The 2SCALE project story elements 2SCALE: Toward Sustainable Clusters in Agribusiness through Learning in Entrepreneurship.

Basics ICRA, IFDC (International Fertilizer Development Center), and BoP Inc. (Base of the Pyramid Innovation Center) formed a partnership for promoting sustainable agricultural production and commodity chain development across Africa through the five-year (2012-2016) 2SCALE project. 2SCALE aims at improving rural livelihoods and food security in 9 sub-Saharan Africa countries (Benin, Ghana, Mali and Nigeria in West Africa, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya and Mozambique in Eastern Africa), in support to the six percent agricultural growth target set under the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) of the African Unions New Partnership for Africas Development (AU-NEPAD). The project aims to include 1.15 million smallholder farmers and 4000 other SMEs in around 500 viable agribusiness clusters. Those clusters will target local, mostly BoP markets. Public-Private Partnerships 2SCALE helps smallholder farmers move from subsistence farming to farming as a business. With the private sector and market as the main drivers for agricultural development, the project will maximize scarce development resources by leveraging private cooperation through public-private partnerships (PPPs) with national and Dutch multinational agroenterprises. 2SCALE distinguishes two types of partnerships: value chain PPPs with lead firms that directly or indirectly serve or source from smallholder farmers, and agribusiness cluster PPPs initiated by a local business champion (a farmer-based organization [FBO] or cooperative, processor, trader or retailer) in collaboration with other cluster participants and 2SCALE. For each PPP, 2SCALE has developed a roadmap that outlines PPP development and documentation; the methods to be used to monitor implementation of the PPP; and how contributions from private sector partners and public funding sources will be measured and monitored. 2SCALEs budget is being supported by DGIS (50 percent) and 50 percent is expected to come from private sector partners through PPPs with local, national and international companies. From Business ideas to action plans PPP development starts with the call for business ideas, which are then screened for possible support, using a large number of criteria. The champions and potential cluster actors of the best ideas are then invited to a Diagnostic and Design (D&D) workshop that leads to the development of a cluster and/or value chain action plan. Typically, action plans include key business activities that the cluster and value chain actors plan have commonly

decided to undertake but also capacity strengthening support that 2SCALE provides through contracted Business Support Services (BSS).

Agribusiness clusters, BSS, and Agribusiness coaches 2SCALE builds on the CASE approach (that was developed in the 1000s+ project, the predecessor of 2SCALE in which ICRA also participated) that focuses on the set-up and support of agri-business clusters, which are geographic concentrations of interconnected farms, firms, input suppliers, credit institutions, and other service providers and associated institutions.

The agribusiness cluster is not linear as with a commodity value chain, but associates all actors that have a common goal and develop a common strategy to serve a specific market. 2

An agribusiness cluster benefits from proximity and thereby exploit synergies, linkages and collaboration, reduce information barriers and transaction costs so to increase their competitiveness.

Schematic presentation of the rice value chain in Bolgatanga, Ghana

The 2SCALE-contracted BSSs are part of the agribusiness clusters, and the business coach, who is generally a staff member of the BSS, provides professional facilitation services in support of the functioning of the cluster. The roles and responsibilities of the BSS/Coach in CASE can be grouped into three main domains: Brokering services and networking; Information and advice, i.e. market analysis, strategies of competitors; Training and support in technical and entrepreneurial issues; Design and set-up of capacity strengthening and action research programmes that include the facilitation of interactive learning processes to support the formation of ABCs, value chain development and creativity and innovativeness. This is for instance strengthening of confidence, collective analysis, collective monitoring of concerted actions, etc.

