primarily sold milk at local markets, 38percent farmers sold to milkmen, and 32percent farmers sold to neighbors. The milkmen sold 25 percent of their collected milk to formal and semiformal markets. According to annual survey FY20, a total of 10,952 Metric Tons of milk was sold by 22,586 farmers who earned $4.9 million. Consumption of milk, meat and dairy Despite the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Activity products among the households increased successfully achieved key indicators during the fiscal year 2020 (FY20) during the reporting period a 39 percentage such as point increase in households (52 percentage) ▪ with regular meat consumption from baseline yield of cattle (90% of target) and milk commodities (103% of target), (13 percentage), a 40 percentage point ▪ percentage of households with regular consumption of meat (104% increase in households that consume milk of target) and dairy products (91% of target), regularly (69 percentage at FY20 from 29 ▪ the value of annual sales for cattle (90% of target) and milk percentage at baseline), and a 64 percentage commodities (139% of target), point increase in the number of women who ▪ percentage of farmers who received improved services from provide input to income decisions (73 government departments (110% of target), percentage at FY20 from 9 percentage at ▪ farmers who set aside milk from production for household baseline). The percentage of crossbreed cattle consumption (102% of target), has increased to 41 percent from 26 percent at ▪ washing hands at different critical times (93% to 103% of target), baseline. ▪ number of individuals who applied improved technologies and management practices (101% of target), The Activity’s ICT partner has been ▪ number of individuals participating in the Activity (100% of target), improving the efficiency of 522 LSPs and ▪ number of households benefitted (101% of target), and sustainably increasing livestock productivity p through its mobile app. Additionally, 47 LSPs and 1,086 farmers received 1,568 animal health services through the tele- veterinary service app Shurokkha during the pandemic. 2.2. Progress against the Activity indicators The progress of all Activity indicators, including standard and custom indicators with disaggregation and percentages of achievements, are available in the performance data table in Annex 1. Table 1 describes achievements of all of the indicators against target for FY20. Table 1 also defines the indicators that require reasons of variance due to ±10 percent achievement. After Table 1, the reasons for indicator variances are described.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

3.3. Challenges Adopting remote working procedures: During this challenging period, the activity had to stop in-person field operation; however, the activity adopted a remote working protocol to prevent the backsliding of current achievements gained over the past years. As the remote working procedure was a new venture to the Activity staff, it was also difficult to orient and facilitate process among team members to best utilize the virtual platforms considering the knowledge and skillset of different team members. This unexpected situation also interrupted the regular communications with Activity’s stakeholders and market actors. Smallholders unable to benefit from the stimulus packages: The COVID-19 situational analysis revealed that the pandemic has had profound impacts on financial service providers (FSPs). The government’s policy declaring loan repayment holidays until the end of June, meaning borrowers did not have to repay loan installments until that time, significantly impacted the cash flow and liquidity of FSPs. Additionally, travel restrictions also significantly impacted the FSPs’ ability to serve customers as it limited the opportunity for customers to visit branches and prevented loan officers from visiting borrowers. To improve livestock actors’ access to financial products and services to weather the pandemic, the Bangladesh Bank established refinancing schemes for the livestock sector actors. However, accessing these schemes was complicated. The government decided to disburse the stimulus packages though MFIs at an interest rate of 9 percent. This cap conflicts the MFIs existing interest rate of almost 25 percent. Consequently, the MFIs were less interested in accessing the schedules and lending these loans. Commercial banks were more interested in readjusting current loans but not giving out new loans due to the associated risks. As a result, the stimulus packages ultimately are not benefiting the smallholders who are the primary target of the packages. Initial slow growth affected the confidence level of the dairy market actors during the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving dairy farmers with little choice of where to sell their milk: Even after pivoting business models, many of the processors were not able to increase their sales incrementally and were frustrated. The ability of local consumers to buy dairy products regularly was a persistent challenge. The uncertain nature of imposed restrictions under COVID-19 continued to affect business performances. Recession and economic impacts on SMEs were reflected in their expected low survival periods (60 days). In this regard, the Activity response was to facilitate diversified market access responses, targeting both formal and informal markets and large and small dairies to establish more stable supply options for smallholders. The Activity took capacity building initiatives for local processors based on their performance gaps. For example, many processors tried new products, such as cheeses, to utilize the unsold surplus milk and market it. The Activity has also been assessing the inherent risk and risk management perspectives of online business pivoting with the respective private sector partners to sustain gains. 3.4. Lessons learned • Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the Activity focused on improving access for market linkages and building market actor’s ability to respond to this crisis. Therefore, it was required that the Activity put extensive efforts into understanding and designing immediate responses to support enterprises and markets. As the Activity prioritized its market access initiatives to realize immediate results, it slowed down other planned activities, such as capacity building initiatives for farmers and entrepreneurs. However, the learnings from the assessments and immediate responses helped the Activity reflect and plan its interventions around capacity building, focusing more on the sustainability aspects of market linkages for livestock farmers and enterprises. The Activity responded to shifts in the use of ICT platforms by the livestock actors to provide critical livestock services and/or reach more customers. This increased utilization of ICT platforms during this crisis period has prompted the Activity to adapt its access to market and capacity building efforts to integrate more ICT elements. • Pivoting business models was a common immediate response strategy for enterprises, including the diversification of products and changing how products were distributed to consumers. The Activity observed that pivoting the business models, i.e., diversifying or setting up new distribution platforms, did not always directly impact sales. Initially, the enterprises that were selling through the online food delivery platform were experiencing slow sales growth. After investing in promotional activities, the enterprises saw sales accelerate. It was evident that pivoting business models also require promotional and other activities to see changes in sales. 14 Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

3.5. Way Forward Moving forward, the Activity will focus on mitigating the adverse impact of COVID-19 on livelihoods, income, and nutrition outcomes of participating households. To achieve this goal, the Activity will continue to work with livestock market actors, including productivity enhancement input and service providers, financial service providers, ICT firms, social enterprises, cattle traders, and dairy processors to continue its efforts to prevent development backsliding in the livestock sector in its working areas. The Activity will support mPower Social Enterprise Ltd. to work with a for-profit training institute to develop a sustainable, commercial business model to scale up and improve the blended-learning skills development program for 1,000 men and women LSPs. LSPs and CAs will organize campaigns more independently (with little or no Activity support), in collaboration with public and private partnerships, to increase community-level knowledge about animal disease, appropriate preventative measures, treatment services, and advisory services on improved technologies that can further reduce the risk of economic losses. The Activity will ensure that more dairy processors adopt alternative delivery channels, allowing them to recover their financial losses from COVID-19 and to drive a significant amount of sales through this platform. The Activity will work with the delivery platforms to include products from Activity-supported dairy processors, creating a stable alternative delivery channel. Furthermore, the Activity will reinforce critical nutrition, food security, and hygiene messages, aiming to negate the effects of COVID-19 and simultaneously work to embed successful SBC efforts into private sector actor service delivery and institutions, such as religious institutions, for sustainability.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 packages. Going forward the Activity will encourage LSPs and one stop input shop entrepreneurs trained under the activity to become sub agents and linked with local Bank Asia agents so that they can further facilitate specific loan portfolio offered by the banks and their agents to farmers under the stimulus package

4.3. Collaboration with GOB livestock agencies (DLS and BLRI) 4.3.1. Collaboration to ensure availability of livestock services According to the FY20 annual survey data, the percent of households receiving improved services from government departments (DLS and BLRI) increased from 15 percent at the start of the Activity to 33 percent in FY20 (110 percnet of the annual target). With Activity facilitation, BLRI and DLS distributed 623,210 fodder cuttings to 1,370 farmers in the implementation zones during FY20. DLS also provided 56,517 doses of vaccines for cattle during FY20. The main reason of improving government support to the Activity-supported farmers was collaboration of the Activity with DLS and LSPs to ensure service delivery to the farmers. From the very beginning, the Activity facilitated training government staff members by partnering with Borlaug Institute of Texas A&M University. The main objective of the training was to increase the knowledge on fodder and forage management of BLRI scientist with a focus on Agroforestry, saline soil management and selecting saline a drought tolerant forage variety After the training to staff members, the Activity collaborated with them and invited them to facilitate technical training to LSPs. This collaboration between the government livestock officials and LSPs resulted in a mutual benefits for government officials to supplement their efforts through LSPs in hard-to-reach areas as well as LSPs also buy necessary vaccines from the local DLS offices. During the reporting period, the Activity collaborated with DLS and BLRI on various activities, such as AHHN campaigns, and LSP training, where they provided technical and artificial insemination support and vaccines to beneficiaries. In addition, the Activity met with DLS and visited local quarantine stations to identify collaboration opportunities. During FY20, with BLRI support 6,210 farmers (5,305 women) cultivated fodder on 230 hectares of fallow land (190 hectares by women farmers). DLS has established a working group to conduct need assessment of quarantine stations and train a master pool of trainers to build capacity of quarantine station staffs. 4.3.1.1. LSD Outbreak and Activity’s Response

Since the outbreak of lumpy skin disease (LSD) in the reporting • Meeting with 121 CAs and 121 LSPs to period, the Activity, in collaboration with DLS, put its primary disseminate LSD-related messages in the attention to raising awareness among the farmers in the working areas communities on the preventive measures and how they could access the required • Coordination with 21 ULO offices to vaccines. The Activity catalyzed the 121 LSPs to provide information integrate LSD-related awareness messages to farmers on the disease, its prevention measures, and primary during AHHN campaigns treatment during trainings. In coordination with 21 upazila livestock • offices (ULO), the Activity integrated LSD-related awareness message LSD-related awareness created at 90 AHHN during 90 AHHN campaigns. In communities, 121 CAs and 121 LSPs campaigns, where 620 leaflets were delivered messages about spread of the LSD, prevention of LSD, distributed, reaching over 20,000 people necessary precautions after LSD breakouts, and farm biosafety. 4.3.1.2. LSD Rapid Assessment with United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases (FAO-ECTAD) The Activity and FAO-ECTAD jointly conducted a rapid assessment of the impact of LSD at Manirampur Upazila of Jashore District and Sadar Upazila of . The main objectives of rapid assessment were to evaluate the impact and long- term sequelae of LSD infections. Qualitative and semiquantitative data were collected from 45 small dairy farmers who were affected by LSD using focus group discussions (FGDs) and semi-structured interviews in participatory epidemiology. 1. In Jashore District, due to LSD, the morbidity was 50% to 70% and the mortality was 0.4% to 1.8. In Satkhira District, the morbidity was between 19% to 75%, whereas the mortality was as low as 1.3%. Most of the farmers in the visited areas treated their LSD affected animals by local quacks. The treatment cost was between 200 to 2000

