USAID Agribusiness Project TABLE OF CONTENTS 2009 USAID AGRIBUSINESS PROJECT WORKPLAN Components of Final Year 2 Work Plan EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ___________________________________________________ 2 COMPONENT 1: INCREASED EFFICIENCY AND COMPETITIVENESS OF SERBIAN AGRIBUSINESS__________________________________________________ 4 1.0: Introduction and Overview of Year 2 Commodity Action Plans for Each Subsector ____ 4 1.1: STRENGTHEN PRODUCER ORGANIZATIONS _______________________________ 6 1.2: IMPROVE ABDS DELIVERY _______________________________________________ 18 1.3: SALES & MARKETING____________________________________________________ 29 1.4: YOUTH ENTERPRISE PROGRAM__________________________________________ 47 1.5: OTHER CROSSCUTTING ACTIVITIES _____________________________________ 54 ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE ___________________________________________________ 54 GENDER / WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE _______________________________________________ 59 VOLUNTEER PROGRAM____________________________________________________________ 61 COMPONENT 2: IMPROVED ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR SERBIAN AGRIBUSINESS__________________________________________________________ 62 Objective 2.1: Improve Crop and Livestock Production Estimates, Market Price Information, and Supporting Studies to GOS.__________________________________________________ 62 Objective 2.2: Facilitate Legal, Policy, And Regulatory Reform _______________________ 64 COMPONENT 3 – PROGRAM MANAGEMENT _______________________________ 69 OBJECTIVE 3.1: ESTABLISH AND MANAGE USAID AGRIBUSINESS GRANTS PROGRAM __________________________________________________________________ 69 OBJECTIVE 3.2 PROJECT COMMUNICATIONS_________________________________ 72 OBJECTIVE 3.3 ADMINISTRATION____________________________________________ 78 • Annexes I. Work plan Results versus PMP Chart II. 6 commodity plans, III. Revised Grant’s Manual IV. Revised PMP V. Budget VI. Organization Chart 1 USAID Agribusiness Project YEAR 2 WORK PLAN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY With our partners, Booz Allen Hamilton and International Relief and Development, DAI is pleased to present our work plan for Year 2 of the USAID Agribusiness Project. Our work plan is organized according to three components presented in the USAID Agribusiness Project scope of work. The USAID Agribusiness Project’s first year’s accomplishments, from September 2007 to October 2008, have provided a foundation for our second year objectives and results detailed in this document. Six commodity assessments were completed and approved by USAID. Based on our assessments, market failures within each value chain were identified and Commodity Action Plans for each sector were prepared detailing strategies and goals for addressing the failures within each commodity for the five year life of project. Specific objectives for each value chain and their cross cutting support to be accomplished in Year 2 are presented in this plan in Annex II. In 2007-8, the value chains and cross cutting components were fully merged into common goals and objectives serving agribusiness, and the new work plan builds upon the previous year’s successes by continuing the process of using points of leverage, producer organization development , expanding access to markets, youth and addressing policy issues which limit competitiveness and restrict eventual access to Europe. Following the last elections, excellent relations have been established with the Ministry of Agriculture where market failures identified through our assessments were presented to the Ministry and key areas of common concern were acknowledged as important issues for the USAID Agribusiness Project and the Ministry to work together to solve. Key among these are: market information, farm data, cold chain logistics, and certification for international standards. All will be addressed in year 2. The Agribusiness Grants Manual was approved by the Regional Contracts Officer and our first grant was funded for livestock training. A number of grants designed to address market failures in our value chains are planned for year 2 and are highlighted in this work plan. We are suggesting a change to the grants manual and the budget affecting grants. We propose taking $2.2 million from the grants budget and putting it under "Project Activities" over the life of the Projec t to cover cost of the training programs, trade fairs, seminars, studies and workshops aimed at enhancing delivery of public goods. These payments would not require CTO approval. The remaining grants budget in the amount of $3 million (over the life of the Project) would be exclusively used for the investment incentive grants, capacity building grants for producer organizations and ABDS providers and youth grants. These grants will be cost reimbursable cost-share grants