Graduating to Resilience Quarterly Report

FY2019, Quarter 2 January 1, 2019 to March 30, 2019

Submission Date: April 30, 2019 Revised: June 13, 2019

Cooperative Agreement – AID-FFP-A-17-00006 October 01, 2017 to September 30, 2024 AOR Name: Graceanna Enzinger

Submitted by: Jackie Aldrette, Activity Coordinator AVSI Foundation 8730 Georgia Avenue, Suite 209 Silver Spring, MD 20910 Tel: 301-589-9009 Email: [email protected]

This document was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development, Office of Food for Peace.

“This publication is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the Office of Food for Peace, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under terms of Cooperative Agreement No. AID‐FFP‐A‐17‐00006. The contents are the responsibility of AVSI Foundation and Graduating to Resilience and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.”

Graduating to Resilience is implemented by AVSI Foundation in partnership with

Acronyms and Abbreviations

CBT Community Based Trainer CLA Collaborating, Learning and Adapting CRRF Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework DIP Detailed Implementation Plan EMMP Environmental Mitigation and Management Plan EVD Ebola Virus Disease FFS Farmer Field School FFBS Farmer Field Business School FGD Focus Group Discussion IEE Initial Environmental Examination IPA Innovations for Poverty Action IPTT Indicator Performance Tracking Table IRB Institutional Review Board KAP Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices KII Key Informant Interview LG Local Government MAM Moderate Acute Malnutrition MIS Management Information System MIYCF Maternal and Infant Young Child Feeding MUREC Mildmay Uganda Research and Ethical Committee OPM Office of the Prime Minister PDM Post Distribution Monitoring PERSUAP Performance Evaluation Report and Safer User Action Plan PRA Participatory Rural Appraisal PREP Pipeline and Resource Estimate Proposal PSEA Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse PSN Persons with Special Needs SAT Senior Advisory Team SAM Severe Acute Malnutrition SOP Standard Operating Procedures TSC Technical Steering Committee VHT Village Health Team

1 | Page

1. Activity Summary

Activity title Graduating to Resilience

[Development Food Security Activity in Uganda—Graduation Pilot] Agreement Number AID‐FFP‐A‐17‐00006 Name of Prime Implementing Partner: AVSI Foundation Name of Sub‐recipient(s)/Sub‐awardee(s): Trickle Up Program, Inc IMPAQ International, LLC Activity Start Date October 01, 2017 Activity End Date September 30, 2024 Reporting Period: FY2019, Q2: January 2019 – March 2019

FY2019, QUARTER 2 (January – March, 2019) AVSI Foundation, as the prime recipient, signed the USAID Cooperative Agreement, “Development Food Security Activity in Uganda—Graduation Pilot”, No. AID‐FFP‐A‐17‐ 00006, on September 30, 2017. The Activity is now operating with the project title, “Graduating to Resilience”, as per approved Branding Strategy / Marking Plan‐ BSMP.1

The activities covered in this FY2019 2nd Quarterly Report relate to the period between January 1, 2019 and March 30, 2019.

Review of Context and Monitoring of Assumptions In the current quarter, 6th quarter of the Activity, the context has remained largely unchanged and the assumptions flagged for active monitoring have not escalated in severity.

Seasonality: The region experienced isolated light rains and relatively dry conditions. The Farmer Field Business School (FFBS) groups carried out land preparation, received FFBS tools and are ready to plant in their demonstration gardens upon receipt of seed.

Food Security Outlook: Host community households had adequate carryover of staple food stock (maize & beans) from last season’s bumper harvests and income from crop sales has been normal. Stocks are expected to decline by April‐May 2019. The refugees’ main source of food remained humanitarian aid, supplemented by own production.

The security situation in and around Rwamwanja has remained stable.  Elections in DRC: The DRC held general elections on December 30, 2018. An increased refugee influx in January‐February 2019 did not affect the program area.  Ebola: Ebola is still active in DRC. No confirmed cases have been reported within the borders of Uganda. AVSI participates in the settlement’s Ebola Taskforce.  Scenario planning around land and possible influx: The much‐anticipated refugee influx to Rwamwanja did not occur. Most recent contingency planning by UNHCR and OPM lists

1 The approved Branding Strategy/Marking Plan for this activity has been made part of Agreement AID‐FFP‐A‐17‐00006 with Modification No 01, Section D. 2 | Page

Rwamwanja Settlement as third in line to receive new arrivals (only after Kyaka II and Oruchinga Settlements are full). The Activity maintained an active plan to switch to high‐ value crops that could be profitable on smaller plots if the situation suddenly changed and plot sizes reduced.

Summary of Results to Date Graduating to Resilience is largely on‐track with planned activities. Major achievements during the past quarter include the following:  Actual/planned beneficiaries: 6,629 households were identified and targeted for participation in Cohort 1. After activities began during this quarter, 6,564 households were actively participating. Only 1% of households dropped out or were removed from enrolment lists due to discrepancies or repetition of names.  Coaching system in place: 194 coaches (176 Individual Coaches following an average of 25 households each and 18 Group Coaches assigned to 5 groups each, for approximately 125 households) were randomly assigned to treatment villages. The Coaching Curriculum has been finalized and all 194 coaches were trained. Additional coaches were hired as replacements and back‐up support for the coaches and Community Based Trainers (CBT).  Cash transfer: Consumption smoothing cash transfer affected successful for two months, reaching 99% beneficiary coverage and with positive feedback received through post‐distribution monitoring. $370,780 in cash transfers were received directly by Graduating to Resilience participants during the quarter, largely by mobile money.  M&E Plan – Graduation Criteria: The M&E Plan narrative and the revised Theory of Change were cleared by USAID/FFP and the Graduation Criteria are nearly finalized.  VSLA mobilization: 190 Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLA) (72% of the total planned number) with 4,592 members (69%) have started saving.  FFBS launch: 209 FFBS have been formed. 57 are finalizing their registration. 257 FFBS have been provided kits to commence their season‐long experiential learning, and the remaining 9 are scheduled to receive the kits in the coming quarter.

Key strategic decisions made during the quarter: FFBS Enterprise Selection: The Technical Steering Committee (TSC) resolved to direct all FFBS groups to choose learning enterprises from those that were pre‐identified through the Value Chain Assessment (maize, beans, groundnuts). This decision was based on ensuring appropriate quality of technical support from CBTs, and on the observation of the high transferability of FFBS technical contents to other enterprises, post‐learning phase.

VSLA membership: The TSC observed that occasionally members of VSLAs may not be the primary beneficiaries (as intended in the design). It was resolved that such cases be allowed if the primary beneficiary is unable to participate due to disability, illness, or family circumstances, in which case another family member will be allowed to join the VSLA in the interest of the participating family. All such cases should be clearly documented.