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

The Activity reveals from the annual survey that milk consumption has increased to 478 milliliter/household/day in FY20 that was 384 milliliter/household/day in FY19 due to the Activity’s strategy to disseminate messages on importance of drinking milk during COVID-19 pandemic. 5.1. Enhanced preservation of livestock products 5.1.1. Strengthen the capacity of selected milk collectors and dairy processors for their dairy products and market linkages Training dairy processors and milk collectors During the reporting period, the Activity collected social media information of the dairy processors and milk collectors and trained 40 dairy processors (11 women) and 39 milk collectors (5 women) on hygienic standards of milking, handling, processing, and transport of dairy products.. Photo 10: , dairy Support market actors to reduce COVID-19 impact on livestock markets processor from Kolaroa, Satkhira The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted key market actors within the prepared cheese to sell in the local livestock market system, threatening their ability to cope with this and future market after receiving training shocks. According to the COVID-19 analysis, on average, enterprises from the Activity experienced a 42 percent decrease in sales than their pre-COVID-19 operations and mentioned that supply chain disruptions, changes in customers' incomes and willingness to pay, and transport challenges were all severely affecting day-to-day business operations. Supply chain disruptions reduced product availability and increased costs, resulting in a significant reduction in food expenditure by the poor and vulnerable households. To address the challenges the activity took mitigation measures to reduce the effect of pandemic on access to hygienic, diverse, and quality food for participating households. The Activity took several initiative to restore market access and sustain the current achievement and remain focused on strengthening the dairy and beef cattle market system in an adaptive and innovative way. As an immediate response to the pandemic, the Activity generated awareness of the GOB announcement in late March that essential products, such as milk, and dairy and animal feed, would resume business operations. The Activity team reached out to over 480 livestock value chain actors in Satkhira, Jashore, , Faridpur, Rajbari, and Cox’s Bazar, including LSPs, CAs, dairy processors, milk collectors, feed dealers, and fodder entrepreneurs to share the information using phone calls, conference calls and through social media such as Whatsapp and Emo. The Activity continued to monitor markets to learn how market actors reacted to the pandemic and then adapted Activity interventions accordingly. The Activity staff communicated with market actors (including farmers, milk collectors, local dairy processors, dairy companies, and retailers) to understand price and sales volume trends. The Activity also monitored milk collection of the leading dairy processors. Activity’s milk price tracker showed that most farmers sold milk to neighbors at farmgate (69 percent) and consumers visiting at doorsteps (43 percent) during the COVID-19 period, which were mainly to neighbors at farmgate (61 percent), to milk collectors (45 percent) before COVID-19 period. According to FY 20 annual survey, Thirty-four percent of the milk collectors sold milk to the formal milk sector, 50 percent sold to the both formal and informal sectors, and 16 percent sold to the informal sector. The average milk price was $0.48 per liter in May and $0.61 per liter in June across the ZOI and ZOR. Pivoting business models appeared to be a common immediate response strategy for livestock market actors as identified in the COVID-19 situational analysis as well as through regular monitoring. Examples of Activity-supported local processors pivoting their business model guided the design of Activity’s new partnerships and conversations with other market actors in improving rural households’ access to hygienic, diverse, and quality food.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Establish Innovative marketing for live cattle During the reporting period, the Activity explored the use of e-commerce with mPower Social Enterprises Ltd. to link livestock farmers to buyers to ensure farmers and cattle traders had alternative access to cattle markets during this crisis. mPower developed a digital cattle platform called “সুলভ গ쇁র হাট” (translates to “Affordable cattle market”). mPower trained 25 Activity-trained LSPs on the digital platform and the process for registering cattle for sale. A total of 1,156 cattle were registered and posted on the online portal. All of the cattle and respective farmers’ information were checked and approved by mPower's veterinarians before posting on the site. Buyers purchased 81 cattle during Eid, mostly from the same upazila or Photo 12: mPower's online platform for cattle sales neighboring . mPower conducted phone interviews during Eid with buyers and farmers. The buyers revealed their satisfaction with the online sales option, which provided many cattle to choose from locally and facilitated the purchase, enabling them to avoid going to cattle markets and saving some of the travel costs. The farmers were happy with the system as it facilitated sales during COVID-19.Due to gap of the standard operating process between LSPs and end users of the platform sales target was not met as expected however the platform has opened up new income opportunities for LSPs, as they receive commissions for each sale, as well as payments for the registration of cattle on the portal. Going forward Activity partner mPower will restructure the application to continue the platform by involving multiple commercial actors (like- super shop market-Swapno, Pran meat,, local consumers, LSP and farmers), where farmers will upload their cattle through LSP and buyers will purchase from the online platform. Besides, Mpower is working to develop a business model to get return on investment (RoI) of the application including incentive model for LSPs ( who will upload and sell the cattle behalf of farmers)

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 preservation, and sales in Feed the Future zones. The videos were shared with Bangladesh Food Safety Authority, Alcumus, Bangladesh Food Safety Forum, Bangladesh Food & Nutrition Association, and posted widely on ACDI/VOCA’s social and corporate channels. • , Head of Business, ACI Logistics Ltd. (Shwapno) https://twitter.com/acdivoca/status/1269675531068485635 • , Director (Finance & Admin) Luminous Dairy and Agro. Industries Ltd, Jashore: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=606854816597651

Additionally, one of the beneficiaries of the Activity, Taiyab Ali, a livestock farmer, talked about how he learned about the hygiene and safe practices of cattle rearing from the Activity trainings in a video here. Furthermore, the Activity provided food safety awareness messages to over 1,200 local stakeholders, including livestock service providers, milk collectors, dairy processors, community agents, using social network platforms such as WhatsApp, IMO, and Messenger, etc. National Nutrition Week During the National Nutrition Week from 23–29 April, the Activity shared messages with LSPs, dairy processors, and milk collectors on nutritional benefits of milk, other dairy products, and meat, as well as the importance of handwashing through text, IMO, and Messenger, and other platforms. The messages were also posted on mPower’s Shudokkho app to reach more LSPs and their farmers. 6.1.2. Develop and promote SBC materials As the Activity shifted to the use of more digital platforms to build capacity, generate awareness, and disseminate messages, it first collected information on the usage of social media platforms by Activity participants. The Activity found out that 45 percent of LSPs (animal husbandry practitioners, fodder entrepreneurs, milk collectors, milk processors, animal insemination service providers, and feed dealers), and 35 percent of the CAs use smartphones and are connected to social media platforms, such as Facebook, WhatsApp, IMO, and Messenger, etc. The Activity tailored its social behavioral change (SBC) messages to these platforms and disseminated them among the livestock actors, and posted those on mPower’s Shudokkho app. • The Activity shared COVID-19 precautionary messages for LSPs on the Shudokkho app to highlight the safety, hygiene, and social distancing practices that the LSPs need to maintain while providing services and that they need to share with farmers while visiting the farms. Additionally: o The Activity posted warning and awareness messages for cyclone Amphan on the Shudokkho app, reaching a network of over 400 livestock service providers. The Activity staff also sent similar text messages to 1,600 market actors and over 6,000 farmers. The messages were designed to create awareness among the livestock farmers on how to take shelter and protect their livestock during and after the pandemic. o The Activity shared nutrition-related awareness messages with stakeholders through social media and the Shudokkho app on the significant days during the reporting period, such as World Food Safety Day, World Milk Day, and National Nutrition Week. o The Activity also posted LSD messages on the Shudokkho app. 6.1.3. Enable private sectors to embed nutrition messages in their service delivery The Activity engaged with and enabled its private sector partners to disseminate nutrition messages during the period, especially on celebration days. The Activity’s three private sector partners: ACI Logistics Ltd., mPower Social, and Prantojon, integrated nutrition in their messaging and promoted nutrition messages to their customers in the Activity areas. The Activity communicated with Akij Food and Beverage Ltd. (AFBL), one of the largest manufacturers of milk and milk-based products in the country, and facilitated its efforts to carry out the awareness campaign on World Milk Day. AFBL posted a video on their Facebook page to showcase the benefits of consuming milk to build muscle tissues and boost the immune system. Additionally, AFBL displayed awareness posters at six of their processing centers in southwest Bangladesh to reach the 300 farmers who regularly supply it with milk. Activity partner, mPower, published milk and dairy awareness messages on the 32

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 over IMO or WhatsApp during Cyclone Amphan, Food Safety Day, and World Milk Day. Over the LOA, the Activity reached 585,895 indirect participants. 6.1.6. Nutrition Impact Assessment The Activity conducted the nutrition impact assessment in April 2020 to document the nutrition outcomes of the Activity, particularly consumption of milk, dairy products, and meat, and identify additional opportunities and challenges to improving nutrition. The assessment utilized qualitative and quantitative data from 90 households to add context to patterns derived from the Activity’s quantitative data from annual surveys and the 2020 productivity assessment. Some of the key findings from the nutrition impact assessment include: • The average amount of milk production per household per year shows an incredible 58 percent increase from 652 liters in 2017 to 1,032 liters in 2020. When asked what households have done with increased milk productivity, 98.7 percent said they increased their milk consumption, 88.3 percent increased their sales, and 10.4 percent gifted more milk to others. • Regular milk consumption increased significantly from 29 percent at the 2015 baseline to 85.4 percent during the assessment. Of those who reported that their milk consumption had increased since the beginning of the Activity, 100 percent cited the nutritional importance of milk as a reason their household consumed more milk. • Milk set aside for home consumption during the high productivity season was 35 percent higher than in the low productivity season. • Consumption of diversified dairy products, such as yogurt, labang, and rice pudding, increased from 15 percent in the 2015 baseline to 56.2 percent in the nutrition assessment. • Regular meat consumption by Activity households increased significantly from 13 percent in the 2015 baseline survey to 55.1 percent in the nutrition impact assessment. • Since the beginning of the Activity, 79.8 percent of respondents said they increased their food purchasing. • The dietary diversity of women of reproductive age increased from just 38.6 percent of women consuming at least five out of 10 foods in 2015 to 81.1 percent in 2020. The assessment was carried out at an early stage of the onset of the impact of . The Activity successfully increased the consumption of the targeted livestock products among beneficiary households and reached the life of the Activity nutrition indicator goals. Qualitative finds from the nutrition impact assessment suggest that this result is linked to increased livestock productivity. Therefore, greater milk availability at the household level increased understanding of how to process and preserve dairy products and increased awareness, and the associated value of improved nutrition behaviors resulted from SBC activities, like courtyard sessions.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

7.2. 2020-2021 Grants program 7.2.1. Improving the Dairy Supply Chain COVID-19 has significantly affected the milk output market in Bangladesh. Dairy farmers and processors in southwest Bangladesh reported losses of dairy related income by up to 40 percent. Major dairy processors were not able to purchase from farmers consistently due to transport and other restrictions resulting in significant underutilization of their chilling facilities in the activity areas of Keshobpur, Monirampur, Abhaynagar in the Jashore district, Dumuria and Paikgachha in the and Tala in the Satkhira district. Due to lack of market access, farmers reduced feeding their livestock in order to minimize their on-farm expenses. The Activity planned its interventions to incentivize dairy processors to invest in their field level chilling operations and develop a more reliable producer supply base to increase farmer and enterprise resiliency to future shocks. Akij Food and Beverages Ltd.(AFBL): AFBL, one of the leading dairy processors, has over 30 chilling plants (15 in the Activity areas) with a collection capacity of 126,000 liters and processing capacity of 150,000 liters. However, they are currently processing only 45,000 liters, representing 30 percent processing capacity due to their limited capacity and initiatives to link dairy farming communities and milk suppliers. The Activity forged a partnership with AFBL due to their strong presence in southwest Bangladesh, and capitalize the potential for creating market opportunities for dairy farmers while also improving the utilization capacity of their chilling plants. The Activity signed a grant agreement with AFBL in August 2020. The objective of the partnership is to support AFBL in establishing a stable and inclusive supply chain for quality milk by upgrading best practices at the dairy farm, milk collection, and transportation, as well as improving their services from 15 chilling centers in the implementation areas. During the current reporting period, AFBL registered 60 milk collectors as society managers and developed a training course outline based on the initial assessment report. AFBL would provide ToT to their chilling plant staff and registered society managers to develop the capacity of farmers on hygienic milk production, collection and safe cattle rearing. AFBL and the Activity planned to reach 1,500 farmers by March 2021. 7.2.2. Strengthening the LSP Network Due to the uncertainty of COVID-19, remote/distance learning and training through mobile applications have become the preferred training method in Bangladesh. In order to strengthen the LSP network and provide them with the platform to access necessary information and support services, the Activity partnered with mPower to introduce remote learning modules into their mobile app. mPower Social Enterprises Ltd.: The Activity signed a grant agreement with mPower on July 2020 to develop a remote mobile application for capacity building and offer support services to 1,000 LSPs in the Feed the Future region. In a collaboration with a for-profit livestock training institute, mPower will launch a blended-learning skills development program, which will combine classroom training with ongoing app-based training modules. The training modules will be accessed through mPower’s Shudokkho application. To ensure the application's sustainability, the Activity will support developing a commercial business model to promote the use of the blended-learning skills development program and improve ongoing curriculum development for continued LSP training. As part of the partnership, mPower will submit the app-based training curriculum to the Technical Education Board for approval to formalize it and make it available to a broader audience. As of this writing, mPower has developed the application (including modules) with the support of the Livestock Training Institute. Under the grant agreement, mPower is set to accomplish training for over 350 LSPs (Female-14 and male-298) in 20 batches by end of December 2020.. 8. GENDER 8.1. Progress on gender integration Through the Activity, USAID is investing in developing women cattle farmers' capacity to improve livestock productivity and influence nutrition-related behaviors. Over the LOA, the Activity enhanced the capacity of 172,761 farmers, including 152,192 women farmers (88 percent). 38

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

The Activity planned to collect missing GPS coordinates by the end of April 2020 for all the LSPs, markets, and chilling centers in the implementation area. However, due to the coronavirus lockdown, the Activity postponed its plan to collect that data. After returning to a typical office work scenario, the Activity will make another plan to collect missing coordinates.

