Hello all
Thank you for this initiatives..... I read previous contributions with great interest!
I appreciate especially the suggestions by Martin Nissen, and the reference to the (wrong focus) on ''single-targeted development approach''.....
Ultimately, the political will of governments to promote ''holistic development'' is critical, creating an enabling environment for all potential actors to play their roles effectively.... Engaging the private sector could be more emphasized here ... International NGOs like CARE (USA) have been investing heavily on innovative initiatives (@Feed the Future) to engage the private sector, especially to create employment opportunities for poor rural women, which ensures their ''control of income'' and bargaining power.... Linking entrepreneurial rural women with merchants in urban and semi-urban areas, such initiatives promoted a ''Microfranchising...''' Projects whereby women access consumable industrial goods (e.g iodized salt, soap, food oil, etc) in ''bulk'' which they would then distribute and sell in rural villages with small margin of profit. ... This enabled women not only to access demand-driven industrial items, but also can access it on credit bases (guarantees facilitated by the programme). ... It opened a new opportunity for earning income for women, but also enabled rural people to easily access such goods, sometimes also creating new demand for such goods.... Availability of such goods often promote inspirations among rural people, including more willingness to exert more effort of work to acquire income that would be needed to buy them (=Supply creates its own demand...??).... One key challenge reported in some African cases has been reluctance of the private sector to participate, or appreciate the BUSINESS CASE of such engagements.
Related report for Catholic Relief Service (CRS/USAID) is posted at
https://assets.fsnforum.fao.org/public/discussions/contributions/Report…
I look forward to hear more
Regards,
Getaneh ([email protected])
M. Getaneh Gobezie