Six Months Later: Haiti's Need for Economic Development Grows Clearer |
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This op-ed was originally published in The Chronicle of Philanthropy on July 11, 2010.
By Perry Letson, Vice President, Public Relations & Communications
Disaster relief is not what my economic development organization usually does. But as a nonprofit group that had been working for a couple of years in Haiti that’s what ACDI/VOCA suddenly had to do when the earthquake struck in January.
Our experience providing disaster aid taught us many valuable lessons, but as we reach the six-month mark since the catastrophe, one thing is clearer than ever. Haiti would be far better off today if even a fraction of the charitable contributions and government aid now flowing in for disaster relief had been devoted to sound development assistance years ago, especially in rural areas.
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Help Create Jobs in Haiti
We are less than $5,000 away from our donation goal for a job creation project for areas in and around Jacmel, Haiti. Donate today to create jobs in Haiti. |
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New World Report: Gender Approaches Strengthen Development
 ACDI/VOCA empowers both women and men to succeed in the global economy. Read about lessons that led us to where we are today and continue to shape how we work. More.
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Kenya Maize Development Program Launches Kenya Maize Handbook
Kenyan Vice President Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka recently unveiled the Kenya Maize Handbook in Nairobi. Funded by USAID and developed by ACDI/VOCA's Kenya Maize Development Program, the handbook is an up-to-date resource with useful information on productivity and market access. With contributions from the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, universities and members of the business community, the handbook has 19 chapters, covering almost every aspect of maize in Kenya. More.
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From the Field: Photo Update of 'Greenest of Gifts' Impact |
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Three ACDI/VOCA Legacy MFIs Credited as Leaders in Transparency
Three microfinance institutions (MFIs) created as part of different ACDI/VOCA financial services programs recently were recognized by the Microfinance Information Exchange Inc. (MIX) as leaders in their respective communities for their commitment to transparency and accountability and their outreach to poorer clients. Bai Tushum (Kyrgyzstan) and CredAgro (Azerbaijan) were among 13 MFIs—out of more than 200—from Eastern Europe and Central Asia that received the 2009 MIX Social Performance Reporting awards. MIX also recently ranked Agrocapital in Bolivia as 24 on its list of the top 100 MFIs in Latin America. More.
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How to Measure Success in Complex Economic Development Programs
 Broad-based growth in targeted value chains is the goal of today’s large, complex economic development programs. These programs aim to reduce poverty in developing countries by encouraging poorer people and small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in value chains while increasing those value chains' competitiveness. But how do we measure whether we are effective? ACDI/VOCA’s Elizabeth Dunn and DAI’s Donald Snodgrass and Lucy Creevey presented “Beyond the Standard Approach: Evaluating Complex Economic Growth Programs in Fluid Environments” at a special two-hour seminar sponsored by the USAID Microenterprise Development office. More.
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Stakeholders to Boost Competitiveness of Staple Food Value Chains in Southeast Asia
 Emerging economies learned a lot from the 2008 food crisis, especially about the importance of regional trade to national food security. A key lesson in Laos and Southeast Asia is the need to improve agricultural market efficiencies. Toward that end, ACDI/VOCA staff held a two-day consultative workshop in Vientiane to discuss findings from our assessment of cross-border staple food markets in northern Laos and to probe further the value chain approach toward developing a competitiveness strategy for the region's staple food sectors. More.
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