Village Reassignments: The TSC opted to split a village cluster (“Bitojo + Bubaare”) following the substantiation of claims of excessive distance between the two villages (which hampered participation by 17 households). One “Bubaare” group was therefore rescinded from the

3 | Page

“Bitojo” groups, and randomly assigned a treatment arm. The decision and data was conveyed to IPA.

Cash transfer service provider: The TSC resolved to seek a different partner for the activity, since MTN had failed to deliver on transferring cash to beneficiaries using the custom‐made system for two consecutive transfers. The TSC resolved to hold discussions with Stanbic Bank (which had successfully stepped in to effect the February and March transfers) to continue delivering mobile money cash transfer and develop an alternative transfer modality for beneficiaries who cannot access mobile money services.

2. Activity Outputs

Purpose 1

Establishment and support to Farmer Field Business Schools (FFBS): The Activity had originally planned to establish 265 Farmer Field Business School (FFBS) groups, 133 in the refugee settlement and 132 in the host community. Following a TSC decision (see Section 1) concerning excessive intra‐household distances for the “Bubaare‐Bitojo” village cluster, an additional group was added to the target. By the end of March 2019, a total of 209 groups (79%) were established, 104 in the refugee settlement and 105 in the host community and comprising 75% of the beneficiary households (92% female, 8% male). Male membership is slightly higher among refugees (11% vs. 5%). The remaining 57 FFBS groups are completing their group registration process.

FFBS Training: All 266 groups, including those that had not completed their registration process, were taken through Group Action Planning (GAP) as a start‐up activity. Using participatory rural appraisal approaches, each group was guided by a Community Based Trainer (CBT) to select a study enterprise from the Activity’s pre‐selected value chains. Enterprise choices revealed substantial differences between refugees (prioritizing groundnuts) and host (who showed more balanced preference across enterprises). All groups established demonstration plots.

Table 1: FFBS selected enterprises Enterprise Host % Refugee % Grand Total % 1 Beans 45 34% 11 8% 56 21% 2 Maize 59 44% 40 30% 98 37% 3 Groundnuts 29 22% 82 62% 111 42% Grand Total 133 133 266 266 Source: Group Activity tracker

4,249 (86%) members out of 4,955 registered members were reported to participate in the FFBS activities. Coaches and CBTs are tasked to follow‐up all registered members next quarter to ensure consistent participation and learning.

Procurement and distribution of FFBS tools: 257 FFBS groups (133 refugees, 124 host) received FFBS toolkits. The remaining 9 groups will receive theirs at the beginning of the next quarter. In line with USAID/Uganda Performance Evaluation Report and Safer User Action

4 | Page

Plan (PERSUAP), each FFBS participant received a nasal mask for protection during pesticides application in their demonstration gardens.

Nutrition screening and referrals: This quarter, screening of children under five for malnutrition was conducted by Coaches. The screening activity was introduced late towards the end of the quarter as the beginning coaching sessions were more related to getting to know the households and establishing relationships. A total of 1,141 children (49% female and 51% male) were screened. The activity identified 21 cases of Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM) and 4 cases of Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM). Nearly all of these cases were already in charge of Village Health Teams (VHTs), except 2 which were referred to VHTs for management. All cases will be followed‐up in the next quarter.

Purpose 2 VSLA formation and Membership: The Activity has planned to form 266 VSLAs. By the end of the quarter, the Activity completed the formation of 190 VSLAs (72%): 90 in the settlement and 100 in the host community. The remaining 75 groups are going to finalize their registration process in the next quarter. In terms of membership, and similar to what was reported with regard to the FFBS, males are slightly more represented among refugees (8% vs. 3%)

VSLA Training: The Activity covered 95% of beneficiary households. VSLA membership is heavily focused on females; 91% of VSLA members are female, in line with the Activity’s design. The shortfall in overall achievement includes households that dropped off the project, relocated and/or those that coaches failed to locate. A final verification of VSLA membership is scheduled next quarter and a detailed list of specific reasons for non‐participation will be generated. The number of male participants is explained by the fact that some primary participants were either incapable of joining the activity (for age or health status, for instance) and others had delegated their spouses to participate on their behalf. Coaches are currently being supported to reinforce the message to the primary beneficiaries of the importance of their direct participation in VSLA.

Coaching guidance, tools and outreach: The Activity has finalized, in collaboration with Trickle Up, the development of an adapted Coaching curriculum and guidelines, for both coaching modalities (individual and group). The materials have been procured and provided to all coaches. Graduating to Resilience coaches reached 99% of the beneficiary households during this first quarter of direct implementation and successfully introduced the Activity and the Graduation Map. The Graduation Map is one of the main tools used by coaches during their sessions with participants to chart goals, activities, and focus each household’s efforts toward the achievement of resilience. 65% of beneficiaries had progressed to further steps in the coaching curriculum.

3. Programming Performance a) Outcome indicators collected during the quarter

5 | Page

During the quarter, the Activity tracked 16 quarterly indicators as presented in the tables in Annex I. Two of the indicators, (i) Percentage of men and women with children under 2 who have knowledge of WASH practices and (ii) Percentage of men and women with children under 2 who have knowledge of maternal and child health and nutrition ‐MCHN practices) were disaggregated by Host/Refugees (male and female). While the other 14 indicators were disaggregated by Host/Refugees.

Generally, there is a positive trend towards the achievement of project targets. Targets for 4 indicators have already been achieved/surpassed. In the next quarterly review of the M&E plan, AVSI will consider revising targets upward for these indicators. . Percentage of households practicing correct use of recommended household water treatment technologies doubled (from 30% to 60%) from baseline. Higher change was registered within the host community than among refugees (74.8% vs. 46.9%). . Percentage of households with soap and water at a hand washing station commonly used by family members increased from 6% to 34.1% against a target of 36%. Similar to the previous indicator, households in the refugee settlement are lagging behind compared to host (13% vs. 56.6%). . The percentage of men/women in union and earning cash who make decisions jointly with spouse/partner about the use of self‐earned cash has also already surpassed the annual target of 52%, with 87% of the respondents reporting joint decision making on self‐earned cash. Refugees performed better than host community (92.2% vs. 81.3%). . The number of VSLA groups that applied improved organization‐level technologies or management practices with USG assistance surpassed the target by 36 (168 groups registered compared to the target of 132). . The Activity did not register any achievement on 3 indicators pertaining to Production and Marketing Groups since the timeline for the related activities and milestones is farther ahead in the implementation schedule.

b) Post Distribution Monitoring (PDM) Two rounds of cash transfer for consumption smoothing (February and March) were made during the quarter. A total of 6,629 households, comprising of 37,585 beneficiaries were targeted. A detailed report of the cash transferred during the reporting quarter is contained in section 8 below.

