ASSESSMENT OF THE DRC’S AGRICULTURAL MARKET SYSTEMS: VALUE CHAINS IN THE NORTH & SOUTH KIVU AND KATANGA PROVINCES LEO REPORT #16 APRIL 2015 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was pre- pared by Megan O’Donnell, Andrew Cook and John Magistro for ACDI/VOCA with funding from USAID/E3’s Leveraging Economic Opportunities (LEO) project. 1 ASSESSMENT OF THE DRC’s AGRICULTURAL MARKET SYSTEMS: VALUE CHAINS IN THE NORTH & SOUTH KIVU AND KATANGA PROVINCES REPORT #16 DISCLAIMER The authors’ views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for In- ternational Development or the United States Government. CONTENTS ACRONYMS IV I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 II. INTRODUCTION & METHODOLOGY 12 III. COMPARISON OF KIVUS & KATANGA 18 IV. KIVUS: CROSS-CUTTING ANALYSIS 22 V. KIVUS: BEANS VCA 36 VI. KIVUS: POTATOES VCA 47 VII. KIVUS: SOY BEANS VCA 54 VIII. KIVUS: HORTICULTURE VCA 60 IX. KIVUS: SMALL LIVESTOCK VCA 65 X. KIVUS: BANANAS VCA 70 XI. KIVUS: RECOMMENDATIONS 73 XII. KATANGA: CROSS-CUTTING ANALYSIS 76 XIII. KATANGA: MAIZE VCA 96 XIV. KATANGA: BEANS VCA 105 XV. KATANGA: SOY BEANS VCA 111 XVI. KATANGA: FARMED FISH VCA 116 XVII. KATANGA: EGGS VCA 122 XVIII. KATANGA: BEEF CATTLE VCA 127 XIX. KATANGA: HORTICULTURE VCA 132 XX. KATANGA: RECOMMENDATIONS 137 XXI. CLIMATE SCREENING OF SELECTED AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES 143 DRC VALUE CHAIN ASSESSMENT ii ANNEX 1. DEFINITIONS OF FOOD SECURITY 175 ANNEX 2. VALUE CHAIN QUESTIONNAIRES 176 ANNEX 3. CLIMATE SCREENING METHODOLOGY 179 ANNEX 4. LIST OF CONTACTS & MEETINGS 180 ANNEX 5. NORTH KIVU CROP GROWTH 186 ANNEX 6. BIBLIOGRAPHY 187 ANNEX 7. CLIMATE CHANGE DATA LINKS 192 DRC VALUE CHAIN ASSESSMENT iii ACRONYMS AFAP African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership ARCC The African and Latin American Resilience to Climate Change program CDCS Country Development Cooperation Strategy CIP International Potato Center (Centro Internacional de la Papa) COMESA Common Market for East and Southern Africa CRS Catholic Relief Services CSA Climate-smart agriculture DFID Department for International Development DRC Democratic Republic of Congo FAO Food and Agriculture Organization FC Congolese franc GHG greenhouse gases ha hectare IFDC International Fertilizer Development Center IFPRI International Food Policy Research Institute INERA National Institute for Agronomic Research (Institut National pour l’Etude et la Recherche Agronomique) INS National Statistics Institute (Institut National de la Statistique) IPAPE Provincial Inspection of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries IPM integrated pest management ITCZ Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone KCl potassium chloride, potash km kilometers M meter MFI microfinance institution mm millimeter MMG Minerals and Metals Group (an Australian mining group) DRC VALUE CHAIN ASSESSMENT iv na not applicable NGO non-governmental organization NPK fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium NRM natural resources management OCC Congolese Control Office (Office Congolais de Contrôle) pH measure of acidity/alkalinity S sulfur SCAK Agro-Pastoral Cooperative Society of Katanga (Société coopérative agro-pastorale du Ka- tanga) SENASEM National Seed Service (Service National de Semences) SME small or medium enterprise SNCC Société Nationale de Chemin de Fer t ton (metric ton) TFM Tenke Fungurume Mining Company UNILU University of Lubumbashi UPDI Farmers’ Union for Integrated Development (Union Paysanne pour le Développement In- tégral) USAID United States Agency for International Development VCA value chain assessment DRC VALUE CHAIN ASSESSMENT v I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Although the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) possesses vast, fertile lands, with more than sufficient resources to feed the country and even the continent, land under agricultural production is severely under- productive, and a large part of DRC’s food supply is imported. At the same time, the large majority of the country’s population is poor and suffers from malnutrition. USAID is considering a new set of activities focused on improving livelihoods for agricultural communities in the Kivus and/or in Ka- FOCUS VALUE CHAINS tanga, which are geographic priority areas under the mission’s Coun- Kivus try Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS). Both regions are Bananas agriculturally-based economies with impoverished populations that Dry beans depend heavily on imports to meet their consumption needs; how- Horticulture ever, each region faces unique challenges and therefore will require Potatoes tailored solutions. A value chain assessment (VCA) was undertaken Small livestock in February and March 2015 to inform the next stage of program design