and it will be administrated as we do now. Further details about grants program are provided in the Annex 3. The revised Grants Manual is attached for the Contracting Officer's and CTO's approval. The revised grants manual is in Annex III. 2 USAID Agribusiness Project By modifying the grant’s manual, we are obliged to revise the PMP to reflect the types, numbers and amount of grants listed as indicators in the PMP. Our proposed PMP for USAID approval is in Annex IV . Our Youth component, Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness, was prepared as our after school activity by identifying 20 key agriculture institutions to begin the program throughout Serbia. Close collaboration has also been established with the USAID SCOPES program and other partners including GTZ. The year 2 work plan goals include fully integrating value chain sector leads and cross cutting component specialists as key contributors to the program. This year’s work plan is expansive and comprehensive. The work plan is: “Value Chain Focused” with all key programs and major objectives, tasks and results linked to the 6 value chains; “Activity Specific” with all associated activities improving the performance of our partners in each value chain and cross cutting components, clearly contributing to our project’s results; and, “Results Driven” with specific targets that feed our project’s indicators. Annex 1 compares our PMP indicators with our planned results for Year 2. The projected results include both cross cutting components and value chains. Annex V . provides our revised budget projections based on Year 1 spending, revised grant’s manual and obligations expected from USAID. An updated Organization Chart is presented in Annex VI. 3 USAID Agribusiness Project COMPONENT 1: INCREASED EFFICIENCY AND COMPETITIVENESS OF SERBIAN AGRIBUSINESS 1.0: INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW OF YEAR 2 COMMODITY ACTION PLANS FOR EACH SUBSECTOR Introduction Our value chain assessments and field experience has provided the Project with the base to develop commodity action plans in six sub sectors for the life of project and identify replicable pilot activities in each sub-sector designed to achieve each value chains goals and objectives. Highlights of the year two work plan are presented here for each sub sector and detailed activities are listed sub sector Annex II. Each of our Sector Leads and Cross Cutting specialists will be involved in the Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness program. They will make presentations to students on their sectors, assist students with their business plans, review business plans in the competition and assist the winner sin implementing their businesses. Sector Leads will be crucial partners between students and agribusiness firms becoming involved in the Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness program. Dairy Dairy is focusing on establishing the links between dairies and producers using resources from both to improve the value chain. Medium and small dairies will be the hub providing linkages between producers and service providers. This model will be replicated throughout Serbia. Four main areas of focus make up the Year 2 work plan include consolidating linkages between; dairies, ABDS, and producers; structural changes and adoption of new technologies/services; technical knowledge on production, processing operations, quality standards and marketing requirements; developing CEFTA, Russia and USA export opportunities; leveraging Ministry of Agriculture, SIEPA, USDA and other donor funds for trainings, B&B trade events and study tours. Berries The Project’s goal by the end of year 2 is to create a replicable, dynamic group of businesses with established production of appropriate varieties of berry fruit for the fresh market, who have sufficient knowledge and market linkages to succeed on our domestic market. At the same time producers of value added products will have introduced new products and/or improved quality, packaging, design and market access of existing products. In year 2, the main training to produce replicable results in fresh berries will include production under high tunnels and new packaging models. Study tours to the UK and Italy and new technology will also yield our intended results. As with the other sectors, a full report is included in the sub sector annexes. 4 USAID Agribusiness Project Tree Fruit The main focus of the tree fruit sub-sector in the second year of the project will be on the growing export market for fresh apples and stone fruits in Russia and diversifying sales outlets via EU market channels. We will work with selected producer groups and companies to develop a model which can be extended to other fruit producers in Serbia. A centerpiece of the program will be food safety requirements to access EU markets. Industry stakeholders

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