10. STRENGTHEN ACTIVITY EFFECTIVENESS THROUGH MONITORING AND COLLABORATING, LEARNING, AND ADAPTING (CLA) Assessment of productivity and consumption The Activity conducted a productivity assessment survey to learn from the outcomes of implemented activities and adapt strategies to achieve the goal. The Activity conducted the assessment on livestock productivity and family nutrition to determine the major outcomes produced for the two pathways of the Activity, focusing on gender and youth in the midyear of FY20, the penultimate implementation year. Through this assessment survey, the Activity delineated its strategies to achieve the objectives and intended impacts of the project. To conduct the assessment, the Activity utilized its staff members in all ways, from the design to produce the report and including data collection and analysis processes. The purpose of this assessment was to inform management about progress made in the two pathways of the Activity’s theory of change on productivity and consumption. It helped the Activity to understand the critical areas of major outcomes and adapt strategies to achieve the Activity’s objectives of increased productivity and consumption. The Activity developed a methodology for collecting precise and authentic data and data collection instruments (household questionnaire to interview farmers) for collecting quantitative and qualitative data. The Activity staff was responsible for collecting, maintaining, and ensuring quality data. The MEL members converted collected data using statistical packages of MS Excel and SPSS. The questionnaire survey's total sample size was 422 selected from the Activity area (and planned 422 from the control area). Primarily, the Activity selected a control area to define the counterfactual and present original contribution in changes resulting from the Activity or USG contribution. However, after completing data collection in the Activity area, the data collectors could only collect data from the control area for one day. The Activity stopped in-person data collection from the control area because of the COVID-19 crisis. The Activity utilized KoboToolBox to collect data online. COVID-19 situation analysis The Activity conducted a rapid survey to understand the impact and responses by households and enterprises to mitigate, adapt to and recover from the COVID-19 crisis. This effort involved conducting surveys of 100 households and 90 market actors to capture the impact of COVID- 19 on the different aspects of the food and livestock market systems. This survey analysis was based on generated primary data, as well as the structural and behavioral characteristics of agricultural market systems by surveying agricultural households and enterprises within priority Activity sectors, including animal health, artificial insemination, feed and fodder, milk output markets, and financial service providers. The survey will help inform intervention points that will enable the Activity to best develop the resiliency of households and enterprises to respond to COVID-19. The survey included indicators related to the structural and behavioral characteristics of the livestock market system. Indicators were objective and subjective measures. Subjective measures included self-reported perceptions on the ability to mitigate, adapt to, and recover from the crisis. The research team used the convenience sampling approach, utilizing Activity partners and participant lists, and referrals from other interviewees. The team sought to balance male and female participation across interviewees, though males predominated for several key informant types due to social norms that limit female participation, especially in private sector roles beyond the farm level (e.g., retailers, distributors, manufacturers, and private-sector 48 Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 input/service agents). The gender breakdown of household survey respondents (88% female) roughly represents the household beneficiary breakdown of the Activity. Market actor surveys were semi-structured interviews with open- and closed- ended questions tailored as interviewers deemed appropriate. Survey responses were compiled, and the results are presented via the graphs and charts below, which highlight the quantitative and qualitative analyses of Covid-19 impacts on beneficiary households and market systems. All information and quotations included in this report are from the rapid market surveys. Monitoring the performance of LSPs and CAs The Activity tracked the performance of service providers, including LSPs and CAs, through a preselected sample. The Activity collected information from the LSPs and CAs that illustrated the changes service providers made in the Activity over time and the benefit they provided by delivering services to farmers, which informed the Activity’s approach to sustainable service provision and potential areas of improvement. During the reporting period, the Activity collected information from 76 LSPs and 60 CAs. During the reporting period, the Activity started working with LSPs to update their client service delivery registers. Monitoring farmers’ uptake rate of improved practices (pre-and post-training assessments) Activity field facilitators (FFs) conducted pre-and post-training assessments during the reporting period. They collected data from 401 farmers during pre-training and 387 farmers during post-training (from a total farmer population of 21,441 farmers) following a two-stage cluster design. For this assessment, the confidence level was 95 percent, and the margin of error was 5 percent. The Activity is using the data to assess the immediate results of implemented activities, especially the training and how the knowledge learned by the farmers translated into the uptake of improved technologies and management practices in both livestock management and human nutrition. Milk price tracker Although the COVID-19 situational analysis provided insights into how markets were affected by the pandemic, the Activity continued to monitor markets regularly throughout the reporting period to understand how market actors were reacting to the pandemic and then adapting interventions accordingly. Activity staff communicated with market actors (including farmers, milk collectors, sweet makers/dairy processors, dairy companies, retailers, etc.) to understand the market price and sales volume trends. The Activity also monitored the milk collection status of the leading dairy processors. President and CEO, ACDI/VOCA, Mr. Charles J Hall visits Activity sites The President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ACDI/VOCA, Mr. Charles J Hall, visited Activity sites in Jashore, Khulna, and Cox’s Bazar. Mr. Hall met with livestock farmers supported by the Activity and visited a local dairy shop in Jashore, where the entrepreneurial shop owner trains dairy farmers on hygienic milk preservation. Mr. Hall participated in a conversation with the DLS in Jashore and Activity LSPs hired by the government's Livestock and Dairy Development Project (LDDP). He also met with the Activity partner, BSCL, to learn about their work on improving dairy entrepreneurs’ access to credit and the entrepreneurs who received credit through BSCL’s services. Mr. Hall wrapped up the trip with a visit to the humanitarian camps in Cox’s Bazar. 11. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE The Activity followed up its implementation processes and outputs to comply with the environmental considerations and minimize adverse effects per approved Environmental Mitigation and Monitoring Plan (EMMP) developed in view of best practices, US regulations, requirements of GOB environmental laws, and mandatory requirements of the initial environmental examination. The Activity took following initiatives considering environmental concerns through its implementation. ▪ Training to fodder entrepreneurs and farmers on fodder cultivation: During the trainings to fodder entrepreneurs and farmers, the Activity improved their awareness in sustainable fodder management and promoted measures to minimize impacts on natural ecosystems. Training also promoted fodder integration within existing agricultural systems and the avoidance of protected and high biodiversity areas. The Activity encouraged participants to recycle use fodder wastes by diverting plant wastes into compost, which can be used to improve soil quality and minimize chemical use.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 customers with access to a range of daily essentials, including dairy and meat, at their doorstep. The Activity will work with them to include products from Activity-supported dairy processors, creating a stable alternative delivery channel. Activity trained LSPs getting recruited by DLS: The Activity’s approach of building the capacity of LSPs to influence rapid uptake of new technologies and practices by smallholder farmers worked well, especially making sure that women and men have access to and information on effective technologies and practices. This is evident because the GOB and Department of Livestock services replicated the LSP model under their livestock and dairy development project. Twenty-one (4 women) LSPs trained by the Activity were recruited by the Department of Livestock offices in the Activity areas under LDDP to provide advisory service to livestock farmers. These LSPs are now responsible for providing embedded services, such as farmer selection and registration, vaccination, deworming, on-farm improved technology demonstration, primary animal healthcare service, animal husbandry, and management, and awareness on antimicrobial resistance. ( See https://www.facebook.com/USAID.Bangladesh/photos/a.367830558954/10157456114503955/?type=3&theater.)

Leveraging over $1.25 million in private sector investment: During this reporting period, seven grantees completed their grant activities, including SDC, BSCL, Victor Feeds Ltd., ACI Godrej, Prantojon Agro Enterprise, ACI Logistics Ltd., and mPower Social Enterprises. The Activity leveraged over$1.25 million in private sector investment from this first round of grants. Most of this investment consists of the tailored loan products made available to the livestock sector actors by SDC and BSCL.

Partnerships with universities in both ZOI and ZOR to build the capacities of women LSPs: During the reporting period, the Activity signed MOUs with the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Rajshahi, and Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University. The MOUs enabled the Activity to strengthen the capacity of the universities to conduct trainings for women LSPs to further develop their skills and help them capitalize on local demand for women LSPs. These collaborations created new opportunities for 42 women engaged in the livestock value chain. They could earn more income as livestock service providers, enabling them to contribute more to their households’ income and needs, such as education and a more nutritious diet.

14. CHALLENGES Lack of a conducive policy environment for digital payments in livestock markets: One of the challenges in piloting innovative marketing for live cattle was the transmission risks associated with the vast cash transactions that generally take place in such trading. To facilitate payments and mitigate this risk, digital tools, such as mobile money transfer, are considered to be the main solution; however, there are no supportive policies and regulations in practice to govern these transactions. Additionally, if the local resource persons do not work fairly while communicating and negotiating with the stakeholders, developing a reliable channel would become challenging. Based on the lesson learned on financial transactions during live cattle trade, the Activity is working with large retails like Shwapno, Bank Asia local agents, live cattle traders, farmers and LSPs to find solution for transacting large amount of instant cash through agent banks channel.

Formal bank loans for livestock take a lot of time to get approved: Formal banks are not serving the loan demand for livestock farmers and entrepreneurs even though their agent banking facilities. Agents have faced many delays in formally approving loans due to the lengthy decision-making process within the bank’s headquarters and field offices. Misalignment of bank branches and the bank head office key performance indicators also poses a challenge in facilitating loans to beneficiaries. When it comes to loan application processing, agents still depend significantly on bank branches. There have been several instances where loan applications prepared and submitted by one of the Activity partners, BSCL, to its nearest partner bank branch were not logged in the bank’s loan application processing system for months. Two primary causes of such delays are bank branches prefer to process a few large ticket loan applications. The applications submitted by BSCL are not counted in the minimum number of loan applications individual bank branches are expected to source. Additionally, bank branches are responsible for collecting agent-sourced loans if the agent can’t collect installments. 52 Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Increased communication with government agencies required to reduce time lapse: The Activity identified the most effective platforms for the SBCC materials through a study. As the Activity initiated the process to utilize the platforms to disseminate materials, the government responded slowly to Activity requests, resulting in significant implementation delays. Since the identified platforms could communicate the Activity’s impact at a mass level, going forward, the Activity identified the communication and networking touchpoints that it would work on to reduce the government’s response time.

15. Lessons Learned

• Though the frequency of regular milk consumption, dairy products, and meat has increased, there remains an opportunity to further increase these nutritional behaviors. Most notably, increasing the amount of milk set aside for home consumption requires additional effort, as it is currently below the recommended serving size. There is an opportunity by the Activity and future programming to continue to increase awareness of the importance of diverse foods, with an emphasis on the recommended serving sizes for optimal nutritional value. In addition to promoting improved nutrition behaviors, the qualitative responses illustrated the importance of further increasing milk productivity to support increased milk consumption goals at the household level. Respondents expressed their desire to increase their consumption, but that the necessity to sell milk to meet their income needs was a significant barrier to setting aside more milk for home consumption. Therefore, further increasing livestock productivity and developing the output market so households can receive better prices for their sales would support households in meeting both their income and nutritional needs. • The Activity’s model of livestock support services led to system efficiency. This is evident because ownership of crossbreed cattle population more than doubled for participating farmers, the number of insemination required for successful insemination was reduced, total volumes of milk produced by households, and the contribution of livestock income to household income increased. The LSPs reported a sustainable income from the range of services they provided. • There are negative perceptions of microfinance products due to high-interest rates. However, if the financial product is convenient and meets farmers’ needs, even with high-interest rates, tailored loan products can help attract customers and be commercially viable for MFIs. The Activity’s initiative on innovative livestock loan products, developed and implemented by its MFI partner, attracted considerable interest from the borrowers. Embedded with risk mitigation, financial literacy, and advisory services, loan products were utilized multiple times by the existing and a significant number of new borrowers. The MFI partner expanded loan products significantly, both in terms of the loan ceiling and the number of loans distributed to new areas in the region. • During the reporting period, the Activity planned to support innovative digital tools for live cattle marketing. The Activity worked with Shwapno to pilot an innovative marketing channel to directly source cattle from farmers and ensure a consistent supply of good quality meat at their outlets. LSPs served as local resources and were responsible for communicating with farmers, sharing information with stakeholders, and negotiating with Shwapno. The Activity facilitated the integration of SDC into this model to better manage the LSPs and develop a channel for its beneficiaries to sell their cattle, increasing the chances of securing loans. However, when Shwapno and SDC entered into the agreement for the sale of cattle during the Eid, it did not work out as planned. Initially, SDC's LSPs determined the weight of the cattle from the field and provided to Shwapno. However, there were discrepancies in the weight calculated by LSPs and later by Shwapno officials due to their preferences of weight measuring techniques. As a result, Shwapno and SDC planned to train the LSPs on their preferred weight calculation techniques before facilitating the sales. • Cattle feed companies established a business case by enabling their distribution network actors, such as dealers and retailers, to build the capacity of farmers while creating feed demand at the farmer level. Activity partner ACI Godrej

53 Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Private Ltd.’s performance showed that this is equally applicable for a region like Cox’s Bazar, where the products were introduced for the first time in March 2019. 16. YEAR 6 PLAN During Year 6, the Activity will support mPower Social Enterprise Ltd. to work with a for-profit training institute to develop a sustainable, commercial business model to scale up and improve the blended-learning skills development program for 1,000 men and women LSPs. LSPs and CAs will organize campaigns more independently (with little or no Activity support), in collaboration with public and private partnerships, to increase community-level knowledge about animal disease, appropriate preventative measures, treatment services, and advisory services on improved technologies that can further reduce the risk of economic losses. To ensure that farmers benefit from more sustainable access to livestock inputs and advisory services from LSPs in Year 6, the Activity will support LSPs with inputs shops to set up one-stop service centers which will provide veterinary medicine, vaccines, artificial insemination services, feed and fodder seeds, and livestock farm equipment., The Activity will train and disseminate fodder technologies to 50 new fodder entrepreneurs and 8600 farmers to further expand improved fodder technologies to farmers in year 6. The Activity aims to expand linkages between the large silage processors and 25 silage dealers and retailers. Also, the Activity will ensure that more dairy processors adopt alternative delivery channels, allowing them to recover their financial losses from COVID-19 and to drive a significant amount of sales through this platform. The Activity will work with the delivery platforms to include products from Activity-supported dairy processors, creating a stable alternative delivery channel. SBC activities under IR 3 will be strengthened to support households to again reach the targeted nutrition behaviors. In Year 6, the Activity will reinforce critical nutrition, food security, and hygiene messages, aiming to negate the effects of COVID-19 and simultaneously work to embed successful SBC efforts into private sector actor service delivery and institutions, such as religious institutions, for sustainability.

