Bangladesh Rice and Diversified Crops Activity

Summary

The USAID Feed the Future Bangladesh Rice and Diversified Crops Activity (RDC) aims to increase incomes and improve food security and nutrition in the Feed the Future zone through systemic market changes that promote a diversified farm management approach oriented to intensified rice production and higher-value, nutrient-rich crops. RDC will reach its goals through facilitative interventions (targeted technical assistance) that create scalable market system impacts, ultimately benefiting rural households with the added value of expanding opportunities for women and youth.

Objectives

Improve food security through systemic changes that increase rural incomes
Increase farm productivity
Increase participation in profitable market systems

Activities And approaches

Follow an inclusive market system methodology that focuses on building the capacity and resilience of local systems, leveraging the incentives and resources of the private sector, ensuring the beneficial inclusion of the poor, and stimulating change and innovation that continues to grow beyond the life of the project.
The market systems approach has three core principles: aligning incentives, increasing cooperation and competition, and catalyzing investment. Every facilitative activity ensures that the incentives for each market system actor are aligned with the desired intervention and expected market system change.
An important implementation tool for RDC is the $1.5 million Market Accelerator Fund (the Fund). The Fund is utilized to support a broad range of new and innovative market system approaches through support ranging from procurement of local business development and agronomic consulting services, financial support for technology or mechanization upgrades, as well as support for innovative promotion and customer/supplier outreach initiatives.
RDC also has three major cross-cutting areas (gender, nutrition, and climate change) that are integrated within the overall market systems approach.

ANTICIPATED/ACHIEVED PROJECT RESULTS

500,000 farmers in the Feed the Future zone will have access to new and improved products, services, and/or market channels.
50% expansion of commercial outreach in the Feed the Future zone of production and post-harvest related inputs and services.
50% expansion of commercial procurement by collaborating companies in the Feed the Future zone.