The last guide of a series grounded on the area-based (territorial) approach to rural agro-enterprise development is now available

Good Practice Guide, CRS

Recently, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) published a guide that is part of the Good Practice Guide series of agro-enterprise publications developed in collaboration with CIAT’s Linking Farmers to Markets Research Group (LFM) and other partners.

LFM has developed various methodological guides and tools with the purpose of supporting other institutions such as NGOs, development agencies, governmental institutions or private sector actors interested in implementing participatory agribusiness development programs. These tools have been developed as a result of numerous collaborative projects in Latin America, Africa and Asia over the past years and, since they are created to facilitate a continuous learning experience of diverse actors involved in rural development processes, are often tested, adapted and updated.

Some of CRS’s Good Practice guides grounded on the area-based approach to rural agro-enterprise development have a first edition published by CIAT. You can find a brief summary of the first edition of the guides, as well as other supplemental guides at DAPA LFM Tools.

The new guide

The “Guide to Strengthening Business Development Services in Rural Areas” (available in English only) published by CRS aims to equip new and existing service providers with a set of methods and tools to help smallholder producers engage more effectively in local, regional and global markets. By doing so, smallholder farmers may enhance their capacity to innovate and compete, increase their household income and ultimately improve their livelihoods.

This guide demonstrates how a variety of support services may improve the performance of individual producer organizations and agro-enterprises, as well as strengthen entire agricultural sub-sectors and market chains and fuel new employment opportunities in rural areas.

The series

All of the guides on Rural Agroenterprise Development (CRS´s and CIAT´s publications) are available for download.

CIAT’s publications

• Participatory and Area-based Approach to Rural Agroenterprise Development. Good Practice Manual 1. Download here.
• Participatory Guide to Developing Partnerships, Area Resource Assessment and Planning Together. Good Practice Guide 2. Download here.
• Identifying Market Opportunities for Rural Smallholder Producers. Good Practice Guide 3. Download here.
• Participatory Market Chain Analysis for Smallholder Producers. Good Practice Guide 4. Download here.

CRS’s publications

• A Participatory Guide to Developing Partnerships, Area Resource Assessment and planning Together. Download here.
• Identifying Market Opportunities for Rural Smallholder Producers. Download here.
• A Guide to Participatory Market Chain Analysis for Smallholder Producers. Download here.
• NEW!!! A Guide to Strengthening Business Development Services in Rural Areas. Dowload here.