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 nam Sex: Numb 0 e of fema - er People train le of civil ings) Subt Numb 0 society otal - er 5 Proprie Sex: Numb 0 - tors of Male er USG- Sex: Numb 0 assiste Fem - er d ale private Subt Numb 0 sector otal - er firms 6 Produc Sex: Smal Numb 0 ers Male lhol er der Non- Numb 0 smal er lhod er Sex: Smal Numb 0 Fem lhol er ale der Non- Numb 0 smal er lhod er Subt Smal Numb 0 otal lhol er 7 der Non- Numb 0 smal er lhod er Mea People Sex: Numb 0 - ns of of Male er parti Govern Sex: Numb 0 cipa ment Fem - er nts: ale Servi Subt Numb 0 ces otal - er (filte 4 red People Sex: Numb 0 - by of civil Male er type society Sex: Numb 0 of fema - er servi le ce Subt Numb 0 prov otal - er ided 5 ) Proprie Sex: Numb 0 - tors of Male er USG- Sex: Numb 0 assiste Fem - er d ale private Subt Numb 0 sector otal - er firms 6 Produc Sex: Smal Numb 0 ers Male lhol er der Non- Numb 0 smal er lhod er

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Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

parti cipa nt 1 Y Perc Num During the reporting year, youth farmers had more 8 O enta ber interest in livestock production, especially for beef U ge of fattening (the live cattle value chain), which T of yout resulted in increased participation of youth H- part h Numb farmers in FY20. 5280 7390 3 icip prog er ants ram in parti USG cipa - nts assi Num sted ber prog of ram total s parti Numb desi cipa 48000 er gne nts d to in incr the ease prog acce ram 48,671 ss to 138% pro duct ive eco Perc nom enta ic ge of reso yout Perce 11% 15% urce h ntage s parti who cipa are nts yout h (15- 29)

76 Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 ANNEX 2: CASE STUDY Adaption to Alternative Marketing Approaches for Livestock and Dairy Products The pandemic that unfolded in Bangladesh in March 2020 has affected all lives and sectors. However, small and medium-sized enterprises have been hit the hardest. The weakened linkages, broken supply and distribution channels, lack of finance, and changes in the purchasing power of customers have all been threatening the existence of these businesses. This could have ramifications across multiple sectors including the economy, health and nutrition, and political and social stability. As usual, the pandemic has significantly impacted the livestock sector in Bangladesh. The COVID-19 situation analysis conducted by the Feed the Future Bangladesh Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition Activity revealed that 70 percent of the livestock farmers surveyed witnessed a change in their income from milk sales due to challenges in accessing the dairy market. Livestock-related enterprises, such as dairy processors, also suffered a 42 percent decrease in sales. As local dairy processors were unable to reach their customers due to the lockdown, the activity facilitated alternative online delivery channels for them to continue their dairy processing business and to help minimize economic losses for farmers. Feed the Future Bangladesh Livestock Production for Improved Nutrition is a USAID-funded activity implemented by ACDI/VOCA. The activity works to increase livestock productivity for income and improve nutrition for rural households through the consumption of quality livestock foods. As part of its COVID-19 response plan, the activity undertook a number of program adaptations and focused its immediate efforts on restoring market access for local dairy producers and processors. The activity carried out rapid market monitoring and tracked the performance of local dairy processors to identify business struggles and opportunities. The activity has promoted alternative marketing strategies by linking online food delivery platforms with local dairy processors and help them reach new customer segments while minimizing the negative economic impacts on their businesses. The activity facilitated virtual dialogues between selected dairy processors and Foodpanda, a leading online food delivery platform. This platform allowed the processors to use an alternative channel to reach their customers during the pandemic. The activity initially facilitated dialogues in the district of Satkhira (one of the southern districts under the FTF zone) where there is a higher concentration of dairy processors. Activity staff reached out to interested dairy processors and linked six dairy processors to subscribe to the online platform. Within two months, dairy processors saw an increase in their sales and were recovering losses. Building on the success of the response in Satkhira, the activity continued to replicate this response strategy in three other working districts including Jashore, Khulna and Faridpur. With the adoption of a new online retail channel, dairy processors were able to sell their products, which they would otherwise not have been able to do during the lockdown. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the activity focused on improving access for market linkages as well as building market actors’ ability to respond to this crisis. Therefore, it was required that the activity put extensive efforts in understanding and designing immediate responses to support enterprises and markets. As the activity prioritized its market access initiatives to bring in immediate results, it slowed down other planned activities such as capacity building initiatives for farmers and entrepreneurs. However, the learnings from the assessments and immediate responses helped activity reflect and plan its interventions around capacity-building in the near future, focusing more on the sustainability aspects of market linkages for livestock farmers and enterprises. Another challenge the activity faced initially while facilitating the business model pivots was that only pivoting the business models i.e. diversifying or setting up new distribution platforms does not always have an immediate impact on sales. Initially, the enterprises that were selling through the online food delivery platform were experiencing slow sales growth. However, after investing in promotional activities, the enterprises saw sales accelerate. It was evident that pivoting business models also require promotional and other activities to see changes in sales. Even under the adverse impact of COVID, more than 95 percent of the livestock entrepreneurs surveyed by the activity during the pandemic were confident in their ability to bounce back from their initial losses. The prolific adaptations to new

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 platforms and promotional activities launched by smaller businesses under the pandemic condition were particularly surprising and interesting. The processors witnessed an increase in their sales and were able to recover the economic losses to a great extent. From May to July, the activity linked 44 dairy processors to the online food delivery platform. Based on a recent study by the activity, 18 of these dairy processors delivered orders to 34,892 customers between May and July and sold 196,329 liters of processed milk products for $131,170. As a result of the pivot, local dairy processors were able to support smallholder farmers with regular purchases of their milk. New customers are added to the client base of the dairy processors and product demand has surged for more diversified products such as cheese and yogurt drink. Diversification in clients and products has helped build the capacity of these market actors to practice more resilient marketing strategies. In thinking about how projects can adapt, here is what worked best for the activity: 1. Pivoting to traditional dairy processors’ business models, i.e., diversifying or setting up new delivery platforms. This became part of a creative facilitation process supported by the activity and can be learned as an effective way for small businesses to survive and thrive amid the COVID crisis. 2. Investing in remote capacity building and promotional activities to help local businesses participate effectively in new and innovative ICT based platforms. The activity was able to provide critical data analysis to businesses, including data on performance gaps and loss recovery, to inform which new customer segments to target. 3. Diversifying delivery channels to help businesses remain resilient in many ways. As restrictions begin to lift, sales are not collapsing, and dairy processors are still serving customers both in-person and online. 4. The introduction of a new platform, thus adding a new customer segment for many dairy processors. The dairy processors’ adaptation clearly demonstrates that increasing their client base through new and alternative channels should be a regular response strategy, as it allows them to diversify their revenue streams and mitigate risks. 5. Assessing the inherent risk and risk management perspectives of business pivoting is an essential exercise to conduct under such a crisis with respective private sector partners in order to sustain gains.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

ANNEX 3: ANNUAL MEDIA COVERAGE

Print Media Women LSP training: • Promoting livestock sector through modern technologies stressed; Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS); February 2020; Read here • রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে মবহলা এল এস বি প্রবশক্ষণ কমমসূচীর উয়বাধন; Agrilife; February 2020; Read here

Stakeholder Consultation Workshop: • ‘প্রবিবদ্ন ২৫০ গ্রাম 駁ধ িান করয়ি হয়ি’; coxsbazarnews.com; January 2020; Read here • DLS role for achieving SDGs stressed; The Daily Observer; January 2020; Read here National Food Safety Day: • আগগলঝাড়াে জািীে বনরািদ্ খাদ্য বদ্িস িাবলি; Alokito Shomoy; February 2020; Read here • এবসবিআই/ভভাকার জািীে বনরািদ্ খাদ্য বদ্িস উদ্যািন; Daily Satkhira; February 2020; Read here

Article on Eid cattle markets: • মহামারীকায়ল ভকারিাবন ঈদ্: বিবনয়োগ আিয়ে খামাবররা; bdnews24.com; July 2020; Read here • Eid cattle markets during pandemic: A six-point guideline; The Financial Express; July 2020; Read here Virtual media round table with USAID: • USAID promotes livestock production for improved food security in Bangladesh; The New Nation; August 2020; Read here • Improving food security in Bangladesh: USAID promotes livestock production; The News Today; August 2020; Read here • USAID promotes livestock production in Bangladesh; Daily Asian Age; August 2020; Read here • কয়রানাে গ্রামীণ কমমসংস্থান ও িুবিয়ি ভনবিিাচক প্রভাি িয়ড়য়ে —ইউএসএআইবি; Bonik Barta; August 2020; Read here • Average milk production falls 31pc amid Covid-19: Study; The Business Standard; August 2020; Read here • USAID promotes livestock production for improved food security in Bangladesh; The Bangladesh Today; August 2020; Read here • Milk producers' income rises faster; The Financial Express; August 2020; Read here • USAID promotes livestock production for improved food security in Bangladesh; United News of Bangladesh; August 2020; Read here • USAID promotes livestock production in Bangladesh; Daily Industry; August 2020; Read here • USAID promotes livestock production in Bangladesh; The Daily People’s Time; August 2020; Read here • USAID for minimizing negative economic impacts in livestock sector; Tribune; August 2020; Read here • িুবি চাবহদ্া িূরয়ণ কাজ কয়র যায়ে ইউএসএআইবি; ; August 2020; Read here

Blogposts/Articles: • Where’s the Meat: Ask Women, Youth, and Your Staff for the Answer; USAID Learning Lab; December 2019; Read here • What Does It Take to Improve Nutrition? A Livestock Program’s Experience with Social and Behavior Change in Bangladesh; Agrilinks; February 2020; Read here • Five Market Systems Strategies to Revive Food & Agricultural Systems During COVID-19; Marketlinks; June 2020; Read here

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

• Open for Business: How a Bangladeshi business created a milk market that helps dairy farmers weather the pandemic; USAID Medium; June 2020; Read here • Livestock Service Providers Break Gender Biases in Bangladesh (Feed the Future newsletter- August’20); Feed the Future Newsletter; August 2020; Read here • Adaption to Alternative Marketing Approaches for Livestock and Dairy Products; Agrilinks; September 2020; Read here Webinars: • Stakeholder Community Meeting on Mitigating the Impacts of COVID-19 on Food, Nutrition and Water Security; USAID Bureau for Resilience and Food Security; July 2020; Read here • Safeguarding Progress Towards Improved Nutrition During the COVID-19 Pandemic: USAID Partner Experiences; USAID Advancing Nutrition; August 2020; Read here • Strengthening Farmer Groups’ Business Units during the time of COVID-19; ANDE ESEA/Mercy Corps: Sustainable Agriculture Learning Lab #8 (Webinar); September 2020; Read here Report: • What’s your #DailyDairy moment?; World Milk Day 2020; Report available here • Feed the Future Bangladesh digital agriculture assessment follow-on : an updated review of the agtech landscape for Feed the Future; Report available here Video: • Feed the Future-Cultivating Hope; Feed the Future Week 2020; Video available here • Nutrichamps; Episode one, Episode two Photo contest: • Feed the Future Photo Contest 2020; Winner; Read here • Feed the Future Digital Ag, Resilience, Nutrition & WASH Photo Contest 2020; First place; Read here

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 ANNEX 4: GRANTS SUMMARY

ACI Godrej Agrovet Private Limited

Title of the Business proposal Cattle Feed to New Markets in Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar Name of the Sub-grantee ACI Godrej Agrovet Private Limited Detailed address Contact Person of Sub- , grantee Duration of the agreement From: March 27 2019 To: March 25, 2020 Total Budget

Budget contribution

1. Organizational Profile ACI Godrej Agrovet Private Ltd. was established as a joint-venture company by Godrej Agrovet Ltd., a reputed company belonging to Godrej Group of India and ACI Limited, Dhaka, in 2004 under the 1994 Companies Act. Since then, it has successfully operated throughout the country, developing a reputation for quality poultry, fish, cattle, and shrimp products as well as day old chicks and marketing. ACI Godrej markets feed throughout Bangladesh, with the goal of developing a quality feed distribution network, which will help grow the livestock sector and make farms more profitable.