Graduating to Resilience carried out post‐distribution monitoring (PDM) of cash transfer to monitor the effectiveness and level of beneficiary’s satisfaction with the consumption smoothing cash transfer process. By Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), the first three PDM exercises targeted 100% of households served, whereas subsequent ones would be sample‐ based.

6 | Page

Figure 1: PDM1 and PDM2 coverage

7,000 6,000 5,000 4,000 3,000 2,000 1,000 ‐ PDM 1 (Feb, 2019) PDM 2 (March, 2019) Cash Transfer Target 6,629 6,629 Cash Transfer Achivement 6,570 6,563 No. Visted for PDM 5,601 4,183 No. with valid PDM data 5,530 4,157

The actual proportion of households reached in these first two exercises were 83% and 63% for PDM1 and PDM2 respectively. The main reason for the PDM2 coverage drop was the overwhelming data collection requirements for the Coaches in the same period (PDM2 was in fact being completed around the same time of the measurement of quarterly report data).

Key PDM Findings . The proportion of households that reported having received consumption smoothing was roughly unchanged between PDM1 and PDM2 (99% vs. 99%). The small difference is due to the fact that some coaches started administering PDM before the recommended timeline (at least 5 days after the cash transfer). . 99% of respondents reported having withdrawn the money. The main reason for not withdrawing the money was saving (54%) in PDM 1, while most people (40%) reported that they just had not gone to withdraw in PDM 2. . The proportion of people that “felt safe” as they withdrew the money increased from 95% in PDM 1 to 98% in PDM 2. Worries were largely related to presence of large groups of people at the mobile money point. . We observed a reduction in the number of people who reported having to pay bribes / extra fees in return for the consumption support. The proportion decreased from 3.5% in PDM1 to 1.4% in PDM2. . The proportion of beneficiaries that reported being “very satisfied” with the process rose from 89% in PDM1 to 95% in PDM2. The improvement is largely associated to the improved timing of cash transfer, and a correction in the explanation of the question itself (many people had initially misconceived the question to mean “satisfaction with the amount” instead of the process of consumption smoothing cash transfer). . 98% of households reported having used portion of the money by the time both PDM exercise, large majority for food (90%‐PDM 1 and 91% PDM 2) and other items spent on included; School fees/scholastic materials, non‐food items, assets, and medical expenses as presented in the table below.

Table 2: Consumption smoothing (other expenses) Item PDM 1 (February 2019) PDM 2 (Mach, 2019) Refugees Host Overall Refugees Host Overall Food 97% 86% 90% 97% 84% 91%

7 | Page

School fees/Supplies 16% 26% 21% 20% 28% 24% Non‐food items2 15% 27% 21% 16% 24% 20% Purchasing Asset3 8% 24% 16% 9% 17% 13% Medical Expenses 11% 18% 15% 17% 14% 16% Other4 17% 11% 14% 11% 21% 16% Source: PDM 1 and 2

Feedback Mechanisms During the quarter, 75 cases were registered through the Complaint and Response Mechanism (CRM) established by the Activity. The majority of the cases (66.7%) were registered through the toll‐free line, 17.3% through walk‐in to office, and 16% through activity staff (coaches or officers). The majority of the complaints (62.7%) were about cash transfer/consumption support, 6.7% about loss of SIM card/SIM card swapping, and 5.3% about gender/family neglect. The majority of the received cases (61.3%) were resolved and the complainants reported being satisfied with the solution provided. However, 38.7% of the cases are still being followed up by the program team to generate a solution. See Annex II for a summary of feedback and complaints received.

Planning and Coordination Update During the quarter, AVSI and its partners remained very active in the organization of and participation in a range of key internal and external meetings for planning and coordination of the Activity.

See Annex III for list of key meetings held during the quarter.

3.2 Recruitment and Staffing The Activity’s organogram is by and large fully staffed.

Coaches and CBTs – turnover and roster of back‐ups: Following a rise in staff turnover among the Coaches and CBTs, AVSI found it pertinent to pre‐select candidates and create a standby list to quickly fill in vacancies and strive to ensure consistent support to households. During this quarter, the Graduating to Resilience Activity completed a roster of 40 coaches (12 females and 28 males) and 10 Community Based Trainers (5 females and 5 males).

The newly recruited Senior Refugee and Livelihoods Advisor (Mr. Dikua Robert) seconded by Trickle Up, began his appointment under the Graduating to Resilience Activity on a 3‐month probationary contract effective January 1st.

In accord with the approved IEE/EMMP, AVSI hired an Environmental Sustainability Specialist (Mr. Nyenje Richard) to lead the mainstreaming of environmental considerations in the Activity’s design and implementation. Richard assumed this position on 1st March 2019.

3.3 Field Office Set‐up – Kamwenge District

2 Commodities such as clothing, shoes, household non‐consumables. 3 Income generating set of assets such as tools to be used or an IGA/business for instance agricultural inputs, animals, bicycles. 4 Repaying debts, savings, hire labor, investment in home renovation/construction. 8 | Page

In January 2019, AVSI completed construction (with own funds) of the new office space on a plot of land provide by OPM within Base Camp, the main office area in Rwamwanja Settlement. The team shifted into the new office building that offers a conducive workspace that adequately accommodates the growing team.

3.4 Communications and Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) The first Graduating to Resilience newsletter was sent out to a tailored mailing list in February. The newsletter featured three articles, on the Graduation Approach, Participatory Targeting, and the Activity’s approach to Collaborating, Learning and Adapting –CLA.

Collaborating, Learning and Adapting (CLA) The Monitoring and Evaluation and the Research and Learning team developed and put in operation two trackers: a Decision Tracker and a Lessons Learned Tracker. While the Decisions Tracker is used to document important programmatic decisions made (what/when/ why), the Lessons Learned tracker is used to document important learning during implementation and who that information may be relevant to, for instance the TSC, external stakeholders, and/or the larger community of practice.

Scenario Planning Following earlier reports concerning possible large‐scale inflow of refugees to Rwamwanja, Graduating to Resilience conducted a Scenario Planning activity to assess the validity of certain assumptions and the feasibility of certain programmatic approaches (for instance, the choices of agricultural enterprises in face of a possible shortage of land available). Findings indicate the Activity should continue with interventions as planned as land sizes in the settlement will likely not change during the first year of implementation. A report is being finalized and provides information on high‐value crops that could be profitable on smaller pieces of land, should the situation suddenly change.

The team expanded GIS data collection by creating tools for coaches, CBTs, and POs to collect data on the locations of FFBSs, VSLAs, coach and CBT homes, input dealers, market, MMOs, and some missing beneficiary HHs.

3.5 Assessments The final revised Financial Service Provider and Village Saving and Loans Associations Assessments, Service Provider Mapping, and Targeting Report were completed and submitted to USAID.

