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Powering Ethiopia’s Agricultural Transformation through Partnerships and Resource Mobilizations
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Powering Ethiopia’s Agricultural Transformation through Partnerships and Resource Mobilizations
(Addis Ababa, 7 October 2024)
Stakeholder partnerships, resource mobilization, and capacity building are becoming increasingly crucial for achieving agricultural development and enhancing the sustainability of food systems. AGRA is leading this movement, driving change, delivering resources, and transforming the agriculture landscape in Ethiopia. Its involvement goes beyond financial support; AGRA actively engages in policies, strategies, and programs to revitalize agriculture in Ethiopia.
In collaboration with the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), AGRA recently facilitated a two-day training program focused on resource mobilization and partnerships. The primary aim of this training was to equip MoA Directors and senior experts with essential knowledge and skills in grant writing, thereby enhancing their capacity for flagship program development and effective resource mobilization.
Nicholas Obare, Country Programs Lead of AGRA, emphasized the pivotal role in transforming agriculture through strategic policy engagement. He remarked, “Our partnership with the MoA empowers experts with the skills to drive significant reforms in flagship program development and resource mobilization. He reiterated that the current investment with MoA builds on the interventions undertaken under Strategy 2.0 and will focus on designing policy/regulatory reforms in support of flagship programs, supporting and coordinating the implementation of wheat, rice, and soybean flagship programs, addressing three micro/regulatory reform agendas prioritizing flagship programs and food system bottlenecks, strengthening the policy design and execution capacity of MoA and its affiliated institutions, putting in place and institutionalizing a digital tool for agriculture sector policy and regulatory tracking across agricultural sector institutions, and supporting the CAADP BR reporting process, public expenditure, NAIP, and food system review and regular updating.
During his welcome speech, Abera Mulat, Senior Advisor at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia expressed his appreciation for the training program. He said, “This initiative addresses a long-standing challenge: the limited capacity of staff to design and secure funding for specialized projects. Our Directors and experts can now develop comprehensive, high-resource plans essential for implementing the 10-year plan of the agriculture sector.” This newly developed capability will be crucial as the MOA seeks to implement projects that require substantial financial and technical resources.
The two-day training program comprised an overview of the investments of AGRA in Ethiopia, strategies for resource mobilization in flagship implementation, and effective grant-writing techniques. Additionally, the participants received detailed guidance on leveraging the AGRA grant available to the MoA to advance their projects.
Ayele Gebreamlak, Program Officer at the AGRA-Ethiopia Office, presented an overview of AGRA’s investments in Ethiopia. He reiterated AGRA’s unwavering commitment to supporting the nation’s agricultural modernization efforts, aligning with Ethiopia’s broader development goals.
Dr Solomon Benor, Flagship Program Coordinator and AGRA secondee to the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) led the session titled “How to Mobilize Resources and Write a Successful Grant Proposal.” Dr Benor emphasized the interactive nature of the training, which included group assignments enabling MoA staff to develop a complete proposal focused on selected commodities. This practical approach ensured that participants had not only acquired theoretical knowledge but were also well-prepared to mobilize resources effectively after the workshop.
The partnership between AGRA and the MoA has a clear objective: to foster innovation and capacity building within local communities. By facilitating access to resources and providing ongoing technical assistance, AGRA plays a crucial role in unlocking the vast potential of Ethiopia’s agricultural sector. This collaboration has already yielded positive outcomes, with successful project implementations across several regions, demonstrating how targeted investments and strategic expertise can deliver tangible results.
As Ethiopia looks towards the future, the continued involvement of partners like AGRA will be indispensable. Their expertise, financial contributions, and technical guidance are vital to achieving food security and economic resilience in an increasingly unpredictable global environment. Strong partnerships will bring Ethiopia closer to its vision of a thriving, self-sufficient agricultural economy, promoting sustainability, food security, and long-term prosperity. Now is the time for stakeholders across the agriculture sector to build on the foundation laid by AGRA and others, uniting their efforts to ensure a brighter and more prosperous future for Ethiopia.