2. Goal and Objectives (of this grant) The purpose of this grant is to support the launch of new ready feed package sizes and trainings to build farmer and dealer capacity. The funding package includes: - Sell 300 tons of quality feed in new market areas (Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar) through a variety of smaller feed packages. - Enhance the capacity of dealers/retailers to spread trainings to farmers on farm management, business operations, financial literacy, profitability and the cost/benefit and proper use of ready feed. - Conduct promotional activities around ready feed product like feed trials and fairs - Facilitate increased access to animal support services for farmers to maximize animal health and the effects of ready feed use

3. Key features of the proposed idea ACI Godrej is requesting a grant to support expansion costs of ready feed distribution into Jashore (an area with high market potential) and Cox’s Bazaar (a nascent, low-resource, and conflict affected market in the newly added RFA Resilience Focus Area). The availability of ready feed in smaller bags in these two regions will build the region’s livestock market system capacity and address the risks and challenges currently faced by the majority of farmers who reside there. To mitigate the challenges related to farmers being unaware of the benefits of combining ready feed with the timely administration of local animal health support services, this grant will support activities to conduct a more thorough market assessment, focused on Cox’s Bazaar, and develop a market strategy for the new area. Additional grant activities will support cascade training through ACI Godrej Ltd.’s sales network to educate distributors, retailers, and farmers on the benefits of ready feed, farm management, business operations, financial literacy, and profitability, while also facilitating the administration of essential animal health support services, like deworming, to maximize ready feed use.

4. Proposed activities

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

- Sell 300 tons of feed through smaller feed bags in areas of proposed market growth: ACI Godrej will conduct a market assessment and come up with a product marketing strategy for new areas. A staff orientation will be held to orient the team to the objectives, activities and workplan of the grant. The M&E Orientation will familiarize the team with the monitoring and reporting strategies of the project. ACI Godrej will identify and select dealers and retailers in Jashore and Cox’s Bazar to distribute their new packages. - Train traders/dealers/distributors on benefits of ready feed: ACI Godrej will conduct trainings for its selected trader/dealers/distributors on business operations, farm management and feed benefits. Seminars will be organized to build stronger connections between the dealers(traders) and retailers. Dealers will provide hands on training to retailers and retailers will train the farmers through courtyard sessions. - Increase promotional activities to popularize products: ACI Godrej will introduce the feed packages through a launch event. ACI Godrej will develop and distribute promotional materials such as posters, leaflets, short video clip, booklet, festoons etc. to increase the visibility of the products. Animal health companies will collaborate with ACI Godrej’s identified local animal health service providers (LAHSP) to create awareness and conduct animal health fairs about deworming and the benefits of cattle feed. ACI Godrej will organize feed trials of product to promote the new size and ready feed, followed by farmer learning event to share product testimonies from feed trials and award best farmers in terms of knowledge and production.

5. Geographical coverage Jashore and Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

6. Targets - Sell 300 tons of feed in the new market areas of Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar - Conduct TOT and cascade trainings to 40 dealers, 80 retailers, and 2,000 farmers - Conduct 40 feed trials (at least 20 of which take place on female owned/run farms) in Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar - Increase farmer access to beef cattle support services - Increase beef cattle weight gain by 25 percent for feed trial cattle

7. Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies

8. Deliverables - Sold 300 tons of feed in the new market areas of Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar - Developed TOT training and training modules on business operations, farm management, and feed benefits - Conducted TOT and cascaded trainings to 40 dealers, 80 retailers, and 2,000 farmers - Conducted 40 feed trials (at least 20 of which take place on female owned/run farms) in Jashore and Cox’s Bazaar - Increased farmer’s access to beef cattle support services - Increased beef cattle weight gain by 25 percent for feed trial cattle

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

ACI Logistics Ltd Title of the business proposal Connecting Urban and Rural Markets through Dairy Name of the sub-grantee ACI Logistics Ltd Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee

Duration of the agreement From: June 12, 2019 To: March 25, 2020 Total budget

Budget contribution

Organizational Profile Operated by ACI Logistics Limited, Shwapno is the largest retail brand in Bangladesh, touching the lives of over 50,000 households each day, and is on its way to becoming one of the largest companies in the country with a current supermarket share of 47 percent. Today, Shwapno operates 62 outlets, ranging from small convenience stores to large megamalls, across Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet, and Comilla, with a total retail space of 340,000 square feet and a workforce of over 2,500 people. The company’s success is due not only to its exceptional quality, value, convenience, and service but in the development of a truly world-class retail architecture and shopping experience for the first time in Bangladesh. Shwapno recognizes the growing demand for traceable regional products among upper middle-income consumers. For this reason, the Shuddho brand, meaning “pure” in Bengali, was launched to identify regionally produced, hygienic vegetables. An expert consultant was hired to train Shwapno employees on Global Gap Standards, a voluntary food safety certification. In turn, these employees trained 400 farmers from Jashore and Jheinaidah to use these standards across their entire farm and to document the process. Shwapno then entered into contracts with the farmers to procure the vegetables produced through this process and sell them at retail locations.

Goals and Objectives 1.Create a sustainable business model where traceable, authentic regional dairy-based products are marketed and promoted under the Shuddho brand and sold through Shwapno’s Omni channel retail platform including their e-commerce platform. 2. Develop customer awareness about the availability of authentic dairy-based products, originating in Southwest Bangladesh, at three Shwapno outlets in Dhaka. 3. Create opportunities for producers to access targeted customers with their dairy products and as a result increase their revenue

Key features of the proposed idea ACI Logistics is requesting a grant to build on their success with local vegetable sourcing to bring safe, authentic, and traceable dairy items, specifically ghee (clarified butter), yogurt, and laban (fermented milk beverage) procured from local dairy processors. Traceability will be ensured by a monitoring team that will collect and record information for the entire value chain, from milk production to the final in-store product display. These products will be available for purchase initially at three major retail outlets in Dhaka, including Gulshan 1, Dhanmondi 27, and Uttara 3 and, eventually, on Shwapno’s e-commerce platform. These products will be sold under the current Shuddho brand, which represents Shwapno’s commitment to hygienic, traceable, and verified foods, and aims to be part of Bangladesh’s food safety movement. ACI Logistic aim to target suppliers of the dairy-based products in Southwest Bangladesh preferably in areas where the activity has built capacity of dairy farmers and entrepreneurs. In order to engage with a processor, they must meet all Quality Assessment (QA) parameters developed by Shwapno. After inspecting the dairy processing and farm facilities to gauge the current level of production processes, Shwapno will identify areas for improvement through hired experts on livestock, farming practices, and food technology. Upon consultation with experts, trainings on hygienic practices will be provided to actors along various stages

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 of the dairy value chain. An estimated one hundred new farmers will be trained on hygienic standards for milking, handling, transport, and delivery times. Processing workers will receive training on hygienic dairy production and Shwapno employees will learn about milk product handling and contamination avoidance.

Proposed activities The purpose of this grant is to support ACI logistics Limited’s Shwapno brand to bring consumers authentic, traceable, and regional diversified dairy products procured from selected dairy processors in Southwest Bangladesh. By working directly with farmers, producers, and supply chain stakeholders, the Shwapno brand will establish quality standards for these dairy products. Marketing strategies will stress the authenticity and quality of dairy products, especially ghee (clarified butter), laban (fermented milk-based beverage), yogurt, and dairy-based sweets, with a target audience of urban, middle-class consumers. In addition to raising the profile of food safety standards in Bangladesh, ACI Logistics will link rural dairy producers to a large and growing urban market via emerging dairy and milk collecting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region. Shwapno will establish authentic, locally sourced dairy products on a sustainable basis. This will be done through traceability assurances where consumers can trace products down to which farmer produced it. Product procurement executives will continue to work directly with farmers and entrepreneurs to schedule product marketing and discuss pricing. Information will be communicated on the packaging through carefully designed visual merchandising. Customer also perceive that brands from districts such as Satkhira, Jashore and Barishal are authentic, high-quality, and diverse, meaning the branding will have instant recognition when place in retail outlets.

Geographical coverage Southwest Bangladesh, particularly Satkhira District.

Targets • Increase the capacity of at least 100 producers to provide safe, authentic, and traceable dairy items to urban consumers in Dhaka. • Ensure reliability of safe, hygienic products. • Customer awareness of authentic, dairy-based items under the Shuddo brand at Shwapno retail locations. • Create channel for rural producers to market and sell their products to urban consumers

Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 2: Improved access of rural households to hygienic, diverse, and high-quality food to enhance nutrition and health status, especially among women and children IR 3: Improved nutrition-related behaviors of rural households.

Deliverables • Training module for trainers, farmers, and processing workers - selection criteria for farmers and processing workers - checklists and standard operating procedures for Shwapno employees to ensure proper milk product handling and contamination avoidance processes. • Methodology to ensure such reliability for scoping the areas of testing before conducting first inspection, inspector reports of dairy facilities on an ongoing basis • Increase the capacity of at least 100 producers to provide safe, authentic, and traceable dairy items to urban consumers in Dhaka • Monthly report on the retail Shwapno shops’ performance on the selected three products to verify purchases of Shuddo- branded ghee, yoghurt, laban with a sales goal of 4,000 BDT per day, per product, per outlet (84,000 BDT per week).

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Akij Food and Beverage Limited Title of the business proposal Strengthen quality milk production and procurement in FtF Region Name of the sub-grantee Akij Food and Beverage Limited

Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee

Duration of the agreement From: 17 August 2020 To: 15 March 2021 Total budget Budget contribution

Organizational Profile Akij Food & Beverage Ltd. (AFBL) is one of the leading food and beverage manufacturers in the country with a wide range of products. It is a sister concern of Akij Group. AFBL started its journey in 2006. It manufactures products for both local & international market maintaining high standards. Currently, AFBL is worth more than US$70 million. AFBL intervened in the dairy market of Bangladesh with its milk brand ‘Farm Fresh’. By collecting milk directly from famers, ‘Farm Fresh’ ensures quality through microbiological and adulteration tests carried out in AFBL’s own laboratory. AFBL maintains a cool chain throughout the supply systems. ‘Farm Fresh’ consists of multiple product lines: UHT milk, pasteurized milk, Ghee, Butter, Yoghurt (Sweet & Sour), Mango & Chocolate Milk etc. which are the brand name of Farm Fresh. AFBL strictly controls the quality of milk at every step of processing & distribution, from the farm to the market, to ensure the best quality of milk. AFBL has 30 chilling/processing centers in the country, including 15 in Southwest Bangladesh.

Goals and Objectives

Objective-1: AFBL chilling plant staffs and selected milk collectors (dairy society managers) will train farmers on improved dairy animal husbandry and farm management practices, thereby enhancing adoption of biosecurity and hygiene practices.

Objective-2: AFBL will create a network of trusted milk suppliers around the 15 chilling plants in the activity area

Objective-3: Pilot milk quality testing solutions at the 15 selected chilling plants.

Objective-4: Develop and roll out innovative marketing campaigns to rural and urban consumers to increase sales and sourcing from farmers.

Key features of the proposed idea

AFBL will establish a stable and inclusive supply chain for quality milk by upgrading best practices at the dairy farm, milk collection and transportation level as well as improving services from their 15 chilling facilities in the activity areas. AFBL will

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 do this through five discrete but interconnected activities. The key activities includes a) improving the capacity of AFBL’s chilling plant staffs, society managers and dairy farmers to upgrade production and processing; b) identify and develop the capacity of a robust network of trusted milk collectors and dairy farmer groups and facilitate relationships between them c) develop milk aggregation points, milk collection and delivery, monitoring milk quality and payment terms guidelines under COVID-19; d) establish additional milk quality testing facilities in the chilling plants to ensure AFBL is purchasing high quality milk; and e) develop and roll out innovative marketing campaigns to dairy consumers in large cities to increase sales and sourcing from farmers.

Proposed activities

Activity 1. AFBL chilling plant staffs and selected milk collectors (dairy society managers) will train farmers on improved dairy animal husbandry and farm management practices, thereby enhancing adoption of biosecurity and hygiene practices. Topics will include best practices of bio-security aspects, cattle shed management, feeding management and hygienic milk production, collection and transportation.

Sub-activity#1: AFBL will register and develop a database of at least 1,500 existing and new dairy farmers (at least 25 percent women) who will sell milk to the chilling plants.

Sub-activity #2: AFBL will work with a consultant to assess the training needs and develop training modules for farmers, milk collectors (Dairy Society Managers) and chilling plant operation staff. The modules will be used for the Training of Trainers (ToT) for chilling plant staffs and society managers.

Sub-activity #3: Based on the training modules, AFBL will develop training and promotional materials such as pictorial flipcharts on improve farm management, biosecurity and hygiene practices. Trained chilling plants staff and society managers will use these flipcharts to cascade the trainings to 1,500 selected dairy farmers in sub-activity 5.

Sub-activity #4: AFBL will provide two training of trainers (ToT) sessions to 100 selected chilling plant staffs and milk collectors (Society managers): • ToT 1: On improved farm management practices including biosecurity and hygiene standards and practices. • ToT 2: Set up milk aggregation points, milk collection and delivery guidelines under COVID-19, monitoring milk quality and transportation to chilling plants, payment terms etc.