Gender Assessment The Gender Analysis consultant obtained final approval from the Uganda National Council of Science and Technology (UNCST) for the research protocol submitted in late 2018. The team conducted field data collection in January, in concert with the Gender team (who received a “human subjects” training). A report is being finalized.

Food Security and Nutrition Assessment The Nutrition and WASH Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) Assessment is nearing completion. The Research and Learning Advisor, along with the IMPAQ team in DC, supported the Nutrition and Food Security Advisor and the Nutrition and Food Security Specialist in

9 | Page

analysis and interpretation of the qualitative data. This is an example of interagency synergy and capacity building within the Activity.

3.6 M&E Plan The M&E Plan Narrative and the revised Theory of Change were cleared by USAID/FFP. The M&E team has interacted with IPA to obtain baseline data to allow for the completion of the Indicator Performance Tracking Table (IPTT) including target setting. The Activity has also proceeded with the revision of the PIRS, in line with recommendations from USAID/FFP, and has developed a set of Graduation Criteria which will contribute to a custom indicator related to graduation included in the M&E Plan. Graduation Criteria will be finalized in the next quarter.

3.7 Programming Guidelines Graduating to Resilience Activity is developing a comprehensive and evidence‐based Technical Programming Guide to standardise the Activity’s approaches. Spearheaded by the Livelihoods and Market Development Specialist, the development of this guide was informed by an in‐depth analysis and understanding of the proposal submitted to USAID and additional learning came from the various studies and other refinement year activities. The zero draft was shared with the Technical Steering Committee (TSC) for input and feedback are being incorporated.

Stemming from the programming guide, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for different aspects of the interventions are being developed for each sector and are to be shared with IPA to enable them carry out their process evaluation activities.

3.8 Staff Training/ Capacity Building Facilitation skills training for CBTs: All 61 CBTs were trained, and the acquired skills have greatly improved their ability to deliver FFBS trainings. Program officers FSN and Livelihoods also participated in the trainings. Training Coaches in the Coaching Curriculum: After finalising development of the coaching curriculum, a total of 193 coaches were trained in the key contents of the coaching curriculum. The trainers were Program Officers and members of the TSC who had been trained by AVSI and Trickle Up in the previous quarter. M&E Training of Coaches and CBTs: All Program Officers, CBTs and Coaches were trained on key Monitoring and Evaluation tools, which included Individual coaching tool, Group coaching tool, household self‐reflection tool, Post‐distribution Monitoring tool for consumption smoothing, Nutrition Screening tool, referral tool, FFBS/VSLA group registration tools, FFS learning assessment tools, G2R VSLA/FFBS quarterly tools, Monthly coach M&E tool, coach and CBT individual weekly reporting tool, coach group weekly reporting tool and coach quarterly reporting tool. The staff were also guided through use of smartphone to collect data, ethical considerations, data collection and sharing protocol. Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Training: In February, the Gender team trained 91 staff who had missed the previous round of training in PSEA. The training objectives were to: increase staff understanding on what constitutes PSEA, UNHCR’s Code of Conduct, and PSEA Reporting Mechanisms in and around Rwamwanja Settlement; how to handle frequently asked questions‐FAQs about PSEA; and increase staff understanding of AVSI PSEA Policy and reporting mechanisms.

10 | Page

3.9 Private Sector Engagement Market event: In collaboration with UNHCR, OPM, LWF and Kamwenge District Local Government, the Activity is organising a three‐day market event at Nkoma Ground‐ Rwamwanja Refugee settlement from May 14‐16, 2019. The main objective of the event is to facilitate business linkages between the private sector and refugees and host communities in and around the settlement. A field level committee comprising the above listed stakeholders has been established to coordinate the strategic planning of the event and three planning meetings held. A total of 50 private sector firms from diverse sectors are targeted to show case their products in the market even and 28 firms had confirmed participation by end of the quarter.

3.9 Environmental Considerations Environmental Compliance Monitoring: An environment Compliance monitoring was carried out in three sub counties of Nkoma, Bihanga and Biguli bordering the Katonga Wildlife Reserve. The findings based on field observations indicate that all beneficiaries bordering the reserve are in conformity with the Uganda Wildlife Act‐Chapter 200, the National Environment Act‐ Chapter 153 and The National Environment (wetlands, river banks and lake shores) Management Regulations 2000, the national laws and regulations that govern communities surrounding protected as well as wetland ecosystems.

Farmer field schools, compliance with wetland management regulations: A quick assessment through visual inspection was made on 4 Farmer Field Schools; all were found to be compliant with the National Environment (wetlands, river banks and lake shores) regulations, i.e. no crop establishment within the wetland. Recommendations for improved environmental management include: creating awareness to beneficiary community on the importance of wetlands and compliance with environmental regulations; and teaching community to establish contour bunds to reduce runoff and siltation of the wetlands.

Commodity Quality and Safety: Graduating to Resilience ensured adherence to commodity quality and safety during the procurement of seeds, pesticides and fertilizers for the Farmer Field Business School groups’ learning. All the seeds (Maize, Beans, Ground nuts and assorted vegetables) were procured from certified seed companies who availed official seed test results certificate from the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries National Seed Certification Service. The analysis results of all various seed varieties supplied met standards in terms of purity, germination capacity and moisture content. All pesticides and fertilizers procured contained allowed active ingredients as per USAID PERSUAP.

4. Challenges

Endogenous Challenges  Failure of MTN’s cash transfer system ‐ In November 2018, AVSI signed an agreement with MTN Uganda, a mobile network operator, to provide bulk payment services based on its Mobile Money transfer solution. The system developed specifically for the transfer activity failed to function at the last minute. This delayed the first and second

