Program Overview: USAID/Georgia’s Restoring Efficiency to Agriculture Production (REAP) is a five year, $19.5 million program that is designed to increase income and employment 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.
Also, REAP will catalyze increased private investment and commercial finance to the sector, mitigate risk for
rural Small and Medium enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs, and expand commercially sustainable linkages between service providers, producers, post-harvest enterprises and local consulting firms. The program will deliver 120 matching grants worth of $6 million; leverage at least $14 million in private matching investment; and provide technical assistanceto all grantee enterprises, impacting at least150,000 individuals, including 37,500 women. The SMEs assisted by REAP will help to generate at least750 new rural jobs; $15 millionin sales of inputs and services to135,000 smallholders; and assist in developing new cash markets worth of $10 million for 2,500 producers.
Component 1 (C1) – SME Development in the Agriculture Sector:This component will focus on investment project design, based on competitive business plans submitted by private sector agribusinesses. REAP will organize a public outreach campaign to generate applications in the priority areas for investment. Selected applicants will receive USAID grant funding equal to a maximum of 30% of the total project value and will match the remaining 70% in new cash investment.
Anticipated Results: $4 million in grants distributed to 80 Farmer Service Centers (FSCs) or Mechanization Service Centers (MSCs) of which5% are women-owned businesses; $2 million in grants distributed to 40primary producers, service/information providers, processing and packaging enterprises, of which 15% are women-owned businesses; $14 million in private sector matching investment leveraged.
Component 2 (C2) – Technical Assistance Program : This component will provide custom-designed services to all grantee enterprises. REAP will use local BSPs and International STTAs to participate in frontline delivery of C2 technical assistance.
Anticipated Results: All grantee SME clients in target supply chains assisted by partner BSPs and International STTAs; More than 150,000 individuals, of which at least 37,500 are women, participated in technical and/or business training.
Cross- Cutting Issues:
- Gender: REAP will ensure inclusive enterprise development involving appropriately men, women, and youth in all program activities. All C1 grant applicants will be required to present a gender integration strategy. REAP expects at least 15% of grantees and 25% of trainees to be women.
- Access to Finance: Access to commercial finance is an integral part of all REAP activities. The program will facilitate access of REAP beneficiaries to commercial finance as well as encourage participation of financial institutions in the agriculture sector, including through the existing and future USAID Development Credit Authority (DCA) guarantee program.
- Workforce Development: Most of REAP’s grantee beneficiaries will receive training.
- Environment: REAP will comply with environmental requirements of both USAID and Georgia.