USAID Yalwa
Niger
Overview
The five-year USAID Yalwa activity (2020-2025) strengthens the capacities of farmers, producer organizations, agribusinesses, and rural households in the Maradi, Tillabéri, and Zinder regions of Niger to meet the growing demand for affordable, safe, and nutritious food. Yalwa means “fulfillment” or “blossoming” in the Hausa language.
Expected Impact
- $47 million increase in sales and incomes for 102,700 farmers and 442 small and medium-sized enterprises
- 668 farmer organizations and 160 small and medium enterprises with increased organizational and technical capacity
- 75% women participants
- 25% youth participants
- $2 million in new financing
USAID Yalwa supports USAID’s regional Resilience in the Sahel Enhanced (RISE) program, which works with the Government of Niger to help citizens escape poverty and build resilience to natural, economic, and other shocks. USAID Yalwa includes a ground-breaking component on food market systems and follows five years of progress generated by the USAID-funded Resilience and Economic Growth in the Sahel – Accelerated Growth (REGIS-AG) program, also implemented by CNFA.
Approach
USAID Yalwa’s market systems facilitation approach is based on collaboration with catalytic local actors and networks. Yalwa works primarily through unions to provide services to producer groups (access to agro-inputs, finance, skills development, etc.) while building their capacity to provide services without project support. The approach leverages commercial investments to build long-term linkages between buyers and sellers, ensure delivery of inputs and services, and supply nutritious food. It also builds the skills of farmers, traders, and processors so they can earn a profit from their businesses, seek out nutritious foods, and become self-reliant.
Yalwa targets 102,700 farmers in over 387 villages, and 442 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by fulfilling the following purposes:
- Enhance the performance of market systems in the cowpea, small ruminant, and poultry value chains.
- Increase the use of high-quality inputs and services such as seeds, fertilizers, and livestock and poultry feed, improving food production and storage and supporting improved marketing, production, and access to finance and climate information.
- Increase local consumption of nutritious, safe, and affordable foods by promoting demand and helping market actors to supply these foods to targeted populations.
- Promote inclusive markets for women and youth by identifying barriers to market participation and working with communities to encourage youth and women’s entrepreneurship and leadership.
Partners
To implement USAID Yalwa, Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) collaborates with a diverse group of both international and local partner organizations, including the Association for the Revitalization of Livestock in Niger (AREN), Nigerien Association for the Revitalization of Local Initiatives (Karkara), Helen Keller International (HKI), and Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA).
