by SCADePTO STRENGTHEN THE CAPACITY OF AGRICULTURAL SME’s: SCADeP HOLDS VALUE CHAIN WEEK IN MAKENI
In a well-attended session in Makeni, producer organizations and Small and Medium Enterprises of rice, onions and poultry value chains funded under the SLADF and ASMG grants have participated in a three days value chain week at the Royal Hotel in Makeni.
The program is an intensive initiative by SCADeP to empower its beneficiaries to be able to produce commodities that are acceptable by their respective markets, thereby leading to increased marketed volumes and incomes of the beneficiaries.
There have been good and bad results emanating from the activities of the SLADF and ASMG groups supported by SCADeP and these grantees that require expert views on the way forward. Some of the owners and leaders of these grantees confirmed that their businesses were not being organized and operated profitably and have indicated capacity gaps related to processing and best management practices of their farms.
The training sessions will therefore offer each grantee the opportunity to reflect on their past interventions and processing techniques, share ideas and learn new and efficient farm management and processing procedures and techniques. The sessions will effectively improve efficiency and profitability of these SME’s and their business operations.
Facilitations was done by AIDE-Sierra Leone the target of providing grantees the required knowledge that gives them market advantage, enabled them share knowledge and experience in their specific value chains, presented the scope of the Business Development Services assignment with AIDE-SL and the expectations from the grantees, discussed the operations of equipment owned by grantees, tutored grantees how to structure their management and governance and operation procedures and provided workable solutions to the challenges faced by some of the grantees.
The training will be replicated in Bo where grantees on Oil Palm and Cocoa will be targeted.
SCADeP is a project under the Ministry of Agriculture that seeks to promote agricultural productive through access to finance for smallholder farmers and creating productive market linkages.