Sub-activity #5: Trained AFBL Chilling plant staff and Society Managers will conduct trainings to 1,500 dairy farmers to develop their capacity on topics covered in the two ToTs mentioned in sub-activity #4 above. ACTIVITY 2. Under this activity, AFBL will create a network of trusted milk suppliers around the 15 chilling plants in the activity area. This will be accomplished by upgrading selected milk collectors to dairy society managers offering performance bonus on quality milk collection and connecting them to the dairy groups. The society managers will build the capacity of the dairy groups to meet AFBL’s milk quality and production standards, benefitting both dairy farmers and increasing AFBL’s ability to source. Sub-activity #1: AFBL will identify and register at least 60 potential milk collectors as society mangers who are trusted milk suppliers in the activity area.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Sub-activity #2 After completion of the ToT training for Society managers and chilling plant staff, AFBL will facilitate terms and conditions for the chilling plant staff, society managers and farmers to operate. The established terms and conditions will clarify the milk price for farmers, incentives for the society managers and monitoring and supervision role for the chilling plant staffs.

ACTIVITY 3. Pilot milk quality testing solutions at the 15 selected chilling plants.

Sub-activity #1 To ensure collection of best quality milk for consumers, AFBL will establish a robust milk quality testing mechanism when purchasing from farmers and suppliers. To tackle recent milk adulteration issues in the pasteurize milk market, AFBL will establish quality checking of milk samples at the 15 chilling plants. 200 antibiotics testing kits and 100 pesticide testing kits will be provided to selected chilling plants to detect presence of antibiotics and pesticide in milk. A somatic cell counter will be placed to test bacterial counts from milk samples on a rotational basis to ascertain milk quality parameters received in the chilling plants.

ACTIVITY 4. Develop and roll out innovative marketing campaigns to rural and urban consumers to increase sales and sourcing from farmers.

Sub activity #1: AFBL will strengthen its outreach to dairy customers in large cities using social media platform, i.e. its Facebook page, to run a month-long campaign to rebuild consumer trust in the quality and sourcing of milk. With interactive materials and targeted boosts, the campaign aims to reach around 25,000 people a day. To rebuild customer trust, the campaign will use and post videos showcasing how AFBL collects milk, demonstrating how they ensure that quality is retained through the collection process, and will engage social media followers with testimonial marketing and other promotional activities to demonstrate their high quality milk collection from the chilling centers in Southwest Bangladesh and their quality products. In addition to the online campaign, AFBL will use offline materials such as leaflets and danglers at its physical touch points i.e. milk sales centers, chilling centers, to raise awareness among consumers visiting these locations. The combination of online and offline promotions will help AFBL reach a wider consumer network and influence their consumption patterns of milk and dairy products.

Geographical coverage

Keshobpur, Monirampur, Abhaynagar in the Jashore district, Dumuria and Paikgachha in the Khulna district and Tala in the Satkhira district

Targets • Registered and provide training to 1500 dairy farmers on improved dairy animal husbandry and farm management practices • 200 antibiotic testing kit and 100 pesticide testing kit and a somatic cell counter implementation • Establish 60 milk collectors as society manager and provide training to 40 chilling plant staff • Reach 25000 daily consumer through social media campaign

Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 2: Improved Access of Rural Households to Hygienic, Diverse, and Quality Food.

Deliverables

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

•60 milk collectors identified and registered and submitted for approval. •Training needs assessment and training modules submitted for approval. •Seven Training of Trainers for 40 chilling plant staff and 60 society managers completed. •Seven trainings to 60 society managers and 40 chilling plant staff completed. •Registered and developed a database of 1,500 dairy farmers/clients and submitted for approval. •Training and promotional materials developed and submitted for approval. •Training to initial 1,000 dairy farmers completed. •200 antibiotics testing kits, 100 pesticide testing kits and a somatic cell counter placed in the selected chilling centers. •35 trainings to 500 dairy farmers completed. •Reach 25,000 daily through Social media campaign focused on rebuilding consumer trust and the promotion of milk and dairy product consumption. •Final report on completed grant activities and impact. •Overall milk collection from the selected chilling plants increased by 20 percent.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 mPower Social Enterprises Ltd.: Sustainable ICT Application Based LSP Capacity Enhancement Title of the business proposal Sustainable ICT Application Based LSP Capacity Enhancement Name of the sub-grantee mPower Social Enterprises Ltd.

Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee

Duration of the agreement From: July 22, 2020 To: March 18, 2021 Total budget Budget contribution

Organizational Profile mPower develops market-based ICT-driven solutions to pressing development challenges. mPower began its operations as a social business in Bangladesh in 2010 with headquarters in Dhaka. lt now has over 100 employees and four field offices around the country. Over the past nine years, mPower has developed numerous ICT solutions for demand-driven agriculture extension services and other agricultural ICT needs in Bangladesh, livestock being a primary domain. One of the core strategies of mPower is to develop solutions that are sustainable and profitable based on revenue from market actors. While many of mPower’s solutions are seed-funded by donors, due to the need for start-up funding to develop, pilot, and show proof of concept, they are eventually rolled into mPower’s commercial offerings. ln the area of ICT solutions for the livestock sector, mPower is one of the pioneers in Bangladesh having developed multiple livestock solutions for farmers, LSPs such as artificial insemination (Al) technicians, and other relevant market actors. mPower hasalso provided service to livestock input companies and organizations in the form of an Al performance tracking system for Lal Teer Livestock Ltd., a dairy farm management system forNahar Dairy and Milk Vita, a nationwide animal health surveillance system for the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Additionally, products include digital livestock monitoring and service delivery for the Rural Development Academy (RDA) and cattle breedidentification and digitallivestock registry for DLS, Dutch Blue Gold Program, and others. mPower is alsoworking on commercial business-to consumer (B2C) televeterinary service delivery business for smallholder farmers titled SHUROKKHA. mPower’s solutions have so far been used by around 20,000 farmers and 100-plus LSPs across the country, mostly concentrated in the southern zone.

Goals and Objectives

Objective-1: Develop a training program, in collaboration with experts like veterinarians and a for-profit livestock training institute, that will help LSPs gain necessary hard and soft skills through one-day, interactive classroom sessions that will serve as a precursor to continued online-training courses.

Objective-2: Make the skill development program a part of the SHUDOKKHO1 mobile app (through learning modules) so that it becomes a singular source for learning content for LSPs, as well as a critical professional management tool.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Objective-3: Test and validate the training program through a for-profit livestock training institute, in order to integrate it into a commercial and sustainable model for providing LSP development training.

Key features of the proposed idea The blended-learning skills development program will consist of two parts, an initial one-day, interactive classroom session (either virtual or in-person) to kick-off training and educate participants on the use of SHUDOKKHO app, and a secondary component comprised of continued online training modules made available to participants through the SHUDOKKHO app. The modules will be made more engaging through interactive content and gamification techniques (e.g. videos, quizzes, progress trackers, certificates, etc.). mPower will provide assistance to LSPs in downloading the app, guiding them through its basic usage, and will encourage them to participate in the initial classroom trainings.

Proposed activities

Activity 1. Develop the curriculum for a blended-learning skills development program, in collaboration with animal husbandry and veterinary experts and a for-profit livestock training institute, that will help LSPs gain necessary hard and soft skills. The blended-learning skills development program will consist of two parts, an initial one-day, interactive classroom session (either virtual or in-person) to kick-off training and educate participants on the use of the SHUDOKKHO app, and a secondary component comprised of continued online training modules made available to participants through the SHUDOKKHO app.

Activity 2. Make the online training portion of the blended-learning skills development program available through the SHUDOKKHO mobile app (through learning modules), creating a singular source for learning content for LSPs, as well as a critical service delivery management tool. Garner interest in the blended-learning skills development program through promotional activities.

Sub-activity#1: Create the back-end learning modules (i.e. content) for the SHUDOKKHO app to supplement the initial in-classroom/virtual training. The modules will be made more engaging through interactive content and gamification techniques (e.g. videos, quizzes, progress trackers, certificates, etc.).

Sub-activity#2: Design and develop a web-based learning management system (LMS), through which mPower will manage the whole IT platform for the SHUDOKKHO app and learning modules. The LMS shall enable the trained LSPs to actively participate in the learning process and continuously upgrade their knowledge base and expand their peer networks.

Sub-activity#3: Promote blended-learning skills development program among trained LSPs through promotion via the learning management system, approaching LSPs through various channels and through the use of promotional materials as needed. mPower will provide assistance to LSPs in downloading the app, guiding them through its basic usage, and will encourage them to participate in the initial classroom trainings.

Activity 3. Deliver initial classroom trainings (in-person or virtually) of the blended-learning skills development program, in partnership with a for-profit livestock training institute, and subsequently encourage and track continued usage of the virtual training modules on the SHUDOKKHO app.

Sub-activity #1:

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Conduct initial classroom training sessions for the first round of LSPs in the project’s working locations through the private training institute, using the newly developed blended-learning skills development program. Trainings will encourage continued learning via virtual training modules, and feedback from LSPs will be collected to modify LSP classroom sessions on an on- going basis.

Sub-activity#2: Complete the initial classroom training sessions with the for-profit training institute, for the entire sample of LSPs. Encourage continued learning via virtual training modules and collect LSP feedback and make ongoing improvements to the initial classroom training curriculum and virtual modules.

Sub-activity #3: Track long-term use of the virtual training modules and monitor and report on performance and progress of trained LSPs. Update training program based on LSP feedback in conjunction with back-end mobile application data on the module utilization and performance of LSPs.

Activity 4. Develop a sustainable, commercial business model, in collaboration with the for-profit training institute, to scale up and improve the blended-learning skills development program for the on-going capacity building of LSPs.

Sub-activity #1: The for-profit training institute along with mPower will create a draft business model to promote and expand LSP use, adoption and purchase of the blended-learning skills development program to support ongoing improvements to the curriculum and further grow the program.

Sub-activity #2: Finalize business model, incorporating edits and recommendations from the LPIN Technical team. Perform final modifications and improvements to the blended-learning skills development curriculum. Once finalized, the training institute in collaboration with mPower, will submit the proposed blended-learning skills development curriculum to the Technical Education Board for approval.

Geographical coverage

Khulna, Satkhira, Jashore, Jhenaidah, Faridpur, Rajbari, Barishal, and Cox’s Bazar and FtF areas

Targets • 1000 LSP will receive classroom training • eLearning mobile application needs to be developed and integrated into the 'Shudokkho' mobile application • Educate participants on use of 'Shudokkho' application • Developed business model for scaling-up blended-learning and institutionalization the module and application with support of any institute.

Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies.

Deliverables

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

• In-classroom training schedule and course curriculum are created (in collaboration with training institute) • Online module curriculum created • In classroom training curriculum available for demonstration. • Content and course design of online training modules are created and uploaded to SHUDOKKHO app • Design and development of web-based learning management system (LMS) • First round of trainings of LSPs through the initial in-person (or virtual, if needed due to COVID) classroom sessions • Feedback from first round of LSP classroom trainings compiled into a report • Upgrade training program (classroom sessions and virtual modules) based on initial user (LSP) feedback • Continue in-classroom training sessions • Develop a draft business model, including an updated course curriculum, for scaling-up the blended-learning skills development program for long-term use at for-profit training institute • Completion of all in-classroom training sessions (revised/improved as needed, along the way) • Continuous feedback provided from LSPs on the quality and impact of training sessions and learning modules, paired with insight on LSP utilization of modules from back-end mobile app data • At least 50% of all LSPs who completed their initial classroom training by January 14, 2021, will have completed the first virtual training module in the SHUDOKKHO app • Final report on completed grant activities and impact • Finalize the business model for the commercially viable, blended-learning skills development program for LSPs and submit the finalized curriculum to the Technical Education Board • At least 50% of all LSPs who completed their initial classroom training by February 15, 2021, will have completed the first virtual training module in the SHUDOKKHO app

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 mPower Social Enterprises Ltd.: Technology-Based LSP Engagement Title of the business proposal Technology-Based LSP Engagement Name of the sub-grantee mPower Social Enterprises Ltd.

Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee

Duration of the agreement From: April 16, 2019 To: March 25, 2020 Total budget Budget contribution

Organizational Profile mPower develops market-based ICT-driven solutions to pressing development challenges. mPower began its operations as a social business in Bangladesh in 2010 with headquarters in Dhaka. lt now has over 100 employees and four field offices around the country. Over the past nine years, mPower has developed numerous ICT solutions for demand-driven agriculture extension services and other agricultural ICT needs in Bangladesh, livestock being a primary domain. One of the core strategies of mPower is to develop solutions that are sustainable and profitable based on revenue from market actors. While many of mPower’s solutions are seed-funded by donors, due to the need for start-up funding to develop, pilot, and show proof of concept, they are eventually rolled into mPower’s commercial offerings. ln the area of ICT solutions for the livestock sector, mPower is one of the pioneers in Bangladesh having developed multiple livestock solutions for farmers, LSPs such as artificial insemination (Al) technicians, and other relevant market actors. mPower hasalso provided service to livestock input companies and organizations in the form of an Al performance tracking system for Lal Teer Livestock Ltd., a dairy farm management system forNahar Dairy and Milk Vita, a nationwide animal health surveillance system for the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Additionally, products include digital livestock monitoring and service delivery for the Rural Development Academy (RDA) and cattle breedidentification and digitallivestock registry for DLS, Dutch Blue Gold Program, and others. mPower is alsoworking on commercial business-to consumer (B2C) televeterinary service delivery business for smallholder farmers titled SHUROKKHA. mPower’s solutions have so far been used by around 20,000 farmers and 100-plus LSPs across the country, mostly concentrated in the southern zone.

