Session 5: Policy Framework and Opportunities to Make Markets Work for Small Farmers

ASEAN Foundation Opportunities
by Renelle Ivy Adan, Program Coordinator

As a funding agency, the ASEAN Foundation can support human resource development projects (capacity development only, no infrastructure) such as those in the agricultural sector. Projects need to meet a set general criteria before they can be approved, such as that they have to be regional or sub-regional in nature (can not be country-based only, and are usually anywhere from 6 months to 3 years in duration. In terms of process, the foundation will request for 3-page concept paper to be submitted before a full proposal is developed. Because of the numerous back and forth between the foundation and the proponent, the project approval process can be quite lengthy (i.e. in the case of AsiaDHRRA with the LSFM project, the process took almost 6 months). All projects then needs to get the approval of the board of trustees, which is composed of the ambassadors of the member countries – a process that takes around two (2) weeks. Since 95% of the foundation’s funding comes from Japan, projects are also sent to them for final approval once approved by the board.

The ASEAN Foundation also provides scholarships on a per university basis. Through a partnership with Hewlett Packard, they have also been able to conduct IT trainings for farmers in Indonesia and will soon do the same for Cambodia and Laos. The foundation will be visiting each member country in the next four (4) months be discuss how organizations (private companies, NGOs, etc) can link up and avail of funding.

Proposals are accepted all year round. Requirements and details of project proposal submission shall be provided to all the participants.

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Session 5: Policy Framework and Opportunities to Make Markets Work for Small Farmers

About the FAO
by David Hitchcock, Agribusiness & Infrastructure Officer

The FAO funds technical cooperation projects (TCPs), which are determined by each country. It would like to be a responsive organization and it sees itself as a source of technical assistance in 1) information and analysis of both national and regional strategies; 2) enabling policies, institutions and services; and 3) supporting specific agro-industries and value chains (i.e. determining the drivers of certain value chains, looking at opportunities and innovative arrangements, etc). At this point, the FAO cannot support infrastructure projects; however it can help determine what kind of infrastructure is needed (soft process)

The FAO can also help emerging NGOs. This is especially relevant given that the role of NGOs has been changing dramatically and there are now many models in the regions that we can learn from. There are also many “failures” in the sense that farmers did not enter the markets for some reason(s), and these are just as important to study and learn from.

As a regional organization, FAO can also help give a voice to small farmers for specific policies and advocacies. For example, the group can come up with a set of recommendations that can be brought to the upcoming regional forum on trade. FAO would be willing to fund a consultant to look at specific issues and facilitate dialogues on what we can do and how we can leverage in order to come up with an action plan.


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