11 | Page

consumption support cash transfer. AVSI resolved the problem by engaging an alternative mechanism through Stanbic Bank.  Theft / loss of SIM card – beneficiaries have been sensitized to report cases of theft and loss of SIM card to police and immediately swap the lost number to void the stolen SIM card.  Lack of documents for SIM card registration – about 5% of beneficiaries have failed to produce the national identification cards (Ugandans) / attestation cards (Refugees) required to activate a mobile money account. AVSI activated a hand‐to‐hand cash transfer for these households, while encouraging their registration. AVSI is also working with Stanbic Bank to provide prepaid cards for beneficiaries who cannot acquire SIM cards.  Long distance covered by coaches to reach scattered treatment villages, groups and households ‐ Some coaches have been complaining about their assigned households/ villages being significantly distant from each other. This problem has been exacerbated by the poor terrain making use of bicycles very problematic, especially in the host community. This issue has made it hard for the coaches to follow households as the household visit guidelines require. To address this gap, some coaches have resorted to hiring of available alternative transport means e.g. boda‐boda to be able to reach their households, which is expensive and unsustainable. The Activity is utilizing GIS technologies to identify cases requiring particular attention and considering logistical solutions to the problem.  Relocation of Households ‐ Some beneficiaries have been mobile within and outside the Activity’s area of operation. These movements have affected planning and scheduling of coaching and other activities and reduced the active population. The Activity intends to routinely update the beneficiary master list to be able to factor in dropouts due to relocation.  Unanticipated Resignation of staff ‐ There’s high turnover, especially among the Coaches. In many instances, Coaches do not give sufficient notice and leave suddenly. This has affected coaching activities for some households and groups as replacement takes a long time. Management is addressing this by creating a pool of roster Coaches and CBTs to be trained and engaged on short notice once need arises.  Balancing data collection with activity implementation that compete for time of both Coaches and Activity participants ‐ Due to a large amount of data collection, we are experiencing difficulty balancing the data collection activity with the coaching/training/field implementation activity for both the CBTs and Coaches, particularly among group Coaches. This is becoming tedious and stressful to coaches, CBTs, and even households. To remedy this situation, the MERL team is working to revise the data collection tools to make collection of some indicators less frequent where possible. The team is also brainstorming ideas to reduce the data collection burden on coaches and CBTs such as hiring data collection enumerators or collecting data as rapid surveys more frequently rather than long surveys at set intervals.

Exogenous Challenges  Land conflicts rising from land provided to FFBS groups by OPM ‐ Occasionally, community members and sometimes organizations came up to claim land allocated to FFBS groups, causing delay in activities as such issues were being resolved. AVSI continued to work with OPM who either re‐allocated another piece of land or evicted the claimers.

12 | Page

 Staff Safety and security ‐ On the night of March 6, 2019, a coach stationed in Bwizi Sub‐ County was murdered at his rented residence. Whereas, according to police investigations, not directly connected to his employment with AVSI, the incident sent immense security and safety concerns among the community‐based staff. The anxiety that came with this unfortunate occurrence has seen some Coaches and CBTs relocate from their duty stations to places considered safer. This has exacerbated the problems related to distances covered by the community based staff to reach households or groups. The Activity is engaging all Coaches and CBTs to understand the organisation’s safety and security guidelines, and is collaborating with existing security mechanisms (police and Local Councils) at sub county level to address safety and security of deployed AVSI staff.  Referring malnutrition cases to VHTs who have no capacity to respond ‐ The team has registered challenges in making referrals to VHTs as required. Some VHTs are not willing to work with our beneficiaries because they feel the beneficiaries are better facilitated (consumption smoothing cash transfer) than them, while others do not have the requisite skills to manage or make onward referral due to lack of ministry referral forms or even not knowing what to do. Follow up is being done for all the identified cases to ensure they are managed to completion. The team is formalizing the referral procedures with the main nutrition and health partner Africa Humanitarian Action (AHA) to smoothen the process.

5. Market Analysis Data collection and monitoring was done for food commodities. Primarily the analysis of the market price data was done for the food minimum expenditure basket. The source of the historical data for 2017 and 2018 is the World Food Programme (WFP). The results of the market price monitoring are summarised below. The price increases reported below are seasonal; as the season moves from harvest season (Nov ‐ Jan) towards the rainy season (March/April to June) food/staple crops prices increase as the harvest in the market reduces.

Table 3: Market Price Data – Rwamwanja

Commodity Market Price levels in UGX January to March Comparison with previous year (January to March 2019) 2019 Change (January to March 2018) Maize Grain - January‐ 503 - Increased by - Increase is 6% percentage points - February‐ 669 26 % more than in 2018 - March‐ 635 - Quarterly average price levels 6% more than in 2018 Maize Flour - January‐ 1,752 - Increased by - No increase in price of Maize - February‐ 1,915 4 % Flour in 2018, stable at Ugx.2,000 - March‐ 1,824 - Quarterly average price levels 8% less than in 2018 Beans (Nambale) - January‐ 1,735 - Increased by - Increase is 15% points more than - February‐ 2,095 33 % in 2018 - March‐ 2,300 - Quarterly average price levels 2% less than in 2018 Millet Flour - January‐ 2,667 - Increased by - Reduction is 9% points less than - February‐ 1,542 2% in 2018 - March‐ 2,708 - Quarterly average price levels 40% less than in 2018

13 | Page

Vegetable Oil - January‐ 5,545 - Reduced by 2 - No increase in price of Oil in - February‐ 5,778 % 2018, stable at Ugx.6,000 - March‐ 5,704 - Quarterly average price levels 5% less than in 2018 Salt - January‐ 1,373 - Increased by - No increase in price of Salt in - February‐ 1,420 10 % 2018, stable at Ugx.1,200 - March‐ 1,509 - Quarterly average price levels 20% more than in 2018

Conclusion: This price increases are seasonal; as the season moves from harvest season (November to January) towards the rainy season (March/April to June) food/staple crops prices increase as their supply in the market reduce. The price increases observed during the quarter are not as a result of the Activity’s injection of cash in the markets.

Market value of minimum expenditure food basket The market value of the food basket is also analysed to establish at what particular time in the program the beneficiaries have more purchasing power based on the cash transfer. For this analysis, the Activity uses the WFP transfer value (calculated on the basis of the value of the Minimum Expenditure Basket‐MEB) as a reference point. During this quarter, the amount of WFP money received by refugee participants (31,000UGX) remained above the actual market cost of the commodities included in the MEB by, on average, 32%. This means that the cash transfer beneficiaries had more purchasing power and thus could either buy more of the food basket items (and even store some for period of less food stock at home and in the market), diversify their diets and/or even save some of the money5. The PDM report suggested that about 20% of the interviewed households mentioned they used money for other things rather than food which included savings as one of the most frequent responses.

Table 4: Market Value of Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB)

WFP Cash Transfer MEB Market Value in Comparison with WFP Comparison with Value in UGX (January UGX (January to March transfer value (January previous year (January to March) 2019) to March 2019 change) to March 2018) - January‐ 31,000 - January‐ 19,308 - Cash transfer - Cash transfer - February‐ 31,000 - February‐ 21,839 received was higher received was higher - March‐ 31,000 - March‐ 22,509 than WFP in‐kind than WFP in‐kind food‐basket at food‐basket at market price by 32% market price by 25% which is 7% points less than in 2019

6. Planned Interventions

Food security and nutrition:  FFS training for new and roaster CBTs  Facilitation skills training for new and roaster CBTs

5 The “per person/day” value of the Activity’s consumption smoothing transfer was based on the 10th percentile of the distribution of food gaps of the participants, thereby being more than enough to close the gap for about 90% of them. 14 | Page

 Nutrition training for new and roaster coaches  Distribute remaining FFBS tool and materials  FFS demonstration garden set up to support season long learning  FBS ToT for CBTs and POs  FBS roll out to beneficiaries  Nutrition Screening and referral of identified cases