Goals and Objectives (1) Enable 60 LSPs (at least 15 female) to provide timely and efficient services, such as advice on livestock husbandry, Al, animal health/medicine shops, deworming, vaccinations, and cattle feed retailers, to 5,000 cattle farmers (at least 30 percent female). (2) lmprove cost-effectiveness of marketing and supply chains for livestock input companies (e.g., cattle feed, Al,animal health companies).

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

(3) Allow DLS, FAO, BLRI, and other government, research, and international organizations to get better ground-level visibility on disease prevalence and trends, and thereby send out timely alerts.

Key features of the proposed idea Through this grant, mPowerSocial Enterprises Ltd. (mPower) will launch, promote, and manage a freesmartphone- based customer relationship management (CRM) app. This app will be available on Google Play. The app is designed for LSPs such as those providing animal husbandry, provider/retailer, and feed retailers services. When LSPs use the CRM, they enter data of the services provided by date and location, which is accessible to livestock companies and government extension and research organizations that pay to access this data. The information and communication technology (lCT) solution’s profit/loss model is based on fees from companies and organizations that pay for data access and advertising. The profit/loss model projects operational breakeven once 500 LSPs are enlisted as users of the service and it is expected that this initiative will become a profitable venture within one to two years of launching. The grant will share the costs of designing, developing, field testing, and fine-tuning the application, taking the usage of the application to a significant number of beneficiaries, measuring outcomes and benefits for the various stakeholders, particularly on livestock health, and disseminating learnings and findings to attract sustained engagement by sector actors.

Proposed activities mPower's proposed livestock ICT solution is based on a problem analysis that identified key needs for service provision chain actors to improve their reach and farmer outcomes, including recording customer and service data for later reference, understanding customer needs (i.e. accessing farm-level information), better understanding of demand, and utilizing such information to improve their respective business performances. The stakeholders are L5Ps, livestock input and pharmaceutical companies, and government extension and research organizations such as DLS, the Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute (BLRI), and FAO. The target LSPs for the proposed app are community-based entrepreneurs who deliver livestock health and Al services to farmers. They do not have academic qualifications but have received some form of on-the-job training. Services delivered to farmers include treatment for sick animals, de-worming, vaccinations, advice on livestock husbandry, and Al. ln addition to service delivery, some LSPS are engaged with Al service provider companies, where they receive hands-on training on Al procedures, run individual veterinary pharmacies or cattle feed shops, or work as volunteers for various development projects. LSPS must have at least one year of-on-the job training, excellent rapport with livestock farmers, and a minimum literacy level of a standard 5th grade Bangladeshi education to be considered by mPower. Livestock input and pharmaceutical companies often rely on field-level data Government extension, research and international organizations such as DLS, BLRt, and FAO have little to no visibility on real- time disease prevalence, limiting their ability to understand trends and take appropriate, preventative actions on issues such as the geographic spread of livestock disease or correlations. mPower's proposed solution has different components for the above-mentioned stakeholders: 1) A smartphone-based, easy-to-use, offline (no need for constant internet connectivity while using the app) CRM application for LSPs, with the following features: i. Individual farmer and cattle information is recorded through pictures and voice records, with minimal types, to ensure user- friendliness ii. Collected information turned into exploitable data through online analytical dashboards 2l Create a calendar of appointments for upcoming farmer household visits 3) Record services delivered, and treatment/ medicines provided 4l Record farmer payment history (based on created payment history dashboards)

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

5) Automated scheduling and alert system for upcoming/missed LSP services, including deworming, vaccination, pregnancy diagnosis, treatment, cattle births, and other scheduled services. mPower will do a detailed profiling of each of the participating LSP's. Profiles of LSP's will include their age, localities, services (treatment, Al, etc.), farmer portfolio, income level, technology savviness, and relationships with other stakeholders in the industry, especially input companies. As mPower rolls out the application and tracks usage by different LSPs, it will track differences in their level of usage or change in current CRM. This will ultimately provide insights for a value proposition to input companies as well as identifying the right LSP profile for CRM solutions. Messages to LSPs through the app can be organized in multiple ways. Geographical coverage Khulna, Satkhira, Jashore Targets • Increase farmer revenue by 10 percent and uptake of at least one improved technology or management practice by 90 percent of farmers. • 5,000 farmers (30 percent female) will receive quality LSP service, including seasonal advice. • At least 60 LSPs (15 female) will improve service tracking and operational efficiency, including a 25 percent increase in LSPs' gross margin. • Conduct trials with two companies from the pharmaceuticals, input, or Al sector. • DLS and research institutes will utilize incidence or occurrence data of notifiable diseases for immediate action

Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies.

Deliverables • Improved technology and management practice uptake by farmers (baseline data may be required), including farmer usage and satisfaction with services received from LSPs, o compare changes in farmers' profit margin per cattle. o Measurement of changes of delivering services by LSPs, changes in gross margin, and number of individual farmers served by LSPs for new and follow- up services. o Measurement of consumption of specific products in specific regions to support decision making. Trial report with attendance sheet and photographs. • Increase farmer revenue by 10 percent and uptake of at least one improved technology or management practice by 90 percent of farmers. • 5,000 farmers (30 percent female) will receive quality LSP service, including seasonal advice. • At least 60 LSPs (15 female) will improve service tracking and operational efficiency, including a 25 percent increase in LSPs' gross margin. • Conduct trials with two companies from the pharmaceuticals, input, or Al sector. • DLS and research institutes will utilize incidence or occurrence data of notifiable diseases for immediate action

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 Prantojon Agro Enterprise Title of the business proposal Investing in Livestock Input Value Chains Name of the sub-grantee Prantojon Agro Enterprise

Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee Duration of the agreement From: June 23, 2019 To: March 25, 2020 Total budget Budget contribution

Organizational Profile Prantojon is established in January 2015, is a social business wing of the reputed non-government voluntary organization "PRANTOJON," which has operated in the Barishal region since 2004 (business license I0602). By approaching social ventures with business-inspired solutions, PAE provides technical, financial, input and marketing support to rural farmers in Barishal District. PAE began with a USAID Agriculture Value Chain (AVC) activity working with 600 vegetable and 400 mungbean farmers. By introducing and providing training on modern cultivation and post-harvest management techniques, PAE built the capacity of their farmer network to improve yield by 39.8-62.8 percent. PAE continued their support of mungbean producers through marketing mungbeans under the brand name of "Desi Mung Dal." Relying on a vast farmer network already established in Barishal, PAE plans to expand their business into the livestock sector by marketing milk and dairy products. Within this network, PAE will establish dairy hubs for collecting and chilling milk for processing in addition to storing milk byproducts (i.e., curd). These products will be marketed under the PAE brand. By mid- April of 2019, Prantojon will collect and process 200 liters/day milk. By the end of December 2019, PAE’s target will be to collect and process 500 liters/day of milk. Goals and Objectives • Create linkages and efficiencies in Barishal’s dairy supply chain to collect fresh milk from large and smallholder farmers for processing and sale under the “Deshi” brand. • Improve existing input distribution by providing input access to PAE’s existing farmer base and retail shops. • Develop and deepen the market for dairy-based products by promoting the nutritional benefits of dairy. • Build dairy farmer capacity to consistently produce high-quality milk. Key features of the proposed idea Prantojon Agro Enterprise (PAE) requests support to develop the input and output market for dairy products in the Southwest Bangladeshi division of Barishal, one of the most underdeveloped and underserved divisions. The grant will support the establishment of a robust milk aggregation, transportation, and distribution network which engages dairy farmers, other market actors, and dairy consumers in Barishal. Beginning with dairy feed inputs, PAE will provide quality agri-processed bi-products, such as mung bean bran, pulse bran, and mustard oil cakes, at a fair price in tandem with training on quality feeding practices. PAE will also facilitate the collection, transportation, processing, and marketing of fresh milk and dairy products in the Uzirpur and Barishal Sadar upazillas, both located in the Barishal Division. PAE’s support throughout the dairy value chain, from inputs to product, establishes a process and model for creating a sustainable dairy chilling and distribution business, ultimately providing quality, hygienic, and diverse products to customers.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Proposed activities • Build the capacity of dairy farmers through farm management training to improve the quality and quantity of milk production, ensuring a consistent supply of milk for the processing unit by: • Selecting potential farmers who will supply to the processing unit; Creating a database of farmers; and Organizing trainings to develop the capacity of farmers to manage hygienic and standard milking and post-milking methods. • Increase access to affordable feed inputs (cattle feed made from quality crop byproducts, lentil flour, mustard cake, etc.) by: Provide information about the importance of quality feed • Surveying local markets for similar products and studying the competition; Creating a value proposition and defining a marketing strategy; • Targeting PAE’s existing farmer base (cattle owners) and surrounding retail shops through door to door/business to business sales; and disrupting the market through fair, competitive pricing and approaching every potential outlet for sales in Barishal. • Establish a dairy processing unit and sell quality and hygienic milk and processed goods under Prantojon's “Deshi” brand by: • Using test marketing to determine the demand for dairy products and PAE’s ability to meet the demand in a profitable manner; • Working with experts/consultants to establish cattle management, hygienic milking, and safe dairy storage policies and procedures; • Installing a chilling plant and packaging unit to allow for the hygienic storage and packaging of dairy products; Procuring a motor delivery van to transport products to the market, minimizing the risk of dairy spoilage; and Creating Prantojon branded packaging to signify to customers the product is locally produced, high quality, and hygienic. • Promote the nutritional benefits of milk and dairy-based products in local markets by: Meeting the current demand of milk and encouraging increased consumption for nutrition benefits; Carrying out nutrition-focused promotional activities, such as poster and sticker distribution, banners, ads on local media channels, and video shows at local markets to create market demand; Organizing a launch event for the dairy product line; Arranging school programs to promote dairy product to students; and Organizing a linkage building workshop with local retailers to establish a distribution network. Geographical coverage Uzirpur and Barishal Sadar upazillas, Barishal Division Targets • Increase farmer’s use of quality cattle feed. • Increased access of farmers to a sustainable market to sell hygienic dairy products. • Improved access to nutritional, dairy-based product. • Increased consumption of dairy products by local population by at least five percent Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 2: Improved nutrition-related behaviors of rural households. Deliverables • Sales data indicating a 30 percent increase in input sales. • 200 farmers will be recruited, receive training, and sell their products through Prantojon. • Sales data indicating an increase in sales from 200 liters/day of milk to 500 liters/ day. • significant increase in dairy consumption in targeted households Increased dairy purchases by targeted households

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 Society Development Committee (SDC) Title of the Business proposal New Loan Product Launch Name of the Sub-grantee Society Development Committee (SDC)

Detail address

Contact Person of Sub- grantee Duration of the agreement From: March 18, 2019 To: March 15, 2020 Total Budget Budget contribution

2. Organizational Profile SDC was established in 1988. It is one of the reputed national NGOs registered under the NGO Affairs Bureau Bangladesh. Some of the major donors with whom SDC has worked included they are PKSF, World Fish, DFID, USAID, Save the Children Australia, Practical Action, DAI, Winrock International, CIAT, BRAC, CARE Bangladesh, DAM, CIMMYT and IRRI. One of SDC’s major objectives is to ensure economic betterment of the poor people in central- Southern parts of Bangladesh. For smooth operational purposes SDC has established 62 branch offices in ten districts, Madaripur, Faridpur, Gopalganj, Manikganj, Narail, Rajbari, Munshiganj, Magura, Kushtia and Dhaka. The organization has gathered diverse experience by implementing programs in different development regimes such as livestock value chain, relief, rehabilitation, women empowerment, regenerative agriculture, Aquaculture value chain, Groundnut value chain, vegetable value chain, Jute value chain, milk value chain, groundnut value chain, waste management and climate change adaptation. However, their current focus mostly revolves around improving lives and livelihoods of the poor through improved agricultural practices. With that aim in mind SDC has started microfinance operation from 1992 and has served near about 75,000 clients with microcredit loans. At present, SDC’s total loan outstanding amount is about 212 crore BDT in which 34% constitute agricultural loans and 15% (about 32 crore BDT) is livestock loans.

