Project profile — Agricultural-based Growth and Resilience Opportunities for Women (AGROW)

• Cambodia (100.00%)

• Government And Civil Society, General: Women's rights organisations and movements, and government institutions (15170) (5.00%)
• Food crop production:
Food crop production (31161) (18.00%)
Livestock (31163) (18.00%)
Agricultural education/training (31181) (20.00%)
Agricultural financial services (31193) (8.00%)
Agricultural co-operatives (31194) (5.00%)
Livestock/veterinary services (31195) (8.00%)
• Industry: Agro-industries (32161) (18.00%)

• Gender equality (significant objective)
• Environmental sustainability (cross-cutting) (principal objective)
• Participatory development and good governance (not targeted)
• Trade development (not targeted)
• Biodiversity (not targeted)
• Climate change mitigation (not targeted)
• Climate Change Adaptation (significant objective)
• Urban issues (not targeted)
• Desertification (not targeted)
• Children's issues (not targeted)
• Youth Issues (not targeted)
• Indigenous Issues (not targeted)
• Disability (not targeted)
• ICT as a tool for development (not targeted)
• Disaster Risk Reduction(DRR) (not targeted)
• Nutrition (significant objective)

This project aims to enhance the socio-economic resilience of women and girls through human, animal, and environmental health (One Health) programming. It does so in 3 targeted districts, Banan, Ek Phnom, and Rattanak Mondul, in Battambang Province, Cambodia. The Agricultural-based Growth and Resilience Opportunities for Women (AGROW) implements this project in collaboration with Veterinarians without Borders (VWB or VSF) and Agronomes et Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Cambodia (VSF Cambodia). Project activities include: (1) providing training on climate-smart food production, food diversification, nutrition (including food preparation and nutrient uptake), and environmental stewardship; (2) establishing One Health demonstration sites or innovative shared approaches to support women farmers’ access to equipment and supplies for production; (3) working with existing women groups and associations or co-operatives to strengthen their organization and management and encourage women’s leadership; and (4) training on value-chain development and feasible green technologies supporting Cambodia’s Green Growth Strategy. AGROW seeks to directly benefit 4,260 household beneficiaries and 20,022 household members from rural communities (60% women). It aims to indirectly benefit 48,429 (60% women) in the 3 districts, in 12 communes and 48 villages. The project also supports 48 village animal health workers, 48 producer groups (1 per village) and 144 leaders (48 women).

The expected outcomes of this project include: (1) improved climate-smart food production and nutrition for agro-based women and women-led groups; and (2) strengthened economic security of women and girls from the sale of environmentally sustainable agriculture and livestock-based production.

Results achieved as of November 2023 include: (1) supported 416 women and girls (out of 506 farmer beneficiaries) in animal health, insect (cricket), and livestock (chicken and cattle) production; (2) trained 48 village animal health workers (3 women) in technical animal health, the One Health concept, and gender equality; (3) trained 47 smallholder farmers (33 women) in smallholder cricket production; (4) supported 49 smallholder farmers (43 women) with essential material inputs such as smartboard planks, equipment pieces for constructing cricket basins, cricket eggs, and cricket feeds; (5) supported 215 chicken farmers (197 women) to acquire seeds, breeding stock, incubators, farming tools, equipment, and starter kits; (6) provided 193 cattle farmers (173 women) with services, materials, breed cows, and technical knowledge for animal production; (7) trained 35 agriculture co-operative leaders (15 women) on effective agriculture co-operative management and leadership, including One Health and gender equality perspectives; and, (8) distributed 48 veterinary toolkits and 48 medical kits to project beneficiaries to enable them to provide basic animal health services in their respective villages.

• Proactive disclosure