CHIPATA, ZAMBIA – The U.S. government, in partnership with international agricultural development organization Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA), announced the launch of a new five-year Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) program in Zambia on September 19. The F2F program is a $12.25 million initiative by the U.S. government operating across six countries including Madagascar, Malawi, Moldova, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The U.S. Congress authorized the Farmer-to-Farmer Worldwide Program in 1985 to transfer knowledge and expertise from U.S. agricultural producers and businesses to developing economies.  The F2F program provides technical assistance to farmers, farm groups, agribusinesses, and other agriculture-sector institutions.  It aims to generate sustainable, broad-based economic growth in the agricultural sector and to increase understanding of international development issues and U.S. development programs through people-to-people diplomacy.

CNFA’s F2F program intends to increase the quantity and quality of produce in Zambia through improved production and processing technologies.  The program also focuses on strengthening the organizational and marketing capacity of agribusinesses and promoting the use of conservation agriculture in line with the development agenda of the Zambian government and its National Agricultural Policy (NAP).  F2F will leverage volunteer expertise to strengthen the horticulture and legumes value chains in Eastern Province, and aquaculture value chains in Southern Provinces.

Over the course of the five-year program, U.S. volunteer technical experts from agriculture, business, and other disciplines will complete two- or three-week assignments in Zambia to transfer their expertise and deliver training that will address knowledge and capacity gaps that currently constrain the success of Zambian producers, processors, and service providers.

The experts will focus on a range of subjects, including horticultural, legume, and fish production and processing, cooperative development, business planning and management, and marketing plan development.

Beneficiaries participating in the program include farmer cooperatives and associations, small and medium-sized farmers and processors, academic institutions, local non-governmental and community-based organizations, social enterprises, and other agribusinesses.

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Since 1985, over 19,000 F2F volunteers have provided technical assistance to over 12,500 organizations in 112 countries.  Today, the program continues to be funded through the U.S. Farm Bill and administered by USAID.  At the moment, Farmer-to-Farmer volunteers work in 36 countries around the world. Volunteers are U.S. citizens or permanent residents with domestic and/or international experience in farming, agribusiness, and academia, either actively still pursuing careers or in retirement.

CNFA: Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture is an international agricultural development organization that specializes in the design and implementation of sustainable, enterprise-based agricultural initiatives.  They work with businesses, foundations, governments and communities to build customized local and global partnerships that meet the world’s growing demand for food.  Since its inception in 1985, CNFA has designed and implemented enterprise-based, agricultural development initiatives to facilitate market access, enhance agribusiness competitiveness, increase productivity, and improve access to inputs and financing in 45 countries around the world.