9. Goal and Objectives The purpose of this grant is to launch new loan product for beef cattle farmers to improve their profitability. To ensure robust support to farmers through this loan product, the loan package includes: o Financial literacy trainings provided by SDC o SDC to facilitate/coordinate animal health, nutrition, feed, artificial insemination trainings with local support service providers and market actors, who will provide the trainings to farmers. o Innovative repayment options that permit a “one-time” loan repayment option with an effective interest rate of 24.97% for participants.

10. Key features of the proposed idea Through this grant, SDC will launch an innovative loan product that includes financial and technical training to improve profitability for beef cattle farmers. In addition to providing access to loans, SDC will provide financial literacy trainings to new loan package clients, improving their capacity to make informed financial decisions and increase profitability. SDC will also facilitate the delivery of technical services and trainings as part of their robust loan product through local service providers. Local service providers will deliver trainings to recipients of the new loan product package, covering essential topics for successful beef cattle production, like; animal health, feed, nutrition and artificial insemination. Lastly, the new loan product will allow recipients to take advantage of an innovative repayment system through a single repayment “all at once” option. To further incentivize farmers the effective interest rate for credit given under the new product will have an interest rate of 24.97%, which is lower than other area loan offers. By creating further flexibility in payment plans and providing a single repayment option with a lower effective interest rate, SDC will be able to provide safer credit to livestock farmers, preparing their growing businesses for success.

11. Proposed activities

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

- Orientation: The activities will launch with a staff orientation to orient the team to the objectives, activities and workplan of the grant. The M&E Orientation will familiarize the team with the monitoring and reporting strategies of the project. The microfinance staff of SDC will be trained on the new features of loan product. - Finalize and launch the loan product: The innovative loan along with its added benefits will be finalized and launched through a campaign. - Selection and registration of the farmers: The team will receive orientation on farmer registration. Based on the eligibility of the loan, the team will finalize a selection of beef cattle producers. The team targets to organize 60 farmer groups, comprising 25 participants each. - Training on financial literacy: SDC will train the selected farmers on financial literacy and loan product. The trainings will include educational and promotional materials to introduce the farmers to the benefits of the new loan product. - Technical trainings through technical support service providers: The team will select technical support service providers in the areas of animal health, feed, nutrition, and artificial insemination services. A training agenda will be created next to provide technical TOT to technical support services providers through public and private actors. The technical support service providers will be responsible for implementing technical trainings for beef cattle farmers. - Beef cattle support service events: Beef cattle support service events such as animal health camps, promotion of feed, animal health and other input products will be hosted under this grant. - Loan disbursement and repayment: A minimum of 1,000 loans will be issued under this grant. Monthly and final report will include details on the number of loan products disbursed, interest earned, and repayments collected.

12. Geographical coverage Faridpur, Bangladesh

13. Targets - New loan offered to 1,500 farmers, with a minimum of 1,000 loans issued - Build the capacity of and train 1,500 farmers including 750 women on “best practice” adoption as instructed through financial literacy and technical trainings - Increase farmer profit margin per cattle by 10 percent

14. Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies

15. Deliverables a. New Loan Product released b. New loan offered to 1,500 farmers, with a minimum of 1,000 loans issued c. Built the capacity of and trained 1,500 farmers including 750 women on “best practice” adoption as instructed through financial literacy and technical trainings d. Increased farmer’s access to beef cattle support services e. Improved Livestock loan repayments for participating farmers f. Farmer profit margin per cattle increased by 10 percent

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 Bangladesh SME Corporation Ltd. (BSCL) Title of the business proposal Dairy Enterprise Preparedness through i-SME Platform Name of the sub-grantee Bangladesh SME Corporation Ltd. (BSCL)

Detailed address

Contact person of sub-grantee Duration of the agreement From: May 19, 2019 To: March 25, 2020 Total budget Budget contribution

Organizational Profile BSCL is a financial consulting, research, and technological services company in Bangladesh that serves and strengthens MSMEs’ access and utilization of formal finance and business development services. BSCL's business model was developed to benefit enterprises, generally sole proprietorship entrepreneurs who operate in rural and peri-urban Bangladesh. Bangladesh SME Corporation Limited’s (BSCL) i-SME Platform is to dairy enterprises in southwest Bangladesh, particularly in the . BSCL’s i-SME Platform is a mobile-based technology platform that identifies potential micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) borrowers with high repayment probability, acts as a translator/matchmaker between financial institutions and identified MSMEs, and provides “last mile” service delivery networks to ensure strong support and monitoring (see further details below). This grant will expand the tested platform to dairy enterprises in southwestern Bangladesh. Goals and Objectives • Serve male and female dairy farmers through its i-SME Platform across the Khulna division, enabling accelerated delivery of customized financial products and business development support services for dairy enterprises. • Enhance i-SME’s Dairy Monitoring Module and its benefits for smallholders and sector stakeholders by enriching its database of dairy farm statistics, thereby fine-tuning its early warning capabilities (e.g., periodic data showing patterns in non-performing loans to dairy enterprises). • Increase female participation in dairy farm/enterprise management, thereby enhancing female contribution to household income and productive capacity of the dairy value chain. Key features of the proposed idea BSCL is requesting this grant to seeking grant funds from the activity to offset one-time startup costs to expand the i-SME Platform to dairy enterprises in southwestern Bangladesh and develop a dairy extension service and monitoring module. Funds provided by the activity will also cover the issuance of trade licenses and enterprise seals, which are required by BSCL’s partner financial institutions for loan-seeking enterprises. By partnering with the activity and expanding its operational base in Khulna, BSCL’s i-SME Platform will increase financial inclusion while mitigating the risk for financial institutions financing smallholder dairy farmers. Partnering with the activity will allow BSCL to accelerate financing delivery to smallholder dairy farmers and create

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020 a stronger, less fragmented dairy value chain, transforming underserved smallholder dairy farms into more sustainable dairy enterprises.

Proposed activities • BSCL,’s i-SME suite of services allows financial institutions to provide credit and earn income from financing MSMEs based on detailed reports and information generated through the i-SME platform. The platform’s information enables financial institutions to make informed credit decisions and gauge the creditworthiness of enterprises in a way that was previously not possible. • BSCL’s proposed activity with the activity is to expand the i-SME platform to dairy enterprises in southwestern Bangladesh, specifically in the Khulna division. BSCL defines dairy enterprises to be smallholder dairy farmers with at least one local/cross-breed milk cow looking to increase their income by expanding their dairy-specific operations. BSCL’s mandate is to serve MSMEs and, under this initiative, the target market includes dairy enterprises. Geographical coverage Jashore and Khulna

Targets • Number of dairy enterprises with digitized data on the i- SME platform • Increased capacity of dairy enterprises to understand and utilize financial services and modern dairy management methods. Dairy enterprises formalize business operations by using financial services provided by FICs and 5% increased production and revenue. • BSCL: Enriched i-SME database • Commissions earned from facilitation of deposit and credit services to Dairy Enterprises (commissions earned by BSCL are paid for by BSCL’s Financing Institution partners and are not passed on to Dairy Enterprises). • Strengthened business activities of financing partners through increased deposit base and loanable capital, loan/investment portfolio, income from other financial services delivered through FICs, interest income earned, and/or a minimized risk of non-performance. • 900 Dairy Enterprises issued trade licenses

Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies.

Deliverables • Total of 1,800 enterprises will be digitized, including 540 male-led enterprises and 1,260 female-led. Submission of the filled-in tool. • A total of 1,800 enterprises will receive training, including 540 male-led enterprises and 1,260 female-led. Submission of TOT/training modules for trainers and farmers for • A total of 900 enterprises will increase the formalization of their business, including 270 male-led enterprises and 630 female led, by opening a bank account through BSCL- facilitated services. • 675 Enterprises availing formal financial services with 270 dairy enterprises financed. • Approval of BSCL to access the i-SME database from the activity. • Number of new entrepreneurs trained, liaised, and realized financing services from financial service providers. • Repayment rates for the entrepreneurs on a monthly basis. • Investment portfolio of financing partners, • Compare profit margin of the financing partners in the activity working areas.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

Victor Feeds Ltd. Title of the Business proposal Cattle Feed to New Markets in Faridpur and Rajbari Name of the Sub-grantee Victor Feeds Ltd.

Detailed address

Contact Person of Sub-

grantee Duration of the agreement From: March 24, 2019 To: March 23, 2020 Total Budget Budget contribution

3. Organizational Profile Victor Feeds Ltd., the feed mill wing of Victor Breeders, was registered in 2013 and began production in the first quarter of 2017. Victor Breeders began in 2003 as a day-old chick producing and marketing company. The company has grown tremendously since then and currently has a weekly production of 300,000 pieces with 120,000 parents in stock. The feed mill’s current production level is 12MT per hour. The monthly production of 2,500MT includes 65% poultry, 25% fish feed and rest 10% cattle and others feed. Our business also has a few fish projects ongoing. The company provided 2,400 decimals land for these projects to produce pangus, tilapia, carp and others. Presently, there are 85 dealers in our network and we use our own fleet of transportation (20 vans with capacity ranging from 1MT to 20MT) to supply products to dealers. The company now wants to invest in cattle feed and make it a more profit earning wing of the business. Victor Feeds Ltd. averages about 30 tons a month in beef fattening cattle feed sales.

16. Goal and Objectives The purpose of this grant is to launch new loan product for beef cattle farmers to improve their profitability. To ensure robust support to farmers through this loan product, the loan package includes: • Sell 300 tons of quality feed in new market areas (Rajbari and Faridpur) through the release of a new size feed pack (10kg), specialized for smallholder beef fattening farmer needs. • Enhance the capacity of dealers/retailers to spread trainings to farmers on farm management, business operations, and the cost/benefit and proper use of ready feed. • Conduct promotional activities around ready feed product like feed trials and fairs. • Facilitate increased access to animal support services for farmers to maximize animal health and the effects of ready feed use.

17. Key features of the proposed idea Victor Feeds Ltd. is requesting this grant to expand ready feed distribution into new areas with high market potential to address the risks and costs involved in entering new markets, adopting farmer-oriented cascade marketing, and introducing new smallholder-appropriate pack sizes. To mitigate challenges that have precluded Victor Feeds Ltd. from expanding to date and build capacity to sustain and expand further, this grant will support activities to implement cascade marketing/training to educate distributors, retailers and farmers on the benefits of ready feed, farm management and business operations, while also facilitating the administration of essential animal health support services like deworming (among others) to maximize ready feed use. Additionally, this grant will also help fund the introduction and promotion of a new smaller ready feed package (10 kg bags) to better meet small beef farmer needs and increase profitability. Together, these activities will support new market growth, greater distribution and improved financial outcomes for Victor Feeds Ltd. operations, distributors, retailers and smallholders in the areas of Rajbari and Faridpur.

Livestock and Nutrition Activity Annual Progress Report: FY20 November 2020

18. Proposed activities - Sell 300 tons of feed through new 10kg bags in areas of proposed growth: Victor Feeds Ltd. will design 10kg package of feed including the nutritional messages to add in the package. New machine for packaging will be procured and installed. Victor Feeds Ltd. will identify and select dealers and retailers in Faridpur and Rajbari to distribute their new packages. - Train traders, dealers, and distributors, on benefits of ready feed: Victor Feeds will conduct trainings for its selected dealers on business operations, farm management and feed benefits. Seminars will be organized to build stronger connections between the dealers(traders) and retailers. Dealers will provide hands on training to retailers and retailers will train the farmers through courtyard sessions. - Increase the promotional activities to popularize products: Victor Feeds will introduce the new affordable small packaging for cattle feed through a launch event. Victor Feeds will develop and distribute promotional materials such as branded apron, caps, posters, leaflets, short video clip, booklet, festoons etc. to increase the visibility of the products. Animal health companies will collaborate with Victor Feed’s identified local animal health service providers (LAHSP) to create awareness and conduct animal health fairs about deworming and the benefits of cattle feed. Victor Feeds will organize feed trials of product to promote the new size and ready feed, followed by farmer learning event to share product testimonies from feed trials and award best farmers in terms of knowledge and production.

19. Geographical coverage Rajbari and Faridpur, Bangladesh

20. Targets - Sell 300 tons of feed in the new market areas of Rajbari and Faridpur - Cascade trainings to 40 dealers, 80 retailers and 2,000 farmers. - Conduct 40 feed trials (at least 20 of which on female owned/run farms) in Rajbari and Faridpur. - Increase beef cattle weight gain by 25% for feed trial cattle

21. Relevance to Results Framework This grant agreement will contribute to the activity’s Intermediate Result (IR), IR 1: Increased livestock productivity, through the sub-IR 1.2: Improved livestock practices and technologies

22. Deliverables - Sold 300 tons of feed in the new market areas of Rajbari and Faridpur - Developed TOT training and training modules on business operations, farm management, and feed benefits - Conducted TOT and cascaded trainings to 40 dealers, 80 retailers and 2,000 farmers. - Conducted 40 feed trials (at least 20 of which on female owned/run farms) in Rajbari and Faridpur. - Increased farmer’s access to beef cattle support services. - Increased beef cattle weight gain by 25% for feed trial cattle