Call For Submissions Lg2

Call for Submissions

Best Practices & Innovations (BPI) Initiative Agriculture & Rural Livelihoods

To learn more about the Best Practices and Innovations (BPI) Initiative, please visit: www. interaction.org/best-practicesinnovations. If you have any questions, please contact: Laia Grino Senior Research Associate [email protected] or Brian Greenberg Director of Sustainable Development [email protected]

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ith support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), InterAction has launched its Best Practices & Innovations (BPI) Initiative, which in its first phase will focus on agriculture and rural livelihoods. The purpose of the initiative is to promote information sharing on effective program approaches, and to improve practice standards by boosting the efficiency and impacts of field programs. With millions affected by the food, fuel and financial crises, and development programs feeling the constraints of a scarce resource environment, identifying and learning from “what works” has never been more crucial. Organizations are invited to submit information on interventions that have succeeded in improving food security, reducing poverty, increasing resilience and/or improving productivity. Interventions in a wide number of program areas are eligible, from climate change adaptation to pest and disease management, to value chain development. Key Dates A more comprehensive list of program areas can be found on November 20, 2009 the initiative’s Submission Form. Deadline for A Selection Committee of experts in agricultural development Submissions will review all submissions to identify best practices and promisJanuary 23, 2010 ing innovations. All submitted interventions will be featured on Best Practices & InterAction’s online map of NGO food security and agriculture Promising Innovations Selected projects. Those receiving “best practice” and “promising innovation” designations will also be featured in InterAction’s flagship February 2010 Best Practice and monthly publication, Monday Developments. In addtion, best Innovations Awards practice and innovations programs will be invited to present Announced their technical approaches at a workshop in early 2010.

How to Apply

To apply, please complete the BPI initiative Submission Form—available on InterAction’s website—and submit it to Laia Grino at [email protected]. The deadline for submissions is November 20, 2009.

www.InterAction.org 1400 16th Street, NW Suite 210 Washington, DC 20036 202-667-8227

What is a best practice? What is an innovation? A best practice is an approach or technique that has led to tangible and demonstrable improvements in people’s lives in multiple settings, is sustainable and can be replicated or adapted. An innovation is an approach or technique new to its context or setting that shows the potential to address a serious development challenge and can therefore lead to improvements in people’s lives.

Who is eligible to participate? InterAction member organizations and members of IFAD’s Working Group on Agriculture and Rural Poverty are eligible to submit interventions for consideration. Submissions must meet the eligibility criteria below.

Eligibility Criteria Best Practices

Innovations

• Related to agriculture and rural livelihoods

• Related to agriculture and rural livelihoods

• Implemented in a developing country

• Implemented in a developing country

• Evidence of success

• Approach new to its context or setting

• Implemented in more than one setting

• Evidence of potential or success • Pilot/demonstration projects eligible

How will submissions be evaluated? Submissions will be evaluated by an eight-person Selection Committee composed of representatives from InterAction member organizations and non-member experts. Individuals serving on the committee will have expertise in a variety of areas related to agriculture and rural livelihoods, such as agronomy, high-value horticulture or staple crop production, value chain and market development, irrigation management, pest management, program evaluation/impact assessment and gender in agriculture.

What will the evaluation criteria be? Best practice and innovation submissions will both be evaluated based on evidence documenting the following five criteria: 1. Evidence of effectiveness/success: How successful or effective has the intervention been in terms of improving food security, reducing poverty, increasing resilience and/or improving productivity? 2. Efficiency/cost-effectiveness: How do the intervention’s relative costs compare to the outcomes achieved? Do the costs of implementing the intervention seem reasonable given the gains? 3. Equitable outcomes for women and men: Does the intervention enable the participation of and result in equitable benefits for both women and men? 4. Sustainability: Is the intervention sustainable in the long-term, both financially and environmentally? Are local partners willing and able to manage and implement the intervention once the project ends? 5. Replicability /Adaptability: Can the intervention be replicated or adapted in other settings? Has it been replicated or adapted successfully in the past?