to address these challenges. Soy (added to original list) Six value chains in each region were assessed according to criteria Katanga that included how potential interventions could create inclusive Dry beans growth (reduce poverty), improve food security, support women and Eggs youth, and be climate change robust. The effects of the conflict situ- Farmed fish ation in the Kivus (and to a lesser degree in Katanga) were also an Horticulture important lens used in the analysis. Using a market systems develop- Maize ment approach, analyses of the end markets and inputs markets were Soy completed for each of the focus products, and the findings served as an additional screen. The two matrices at the end of this section (figure 1) provide a summary of the overall analysis. A. KIVUS Agriculture provides livelihoods for the vast majority of the poor populations of the Kivus. Farming systems and livelihood activities in North and South Kivu are relatively similar, with some small variations in terms of crop preferences. 1. CROSS-CUTTING FACTORS Working in the Kivus requires a particular approach that takes into consideration a unique set of cross-cutting challenges, which are described below. Conflict issues: The ongoing conflict situation in North and South Kivu challenges any potential economic development program, especially those focused on developing sustainable income sources for the poorest populations. Many communities live in fear of ongoing rebel attacks which destroy their crops, or of being displaced altogether from their land. This deters much long-term planning and even discourages scaling and commercialization of production, as farmers who are perceived to be successful become targets for pillage. In addition, the security status of a location can shift unpre- dictably, so projects must remain flexible and alert. However, this should not be an overwhelming DRC VALUE CHAIN ASSESSMENT 1 deterrent to intervention, but rather a strong consideration in program planning. For instance, pro- ject plans must be adaptive to changing elements, with the expectation that some regions may be- come too dangerous to continue field work. Transport challenges: The most apparent constraint in many value chains is transport. This may be an insurmountable challenge within any project budget, but the impact of this constraint must be taken into account. As an example of how the conflict situation has affected transport costs, during the years 2012 and 2013, trucks transporting coffee in North Kivu were “taxed” (stopped forcibly with payment requested) at a rate of US $400 one-way by the M23 rebel group (with no receipt given). New technology solutions, such as mobile or satellite communications, may reduce the need for travel and the corresponding loss of goods in transit. Finance: Farmers, as well as other actors in the value chain, lack access to credit, savings and finan- cial services such as money transfers. Some potential leverage points for intervention include provid- ing education in numeracy, improving access to mobile-enabled finance, and building existing savings group capacity. Gender roles: In the Kivus, gender roles are entrenched in the fabric of the agricultural system, with women performing much of the planting, harvesting and trading, and men managing the finances. There is resistance to change from both genders. This factor will affect participation in programs and the continued success of any interventions. NGO-heavy environment: The well-intentioned NGO presence often alters or even disrupts func- tioning markets by providing free services and goods, such as seeds. This must be taken into account as the perspective of relief-oriented NGOs is often short-term, which inhibits long-term sustainabil- ity. Pro-women and youth programs: As women have an active role in all of the value chains chosen for analysis, they all scored high against this criterion. Bananas were the exception, as men play more of a role and production is often used to make liquor or wine. Youth engagement in farming is a challenge, as few opportunities were identified that would specifically entice their participation and/or benefit them exclusively. Some of these challenges, especially those related to the conflict, can be major obstacles to the success of any intervention; these are marked with a red box in the opportunity matrix diagram (figure 1) at the end of this section. Other factors present opportunities; these potential leverage points are marked with a green box in the matrices. 2. INPUTS MARKET ANALYSIS – KIVUS Good quality and consistent inputs for agricultural production in the Kivus are difficult for small farmers to obtain. There are no large commercial firms and very few government actors providing inputs. NGOs pro- vide some assistance by sourcing inputs (mostly