The specific work of ICRA within the 2SCALE project ICRA coordinates all capacity strengthening activities within the 2SCALE project through a part-time centrally based coordinator and 2 full time regional capacity strengthening coordinators, one based in Nairobi and one in Accra. So far, three training programs on CASE were organized for 2SCALE staff. The training was 3

designed around concrete examples of ABCs (participants visited these ABCs and later analyzed their performance) and video materials. The videos were largely based on examples from 1000s+. see: DVD: United through markets; http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xntv8k_united-through-markets-africa_shortfilms ICRA designed and co-implemented most of the D&D workshops, and based on this experience, ICRA fine-tuned the guidelines for facilitators and cluster advisors to effectively conduct D&D workshops. ICRA also supported the elaboration of the cluster action plans. ICRA concentrates its capacity strengthening activities through back up support for the agribusiness coaches (staff members of the BSS) and these activities are thereby embedded within the agribusiness clusters. To effectively provide such back-up support, ICRA contracted training services. First, an inventory was made of relevant agribusiness trainers, then using some specific criteria, a short list of 4 to 5 potential trainers was made for each country. These potential trainers were introduced to the 2SCALE project, the CASE approach and the principles of capacity strengthening of agribusiness coaches, which allowed them to develop zonal and national capacity strengthening plans to support agribusiness coaches. The evaluation of the quality of the plans and budget implications allowed us to make a final selection of two 2SCALE trainers for each country.

The general outline of a zonal/national capacity strengthening plan consists of a series of learning cycles. Each learning cycle comprises 3 steps: (1) a workshop, grouping the coaches of the specific zone, to introduce new concepts, tools, ideas and principles; at the end of the workshop the terms of reference for a specific field assignment is developed (2) individual field coaching and support to the business coaches in action with the agribusiness cluster and actors they support, and related to the field assignment, (3) a workshop, grouping in the coaches, to review the experiences and draw lessons for the next learning cycle. In practices, this review workshop is combined with the introductory workshop of the following learning cycle.

Blue box: introductory workshop for all zonal coaches; including ToR for field assignment Green box: coaching of individual coaches by 2SCALE trainers Yellow box: review workshop for all zonal coaches

So far, the capacity strengthening plans for the business coaches comprise 4 learning cycles: the first dealing with the general introduction of the 2SCALE project, and CASE approach, the second on financial education, the third on relationship building and partnerships and the four on marketing, intelligence, strategies and plans. We are now in the process of developing learning modules and educational videos for the trainers and business coaches related to these learning cycles and so that address the different competences the business coaches should have. Each module consists of a package containing the following: 1) a Facilitators Guide on the how to deliver, 2) reference sheets or what are commonly referred to as hand-outs, excerpts from educational films and 3) exercises. The facilitators guides are meant to guide the delivery of training sessions and the organization of workshops or any other opportunity to strengthen the competences of the coaches. Basically, facilitators guides deal with the knowledge review and acquisition workshops and occasionally with aspects of field implementation and/or how to conduct reflection workshops. Each guide specifies the pedagogic objectives, the steps to be taken to conduct the workshop or training, and the programme set-up with all details and adapted pedagogic material. So far we developed a module on the introduction of CASE (including 15 reference sheets) and on financial education and are in the process of finalising a module on relationships and partnerships.

Facilitators guide, Exercises, and Reference sheets of Module I - Introduction to the CASE approach

To date, 3 educational videos have been produced in collaboration with MOOV-ON productions: United through markets: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xntv8k_united-throughmarkets-africa_shortfilms Craving for Credible Cream; http://www.dailymotion.com/user/moovon/1#video=xzyk8a CASE approach (2SCALE project) illustrated: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xwvmrv_case-approach-2scale-projectillustrated_creation

Still from the video Craving for Credible Cream

We have developed a process/procedure and formats for the certification of 2SCALE trainers and coaches. At each step of each of the learning cycles, an assessment is made of the performance of the activity and of the relevance of some key outcomes. In case of the 6

certification of the trainers, the assessments are done by the regional capacity strengthening coordinator and the coaches, and in case of the certification of the coaches, the assessments are done by the trainers and cluster actors. At the end of the first year, comprising 4 learning cycles, trainers and coaches will receive a certificate indicating the performance scoring at each level of the assessment.

Some figures To date, ICRA has delivered three workshops for 2SCALE staff and two train-the-trainer workshops for business coaches. The six appointed in-country trainers have organized four introductory workshops for a total of 41 agribusiness coaches. In addition, ICRA has supported 10 Diagnostic and Design workshops.