A New Signed Agreement Will Increase Agricultural Productivity in Yemen
Last month in Sana’a, the Yemen Competitive Agricultural Systems for High-Value Crops program and the Cooperative and Agricultural Credit (CAC) Bank, a Yemeni state bank, signed a memorandum of understanding to increase agricultural productivity in the country.
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| Representatives from CASH and CAC Bank sign an MOU in Sana’a, Yemen. |
Signed in the presence of the Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation, the agreement will facilitate building the capacities and practicable skills of 14,000 farmers in seven target provinces: Sana’a, Lahj, Taiz, Dhamar, Raimah, Dhaela and Ibb. Farmers will gain skills in water and power conservation, as well as other technologies and practices that will significantly increase the agricultural productivity and incomes of farmers in coffee, honey, horticulture, livestock, and entrepreneurs in handicrafts.
The two entities will also collaborate to increase agricultural lending and access to finance for Yemeni farmers. CASH, which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development, will assist CAC Bank to offer agricultural loans to meet the needs of farmers in the targeted provinces for the next five years. CASH will focus on developing the skills of beneficiaries and helping them prepare business plans to ensure loan-readiness. CAC Bank will develop loan products and an effective loan disbursement mechanism.
Read the story from the Yemeni news agency, Saba.
About CASH
In 2014, USAID, through the Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance, launched a five-year, $24.5 million agriculture development project called Competitive Agriculture Systems for High Value Crops (CASH) to increase sustainable economic opportunities and decrease food insecurity in Yemen. The project will identify and promote high-value markets, support farmer groups to produce for those markets, and promote public-private partnerships aimed at leveraging investment in sustainable enterprises.
Land O’Lakes International Development is the lead implementer of the CASH program and provided a sub-award to IESC to assist with increasing access to finance, markets, and market information.
