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USAID Awards CNFA Five-Year Contract in Georgia

The project will increase employment and incomes in rural areas by delivering investment and technical assistance to agribusiness enterprises.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded CNFA a contract valued at $19.5 million to implement the Restoring Efficiency to Agriculture Production (REAP) project in Georgia from September 2013 through September 2018. The REAP project will increase employment and incomes in rural areas by delivering firm-level investment and technical assistance to expand the operation of existing smallholder farmers and rural enterprises. The project will facilitate the entry of new agribusinesses and input suppliers, including machinery service providers, storage facilities, sorting/grading centers, and small and medium-scale processors, to improve the availability of high-quality inputs and services and strengthen markets for agricultural goods and services in Georgia.

“Over the past seven years, CNFA has worked with USAID on four previous projects in Georgia,” CNFA President and CEO John H. Costello said. “Through these USAID-funded programs, we have been able to build a network of machinery service centers, connect smallholder farmers to new markets, help internally displaced persons improve their livelihoods, and assist Georgian entrepreneurs access appropriate and affordable financing. USAID’s market-oriented approach to helping Georgia improve its economy has already shown tremendous success and we are thrilled to continue working with USAID to help strengthen the country’s agricultural sector.”

Restoring Efficiency to Agriculture Production will catalyze increased private investment and commercial finance to the agricultural sector, mitigate risk for rural small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs, and expand commercially sustainable linkages between input suppliers, producers, and post-harvest service providers. Additionally, the project will provide technical assistance to grantee and non-grantee farmers, primary production businesses, rural enterprises, cooperatives, and associations, and generate new rural jobs.

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About USAID in Georgia: During the past 20 years, the American people, through USAID, have invested about $1.8 billion in Georgia. USAID projects are designed to support Georgia’s transition to a free and prosperous democracy.