POST-ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT LEBANON INDUSTRY VALUE CHAIN DEVELOPMENT (LIVCD) – TABLE GRAPE VC DEVELOPMENT ALTERNATIVES, INC. (DAI) May 2021 - FINAL REPORT This document was produced for the United States Agency for International Development by Social Impact, Inc. under USAID Contract/Order No. AID-268-C-15-00001. It was prepared by Elia Ghorra and Nadine Hanna in collaboration with Joanna Khater from Social Impact. Note: Limited redactions have been made to this version of the report in accordance with the principled exceptions to the presumption in favor of openness established in OMB Bulletin 12-01, “Guidance on Collection of U.S. Foreign Assistance Data.” POST-ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT LEBANON INDUSTRY VALUE CHAIN DEVELOPMENT (LIVCD) – TABLE GRAPE VC DEVELOPMENT ALTERNATIVES, INC. (DAI) FINAL REPORT May 2021 This report was prepared by Social Impact, Inc. for the United States Agency for International Development under USAID Contract/Order No. AID-268-C-15-00001: Performance Management and Support Program for Lebanon (PMSPL II). This document is available to the public through the Development Experience Clearinghouse repository (dec.usaid.gov). For additional information, please contact: Social Impact, Inc. Corporate Office 2300 Clarendon Boulevard Arlington, VA 22201 Tel: (703) 465-1884 Fax: (703) 465-1888 [email protected] Or Social Impact, Inc. Lebanon Office Arz Street Librex Bldg. Bloc B – 3rd Floor Zalka, Metn, Lebanon Tel: +961-1-879260 DISCLAIMER: The authors’ views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. PHOTO CREDITS: All photos by PMSPL II. DISCLAIMER This “Post-Activity Assessment of the Table Grapes’ Value Chain Interventions Financed Under the USAID/LIVCD Project” report was prepared on the basis of the information and technical documents made available to the assessment team by the beneficiaries and Social Impact’s team. The authors do not assume any liability towards the accuracy of the information and content of the documents made available to them for the preparation of this report or towards the feedback provided by the project’s beneficiaries and partners. i | LIVCD POST-ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT – TABLE GRAPE VC USAID/LEBANON MAY 2021 – FINAL REPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS DISCLAIMER ..................................................................................................................................................................... I TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................................................................. II ACRONYMS ................................................................................................................................................................... III INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................... 1 LIVCD TABLE GRAPE INTERVENTIONS .................................................................................................................... 1 ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................................... 2 MAIN FINDINGS ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 Relevance ................................................................................................................................................................ 3 Efficiency and Effectiveness ................................................................................................................................. 4 Sustainability ........................................................................................................................................................... 4 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................... 5 ANNEXES ................................................................................................................................................................... 8 Annex 1 – Farmers’ Questionnaire .................................................................................................................. 8 Annex 2 – Outcome of Outreach to Beneficiary Farmers ........................................................................ 11 Annex 3 – Farmers Willing to Participate in a Similar Project ................................................................. 12 Annex 4 – Photos Taken during the Field Visits .......................................................................................... 15 ii | LIVCD POST-ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT – TABLE GRAPE VC USAID/LEBANON MAY 2021 – FINAL REPORT ACRONYMS CCIAZ Chamber Of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Zahle & Bekaa DAI Development Alternatives, Inc. GCC Gulf Cooperation Council LIVCD Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development LL Lebanese Lira MEBC Middle East Business Company PMSPL II Performance Management and Support Program for Lebanon II TA Technical Assistance USAID United States Agency for International Development VC Value Chain iii | LIVCD POST-ACTIVITY ASSESSMENT – TABLE GRAPE VC USAID/LEBANON MAY 2021 – FINAL REPORT INTRODUCTION The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development (LIVCD) project was a $42-million program implemented by Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI) between September 2012 and January 2019. It aimed at developing inclusive and competitive value chains (VCs) in rural areas to help increase the local population’s income. The LIVCD project was subject to a mid-term review in November 2016 and to a final performance evaluation upon its completion in January 2019. The two reports assessed the project’s activities, described the challenges it faced, and provided a set of lessons learned. Given that the outcomes and impacts of a project like LIVCD cannot be measured during its lifetime, it is fundamental to assess the financed interventions’ sustainability beyond the project’s end date especially that considerable funds have been invested in the form of grants and cost-sharing with the private sector. The table grape VC was one of eight VCs supported by LIVCD. The activities implemented included the provision of technical assistance (TA), equipment, and grants. The current post-activity assessment evaluates the level of compliance of LIVCD’s activities and outcomes within the table grape VC with the objectives and indicators initially set. It provides a set of recommendations to be considered by USAID and/or other donors or agencies wishing to invest in Lebanon’s agricultural sector, especially in the table grape VC. The findings of this assessment will help improve the design of future projects and programs and allow implementing partners to mobilize their resources in a more targeted way and implement their interventions more smoothly and efficiently. This post-activity assessment is based on three main pillars: a. Relevance. Evaluating the appropriateness of the technical knowledge and advice provided to farmers on the grape production methods they should adopt and on how to maintain their linkages with exporters and markets. b. Efficiency and Effectiveness. Assessing the production and quality improvements achieved (if applicable) and their impact on the farmers’ economic gains, taking into account the farmers’ capability to maintain their operations financially. c. Sustainability. Assessing the viability of the linkages created between exporters and farmers and their impact on the selling/export channels adopted by the farmers. The assessment team conducted interviews with LIVCD’s beneficiaries and two main partners in the table grape VC in addition to field visits to the financed vineyards. They looked at the facilities’ functionality and the beneficiaries’ capacity to properly maintain their vineyards, become self-reliant, and achieve sustainable results. LIVCD TABLE GRAPE INTERVENTIONS The main objective of LIVCD’s grape component was to encourage the implementation of new and improved varieties of table grapes and to support the farmers throughout the VC, from production to harvesting to post-harvest activities, with the ultimate aim of boosting the export of Lebanese grapes to European and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The interventions were done in a way to reinforce the vertical integration of small and medium farmers in the table grape VC, linking them to input suppliers and service providers as well as traders and exporters. To achieve this objective, LIVCD offered several farmers in the Beqaa governorate training, TA, agricultural equipment, and linkages with various stakeholders. In addition, the project provided grants to the following two grape exporters to help farmers invest in new grape varieties desired in international markets: Middle East Business Company The aim of this grant was to stimulate investment in new varieties of grape with high market demand based on the experience of Middle East Business Company (MEBC) s.a.r.l. According to the Economic Impact Assessment conducted by DAI in May 2018, MEBC worked with 18 beneficiary farmers (two in west Beqaa, eight in Zahle, eight in Baalbek), helping them to plant new varieties of grapes (especially Red Globe).