The Innovation Fund for Ethiopia Agriculture (IFEA)

USAID/Ethiopia’s Office of Economic Growth and Transformation (EG&T) invites the submission of concept papers from local organizations related to the Mission’s efforts on Food Security and Nutrition under the Feed the Future Strategy. Specifically, innovative projects are sought, linking activities in the agriculture and health sectors in order to reduce food security and malnutrition. These projects should demonstrate new approaches to agriculture and nutrition linkages and help create households that are food secure, meaning the ability to reliably gain access to food in sufficient quantity and quality for all household members ( in particular pregnant and lactating women and children through two years of age) to enjoy a healthy and active life as well as nutrition secure which is achieved when secure access to food is coupled with a sanitary environment, adequate health services, and knowledgeable care to ensure a healthy and active life for all household members” . In addition, activities will focus on resilience which is defined as “the ability of people, households, communities, countries, and systems to mitigate, adapt to and recover from shocks and stresses in a manner that reduces chronic vulnerability and facilitates inclusive growth.” The goal of this Annual Program Statement (APS) is to assist households that are chronically food insecure and /or suffer from poor nutrition status to participate in activities that will lead to food and nutrition security. Projects funded are required to put forward a testable hypothesis with regards to which approaches to linking agriculture and nutrition are likely to produce positive impacts on food security and nutritional status of beneficiaries. This hypothesis should then be tested through project implementation, complemented by a strong monitoring and evaluation and documentation of results in order to improve knowledge and learning on the issue. Three awards are expected to be made and at least one award will be granted for activities focused on the Pastoralist Areas.