Graduation and Linkages:  Conduct routine coaching to households  Conduct regular training and mentorship of coaches and Program Officers through routine field support, bi‐weekly and quarterly meetings and refresher trainings  Referral and linkages of activity participants to existing critical services  Conduct service provider’s quarterly meeting to strengthen opportunities for referrals

Livelihoods:  Market event: Orientation of CBTs and coaches; and sensitization of beneficiaries  April to June, 2019 consumption smoothing transfers  Conduct Post‐Distribution Monitoring of beneficiaries and mobile money operator;  Map the potential markets in neighboring Districts to Kamwenge (Kyenjojo, Mubende, Kamwenge, and Fort Portal)  Enterprise Selection, Planning and Management training for CBTs and roll out to beneficiaries  Business plan development  Asset transfer to beneficiary households  Refresher training on market prices data collection for necessary CBTs

Monitoring & Evaluation, Research and Learning:  Qualitative Case Studies in partnership with the Communications team (20 households will be selected and followed over the course of the Activity). The Research and Learning Advisor will design interviews each quarter with each household to monitor their stories over the course of the 30 month implementation period  Expand GIS to track GBV “hot spots” integrating the referral system with the Accountability Framework and other local reporting systems such as those with the Uganda Police Force and UNHCR  Write an Addendum to the Financial Service Provider Assessment to update the report on the changes in implementation since the start of the consumption smoothing

Gender:  Review of the 3rd draft of the Gender Analysis report  Validation of Gender Analysis findings with key stakeholders  Technical support to Coaches and POs on Gender Integration and GBV Referral  Participate in bi‐weekly coaches and CBTs supervision meetings, working closely with Food Security and Nutrition and Livelihood Project Officers  Review/analyze weekly M&E data to identify gaps to inform gender integration and areas identified for emerging gender based violence issues

Environment Sustainability:

15 | Page

 Prepare Environmental Status Report‐1st draft and respond to comments from USAID review  Participate in preparation of Environment Management section of the Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP) and the Pipeline and Resource Estimate Proposal (PREP)  Carry out environmental compliance monitoring  Provide capacity building for staff on compliance with environmental mitigation and monitoring plan  Develop an easy to understand environment screening checklist for use during business plan review prior to release of asset transfer  Engage and participate in stakeholder’s meetings that halt land degradation and desertification, and promote community resilience to impacts of climate change

7. Success Stories No significant success stories were ready for reporting during this quarter.

8. Cash Transfers and FFPMIS Reporting Consumption smoothing cash transfer commenced this quarter and transfers were made for the first two months, February and March. Due to challenges encountered with the mobile money provider, MTN, the January transfer was not affected until the beginning of February, therefore causing a slight shift in the Cash Transfer schedule. As described in FY2019 Q1 Report, the consumption smoothing amount was determined to be between USD $5 and USD $4 per person per month for refugee and host community beneficiary households respectively. Transfers were done at the household level based on actual composition of the household. The primary transfer mechanism was Mobile Money transfer (90%). Hand delivery of physical cash (10%) was used for beneficiaries without access to Mobile Money services. Whereas 6,629 households were targeted, a total of 6,564 (99%) were reached as detailed in Table 4 below. The 1% not reached were either households that lost interest in the project, relocated, or were repeated in the enrolment system, as noted in Table 5 below.

Table 5: Consumption smoothing cash transfer summary Payment status February March Host Refugees Total Host Refugees Total Mobile Money Transfer 2,706 3,193 5,899 2,691 3,181 5,872 Cash Transfer 562 99 661 581 111 692 No transfer 32 24 56 23 28 51 Repeated household 4 9 13 9 5 14 3,304 3,325 6,629 3,304 3,325 6,629 Source: Cash transfer monthly report

Table 6: Reasons for households withdrawing from Activity Total Feb‐March Reason for withdrawal of participation Host Refugees Lost interest 16 0 16 Coach's household 0 6 6 Source: Cash transfer monthly report

16 | Page

Passed on 0 1 1 Relocated 11 6 17 Returned to Congo 0 5 5 Repeated 9 5 14 Unknown household 0 10 10 Grand Total 36 33 69

Table 7: Quarterly Cash Transfer Report – as submitted in FFPMIS6 INDICATOR NOTES RESULT Amount Approved 3 CT per quarter $ 594,000.00 Value of Individual Transfer household/ transfer $ 23.44 Total Expenditure Transfer + Costs $ 317,895.00 Planned # of Cash Transfers household 6,629 Actual # of Cash Transfers household 6,564 # of Participants per Month who Received Transfers individual 37,216 # of Months Distribution months 2 Average Cost per Household household/transfer $ 0.777 withdrawal plus transaction Cost per Month fees $ 5,057.38 Frequency of Transaction monthly

Planned Participants for the Quarter (Male) individual 18,191 Planned participants for the Quarter (Female) individual 19,394 Actual Number of Participants reached (Male) individual 18,013 Actual Number of Participants reached (Female) individual 19,203 Source: Cash transfer monthly reports, quarterly financial reports, agreements with mobile money provider.

Note that the cost per month (or per cash transfer operation) was determined by taking the total actual expenditure for the cash transfer during the quarter and separating out the taxes and fees for each transaction from the value actually delivered to participants. Transaction fees vary and so an estimated average was used.8 The total costs for the quarter were then divided by the number of cash transfers operations (2 rounds in this quarter) to arrive at a total estimated cost of the cash transfer per month. This cost is a total for all participants receiving cash transfer each month.

6 In this table, the number of recipients of cash transfer is reported both in terms of individuals and households. This is due to the fact that cash is transfer to a member of the household (the Activity’s direct participant) in a value that is based on the number of household members. The purpose of the cash transfer is to smooth household consumption. For both of these reasons, both the number of households and the number of individuals are relevant to tracking the success of the Activity. 7 This cost per household per transfer is different from the “Cost per Participant” in the FFPMIS report for this month, due to the automatic calculation embedded in FFPMIS. 8 A lumpsum transaction fee is charged per cash transfer transaction; the number of successful cash transfer transactions varies slightly month to month. Additional fees are charged as a percentage of the cash transfer value which varies due to household size. 17 | Page

Table 8: Comprehensive Output Tracking Table Participants Actual/Planned Unique Jan 2019 Feb 2019 Mar 2019 Participants Consumption Participants 0/ 18,301 18,154/ 18,165/ 18,166/ 18,301 Smoothing Cash (Male) 18,301 18,301 Transfer Participants 0/19,284 19,119/ 19,129/ 19,132/ 19,284 (Female) 19,284 19,284 Asset Transfer Participants 0/0 0/0 0/0 0/0 (Male) Participants 0/0 0/0 0/0 0/0 (Female)

9. Financial management At the end of the 6th quarter, the Activity had spent $5,413,548.49, out of the total two‐year budget of $12,168,285 (44.5%). The upcoming two quarters of FY2019 will include continued cash transfer delivery and the large household asset transfer for 2/3 of participating households.

