Food Security and Integrated Development:

A Market Oriented Approach - Bolivia

Best Practices & Innovations (BPI) Initiative -

Interaction
 Area of intervention

Municipalities: Camargo, Culpina, Incahuasi and San Lucas (over 8,000

beneficiaries)
 Main constraints
Low literacy rates
Low agricultural productivity
Geographical isolation
Weak and underdeveloped market linkages
Lack of access to water for irrigation
Degraded natural resources
Lack of productive infrastructure
No agricultural supporting services
Program strategy

Health and
Nutrition/Wat
er and
sanitation

Natural
Resources
Management Rural Income
(NRM) Program (RIP)
Rural income generation program

Results Interventions

Increase agricultural productivity

1. Increased productivity of

TARGET POPULATION
marketable produce Enhance market access

2. Increased agriculture-related Enhance access to financial services

income of stallholder farmers

Improve productive infrastructure

Technical Assistance Groups

Organizational strengthening
Producers Associations
 Demand-driven approach

Farmers
group
C
O
Producer associations
M • Agricultural service centers
Farmers
M • Collection and dissemination of
group Information
U • Business round-tables Market
N • Contract with buyers
• Contract with suppliers
I • Product quality standards
T Farmers • Storage and processing

Y group

Supporting services
Technical • Financial services
Assistance • Accounting and legal
• Product certifications
• Packaging

Farm decision Information Market

making assessment
From subsistence to commercial farming

Subsistence farming Demand-driven farming

Self consumption Production under market

Occasional sales specifications
No economy of scales Planned sales
Low quality Economy of scales
Inadequate use of technology Innovative financial
No credit mechanisms to:
reduce risk
boost investment
Portfolio of promoted crops
Existing crops Introduced
Onion Garlic
Broad Beans Barley
Peas
Corn
Plum
Apple
Grape
Peaches
 Critical factors for success
• Demand driven approach (information)

• Production of high value crops

• Rapid results boosted private/public sector

participation

• Project focus were beyond capacity building

and facilitation of activities (roads, storage,
irrigation facilities and NNRR were also
important)
 Critical factors for success
Associations equipped with collecting facilities

Creation of value added products using the

crops promoted by the program (grape juice,
broad-bean cookies, dried peaches, etc.)

• Provision of entrepreneurial training to

increase their leaders’ skills to manage
associations with a business approach

• Use of agri-business plans

• Facilitation of linkages between farmers and

credit program tailored to their needs.
 Evidence of success
Sales through forward contracts and producers associations increased
significantly from only $7,000 dollars in 2002 to almost $360,000
dollars in 2008.

The average beneficiary household’s income doubled between 2002 and

2008. It rose from an average annual income of $940 in 2002 to about
$1,950 in 2008 (constant year 2002).
 Evidence of success
Improvements in household well-being: using increases in income to
improve diets, housing improvements, keep their children in school, etc.

Investing in businesses: increased income to invest in farm operations,

fertilizers, improved seeds, buying animals and investing in equipment and
machinery.

Increases in entrepreneurship and self-reliance: outstanding

improvement in their knowledge and attitudes about business, markets,
profitability and competitiveness.

“It is this market orientation and the results that were achieved that
make the Bolivian Title II IG programs noteworthy and potentially
important as a model for IG programs in other countries” (Title II
Final Evaluation Report).
Thanks