Afghanistan Vouchers for Increased Production in Agriculture (AVIPA Plus)

Afghanistan Vouchers for Increased Production in Agriculture (AVIPA Plus)

Donor: USAID

Budget:

Duration: June 30, 2011

Location: 32 provinces in Afghanistan

Status: active


Objective:
The goals of AVIPA Plus are to increase rural farm family production and productivity, and to strengthen links between the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) and its people. The AVIPA Plus strategy is to provide agricultural assistance in collaboration with local and provincial representatives of the GIRoA and the Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL), in synchronization with the larger district stabilization and agricultural development efforts of GIRoA and the U.S. Government (USG).

 

Components

  • Cash for Work: CFW activities stimulate local economies and provide much-needed basic income for local farmers affected by violence and insurgent activity. CFW projects include road rehabilitation, canal cleaning, orchard maintenance, and low tunnel construction, repair of critical water reservoirs andconstruction of erosion prevention walls.
  • Small Grants Program: SGP provides in kind grants consisting of tractors, trailers, tractor blades,wheat threshers, maize shellers, and other implements to MAIL approved farmer’s cooperatives.
  • Agricultural Vouchers: The Agricultural Vouchers program distributes wheat and vegetable seeds, fertilizer, tools packages, greenhouse and shade kits, storage bags for dry grains and forage, sets of two-wheel tractors and farm implements, and water pumps to the same populations targeted by the CFW and SGP components and other selected eligible beneficiary farmers.
  • Agricultural Training: Using demonstration plots, farmer to farmer training methods and radio programs, the farmer training program educates farmers in new management practices, production technologies and marketing strategies.
  • Approximately 1,130,000 agricultural voucher packages distributed to farmers throughout Afghanistan
  • 684,000 agricultural training graduates
  • 1,043 cash for work projects completed, employing 151,984 laborers and creating 30,627 FTE jobs
  • 523 small grants worth $21 .5 million disbursed to 60,000 beneficiaries