LIST of ANNEXES

ANNEX I: Indicator Performance Tracking Table, FY2019, Q2 Results ANNEX II: Complaints Report Summary: Key issues reported, FY2019, Q2 ANNEX III: Planning and Coordination Meetings, FY2019, Q2

18 | Page

19 | Page

Annex I: Indicator Performance Tracking Table – FY2019, Q2 Results

Table 1: Host community

Host Base Base Base Value- Target- Actual- Value- Target- Actual- value- Target- Actual- Male Male Male Female Female Female Overall Overall Overall Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of WASH practices 32.70% 57.70% 94.59% 65.30% 90.30% 82.86% 98.00% 100% 83.40% Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of maternal and child health and nutrition (MCHN) practices 26.5% 51.5% 73.1% 55.1% 80.1% 85.61% 81.60% 96.60% 84.90% Source: IPTT Table 2: Refugees

Refugees Base Base Base Value- Target- Actual- Value- Target- Actual- value- Target- Actual- Male Male Male Female Female Female Overall Overall Overall Percentage of men and women with children 44.00 69.00% 82.27% 54.00% 79.00% 82.58% 98.00% 100% 82.6% under two who have knowledge of WASH % practices Percentage of men and women with children 24.00 49.00% 69.21% 28.00% 53.00% 76.70% 52.00% 77.00% 75.8% under two who have knowledge of maternal and % child health and nutrition (MCHN) practices Source: IPTT Table 3: Overall

Base value-Overall Target-Overall Actual-Overall Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of WASH practices 98% 100% 82.9% Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of maternal and child health and nutrition (MCHN) practices 66.70% 91.70% 80.14% Source: IPTT Table 4: Indicators

Host Refugees Overall Base Base Base value- Target- Actual- value- Target- Actual- value- Target- Actual- Overall Overall Overall Overall Overall Overall Overall Overall Overall Percent of households in target areas practicing the correct use of recommended household water treatment technologies. 29.60% 59.60% 74.8% 29.60% 59.60% 46.9% 29.60% 59.60% 60.3% Percentage of households with soap and water at a hand washing station commonly used by family members 6.79% 36.8% 56.6% 5.17% 35.20% 13.4% 6.00% 36.00% 34.1% Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of WASH practices 98.00% 100% 83.40% 98.00% 100% 82.6% 98% 100% 82.9% Percentage of men and women with children under two who have knowledge of maternal and child health and nutrition (MCHN) practices 81.60% 96.60% 84.90% 52.00% 77.00% 75.8% 66.70% 91.70% 80.14% Prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding of children under six months of age. 20.5% 53.7% 66.70% 20.50% 50.50% 38.50% 22.10% 52.10% 47.10% Percent of HHs with all children under 59 months fully immunized (pentavalent, pneumococcal, rotavirus, measles second 51.20% 56.20% 62.5% 51.20% 56.20% 53.4% 51.20% 56.20% 58.4%

1 dose, rubella, inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), vaccines, yellow fever)

Percentage of men/women in union and earning cash who make decisions alone about the use of self-earned cash 30.00% 5.00% 11.59% 33.00% 8.00% 3.40% 31.50% 6.50% 7.40% Percentage of men/women in union and earning cash who make decisions jointly with spouse/partner about the use of self- earned cash 25.00% 50.00% 81.3% 29.00% 54.00% 92.2% 27.00% 52.00% 87.00% Percentage of farmers who used financial services (savings, agricultural credit, and/or agricultural insurance) in the past 12 months 37.50% 57.50% 40.6% 25.00% 40.00% 38.40% 31.30% 51.30% 39.50% Percentage of households that diversify their livelihood enterprises. 16.00% 26.00% 27.30% 42.00% 52.00% 27.50% 29.00% 39.00% 27.40% The number of Farmer Field Business School Groups assessed for readiness to transform into Production and Marketing Groups. 0 132 0 0 133 0 0 265 0 Percent of Farmer Field Business School Groups registered as Production and Marketing Groups. 0 50% 0 0 50% 0 0 50% 0 Number of Production and Marketing Groups linked to markets 0 132 0 0 132 0 0 265 0 Number of for-profit private enterprises, producers organizations, water users associations, women's groups, trade, and business associations and community- based organizations (CBOs) that applied improved organization-level technologies or management practices with USG assistance 0 66 99 0 66 69 0 132 168 Source: IPTT

2

ANNEX II: Complaints Report Summary: Key issues reported FY2019 Q2

Complaint type: Issues reported: Cash - Majority of the beneficiaries (37) were reported not receiving their transfer/Consu consumption support money and asking for what they need to do. All these mption Support categories were followed and their issues resolved. The majority actually received the money but did not know how to check for their mobile money balance. - One beneficiary reported the wife running away with the SIM card after separation making the family missed out on the money for that month - One beneficiary reported missing out on the 1st and 2nd cash transfer as she was away attending to other family issues. She is now inquiring how she can get the money for the month she has missed. - 2 beneficiaries reported registering fewer members than the actual number they have during the baseline and now inquiring if they can be included among the list for cash transfer. - 2 beneficiaries were inquiring why there was a delay in cash distribution from AVSI for the month. - 2 beneficiaries were inquiring why they never got their transfer after swapping their SIM Card. the cash in the phone - 1 beneficiary was just confirming whether the toll-free line was really free and as well following up on when the next consumption support will be distributed. - One beneficiary was checking why they got less money than they got in the initial transfer. Lost SIM - 3 beneficiaries reported the loss of their SIM Cards and finding out how to get card/SIM card the lines back swapping - 1 beneficiary reported losing his phone and was checking how he can get his line back. - 1 beneficiary reported trying to swap his Sim card and meeting resistance from the MTN agent. Appreciation - All the 4 beneficiaries were reporting receipt of consumption support money and appreciating AVSI for the support given to the household. Gender/Family - A husband reported her wife for child neglect. She receives money but does not Neglect want to take care of all the children registered for support. She only supports her biological children with money. - Another beneficiary reported that before AVSI started engaging with his household, he was paying school fees and feeding his children without any issues but when AVSI came in, issues started coming up that resulted into wife leaving the household with children, now he is seeking for help. - 1 beneficiary reported that her husband who is working as a coach with AVSI and has abandoned them, she wants AVSI to compel him to support them financially. - 1 primary beneficiary reported that her husband is stopping her from participating in all the activities and even receiving the money because he claims the money given to them is from Illuminati. She is asking for support on what to do. Job - Applied to be a COACH and was checking if the shortlist is out

3

- She is a refugee with a Bachelor’s Degree and looking for a job with AVSI Land issue - 2 beneficiaries reported their land was taken away by OPM and handed over to AVSI FFBS group and all his crops were destroyed. SIM Card - All the 3 beneficiaries were seeking support on how they can register for a SIM Registration Card as advised by their coaches. PIN code - 1 beneficiary reported that her PIN number was blocked and was seeking for resetting help - 1 beneficiary reported losing the PIN number and was worried that someone might use it to withdraw her money. Impersonation - 1 beneficiary reported that she was registered as a beneficiary but later went to Congo and while they were giving out SIM cards, her husband staged a step- wife as the registered member but when she returned, the husband refused to give her the mobile money line. Joining School - 1 beneficiary reported joining the school and was wondering if his name may be removed from the list of beneficiaries Participation - 1 HHs who was interviewed during scorecard was checking if he went through among the list of the beneficiaries. Shifted - The beneficiary moved back to Congo and was the only beneficiary in the household Source: Complaints reporting tracker

4

ANNEX III: Planning and Coordination Meetings, FY2019, Q2

National, District and Settlement level meetings • Cash Working Group (CWG) 26th March, 2019: AVSI participated in the meeting chaired by WFP and discussed final Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) harmonization Guideline report and a reference point for the MEB were highlighted for a ceiling of 56% for food at UGX 77,438, Reference MEB at UGX 72,321 and for extreme poverty at UGX 72,000. • Public Health Coordination meeting: This meeting has been rejuvenate and chaired by Kamwenge District Local Government. During the quarter, AVSI participated in the meeting which discussed and planned for Nutrition, WASH and Preventive Health. The meetings paved way for proper coordination of nutrition referral between AVSI and Africa Humanitarian Action (AHA), the main nutrition partner. Discussions are ongoing on the possibility of AHA opening up an Activity file for all referrals in various health centers and mechanisms for feedback provision are being explored. This will strengthen not only the referral process but also case handling. • Meeting with WFP retail engagement: The team met with the WFP retail engagement team to explore opportunities of partnership around cash transfer programming and retail engagement. The meeting agreed on regular meetings and market information sharing between WFP and AVSI. • Meeting with Rwamwanja Livelihood partners on 20th March, 2019: The meeting commenced the process of mapping all livelihood partners operating in around Rwamwanja settlement to identify overlaps, avoid duplication and extend resources. Meeting was attended by AVSI, UNHCR, WFP, OPM, Child Foundation Uganda, FinChurchAid, Kaborole Research Centre, ADRA, and LWF. Partners agree to share information on villages of operation and basic beneficiaries detail where there’s an overlap in village of operation. • WFP mitigation of risk of abuse by private sector training 28th March 2019: the aim of the training was to raise awareness on the risk of abuse by private sector partners in humanitarian operations and developing action plans to mitigate some the risks. The training was based on findings of WFP-UNHCR assessment on the same. The training was conducted on 28th March 2019 and was attended by representatives from Graduating to Resilience project, OPM, WFP, UNHCR, World Vision, LWF, ADRA and KRC. Attachment 3 of this report is a presentation of the training highlighting some of the content that was delivered. • NU-TEC MD, dissemination meeting, 7th February 2019: NU-TEC is a DFID funded project that aims to support Northern Uganda’s transition into a dynamic wealth creating economy, supplying more and greater value products to Uganda Agri-businesses with smallholder farmers as the ultimate beneficiaries. The Programme uses the Village Agent Model that is premised on a free market forces and designed to provide value addition to key market actors. Village agents provide services such as seeds, agro chemicals, and information along the market value chains. Findings of the assessment indicated 21% of women participating in the programme as village agents; working with oil processors and large off takers. Women participation is encouraged due to the benefits of the model and Graduating to Resilience

5

Activity can learn from the model to promote women village agents in business enterprises along the value chains being promoted by the Activity. • UNHCR Protection Working Group (PWG), 17th January at UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: This meeting discussed key achievements in 2018, planned activities in 2019, and the Interagency FRRM implemented by UNHCR. In planning for 2019, partners were requested to share reports on activity implementation to enable UNHCR to understand what various implementing and operating partners are carrying out in the community. • Training on the UNHCR Comprehensive Feedback, Referral and Response Mechanism (FRRM), 29th January at UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: The FRRM was developed to formalize the system of soliciting, receiving, processing, and responding to feedback and complaints from population of concern. The Activity will learn from this system in developing own accountability to affected persons mechanism. • UNHCR Protection Working Group (PWG), 26th February at UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: The meeting further discussed the UNHCR FRRM, as well as the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF), increased arrest of refugees by new policemen and refugees falsely obtaining Ugandan national identification documents. Many refugees have registered for Ugandan National IDs and it’s affecting them during resettlement, when they reach at the airport, the biometric system shows that they are Ugandans and their movements are stopped. OPM will consult the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) about the process of deregistration. • National Youth Working Group Meeting, 28th February, at UNFPA Kampala: Hosted by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), this meeting brought together organizations that are directly working with youth under the theme, “meaningful youth participation in government policies and programs.” • GBV Sub-Working Group, 15th March, UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: This meeting coordinates GBV responses and strengthen for GBV cases. UNHCR requested AVSI to regularly share with them details of GBV-related cases identified, handled and referred. • Livelihood Sector Working Group Meeting, 20th March, at UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: The meeting discussed partners’ livelihood activities of 2019 in Rwamwanja Settlement to avoid overlap and duplication of activities. UNHCR is learning a process to reconcile partners’ villages/zones of operation and beneficiaries to avoid overlaps. • Child Protection Working Group Meeting, 22nd March, at UNHCR Rwamwanja Field Office: The meeting was aimed at improving coordination among children and youths targeted activities in the Settlement. AVSI shared the Graduating to Resilience Activity’s child-related interventions including nutrition screening and referral of malnutrition cases, and preventive child health care messaging and infant and young child feeding practices.

Staff coordination meetings

• Bi-weekly meeting of Coaches and CBTs: Program Officers conducted regular bi-weekly meetings at implementation level with Coaches and CBTs under their supervision. The meetings assessed field implementation progress, provided mentoring and coaching

6

opportunity for Coaches and CTBs, generated lessons for programming, identified implementation challenges faced and provided update on upcoming activities. • Quarterly joint review meeting: These meetings brought together Coaches, CBTs, POs, Advisors and Management at Sub County level to review quarterly progress, discuss challenges and way forward, and share plan for the next quarter. In this quarter, only 3 meetings were held in Nkoma, Bwizi and Biguli. • Technical Steering Committee (TSC) meetings: The Graduating to Resilience field team held 5 bi-weekly TSC meetings comprising the COP and DCOP, plus all the Technical Advisors, which facilitated various decisions.

7