What We Do

Propcom+ interventions are delivered using a market systems approach. We use a market systems approach, and work through strategic partnerships with businesses and other market actors to implement activities across six (6) broad-based portfolios. Thus, we are working through strategic partnerships with businesses and other market actors to implement activities across six (6) broad-based portfolios.

Market systems approaches address the underlying causes of poor performance in specific markets that matter to people living in poverty, in order to create lasting changes that have a large-scale impact (Beam Exchange). Thus, market systems approaches seek to build the capacity of players or actors in the value chain to respond to market failures and to work more effectively to facilitate wider systemic changes.

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Thus, we are working through strategic partnerships with businesses and other market actors to implement activities across three (3) broad-based pillars:

P1: Scaling-up

We are scaling a focused basket of Proven climate-smart interventions around agricultural and primary processing/storage practices and models to get these adopted by millions of poor and vulnerable smallholder farmers and small-scale entrepreneurs.

Interventions:

Scaling Last-mile Delivery of Vaccination Services

This intervention is strengthening last-mile access by replicating and scaling the Community Animal Health Workers (CAHWs) and the Veterinary Para-Professionals (VPP) models. This involves:

Supporting veterinary pharmaceutical companies to strengthen rural distribution channels for suitable poultry/livestock vaccines by leveraging the Community Animal Health Worker (CAHW) and Veterinary Paraprofessional (VPP) models to reach smallholder farmers.
Developing the market for CAHWs/VPPs by investing in farmer education on the benefits of routine animal vaccination.

Increasing Poultry and Livestock Vaccine Supply

This intervention seeks to support veterinary pharmaceutical companies to build the needed capacity for a more sustainable supply of vaccine products for smallholders through partnerships and provide support to unlock investments and other commercial capital. It seeks to:

Increase the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) ‘s production capacity to produce Newcastle Disease Virus Strain i2 (NDI2) and Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) vaccines by sevenfold.
Facilitate investment opportunities for veterinary pharmaceutical companies to set up vaccine production units in-country.
Work with regulatory bodies, veterinary input importers, and other key market actors to improve the ease of vaccine importation.

Scaling the Community Seed Multiplication Model

This model aims to improve access to climate-smart seed varieties through the outgrower model. It supports market actors in improving the supply of climate-adapted seed varieties to farmers and builds a solid case for financial institutions to develop and deploy loan products for community seed multiplication. This involves:

Supporting seed companies to expand their seed multiplication targets.
Generating and sharing evidence on the commercial viability of the community seed multiplication model with other market actors to generate uptake/replication and response from supporting actors.

Scaling the Rural Seed Promotion Model

Similar to the Community Seed Multiplication Model, this model aims to improve rural access to climate-smart seed varieties using an entrepreneurial model. This involves:

Supporting seed companies to strengthen rural distribution channels by identifying and tooling micro-entrepreneurs within communities to promote and sell seeds to smallholder farmers at the last mile.
Increasing awareness of the use and adoption of improved seed varieties by investing in rural marketing, awareness creation, and farmer capacity building through grassroots engagement.

Aggregation and Off-take of Biofortified Crop Varieties

This intervention promotes supply chain integration, facilitating aggregation and off-take of industry-needed biofortified crop varieties, working with major aggregators and farmers to meet the industry needs. This involves:

Supporting food processors in researching the micronutrient retention levels of biofortified produce after processing to strengthen the case for using biofortified grains.
Supporting food processors to integrate smallholder farmers into their supply chains through investment in production and aggregation and offtake arrangements.
Facilitating linkages between farmers and seed companies to access biofortified seeds needed for primary production; and between aggregators and farmers to aggregate industry-needed biofortified grains.

P2: Building Markets

We are developing and Piloting new business models that improve productivity, enhance resilience to climate change, reduce emissions, and improve nutrition outcomes.

Interventions:

Piloting the Sustainable Rice Intensification (SRI) Model

Propcom+ is implementing an SRI bridge programme to build on the successes of FCDO LINKS, which pioneered SRI in Kano and Jigawa States of Nigeria. The Systems of Rice Intensification was developed as an alternative practice to rice production to reduce methane emissions while promoting increased productivity. Building on the lessons from LINKS, Propcom+ is introducing the use of labour-saving devices and water management technology through a clustered service provision model. The model involves:

Facilitating a service-delivery model for SRI labour-saving devices LSDs (Transplanter and Weeder).
Expanding irrigation infrastructure through services and other vendor-financing options.
Developing and making the investment case to financial institutions to develop financial products for proven viable productive assets
Delivering farmer education through embedded onsite (LSD service-provider-led) and offsite (digital) channels.

Piloting Solar Refrigeration for Poultry and Livestock Vaccine Storage and Distribution

Solar refrigeration presents an eco-friendly solution to two market challenges as it can provide reliable storage options for pharmaceutical companies and vaccine distributors and can mitigate post-harvest losses, increase yield and establish itself as a business asset for consumers. This intervention will support:

Co-investment with Agrovet companies to test the functionality and commercial viability of solar-powered refrigerators for vaccine storage; and cold boxes for maintaining controlled temperatures during transportation.
If the above is successful, facilitate the development/deployment of suitable financial products to aid actors in purchasing the solar refrigerators and the cold boxes.

Piloting Electric Vehicles (EVs) for Agricultural Inputs and Produce Transportation

E-Vehicles (EVs) present an eco-friendly alternative to last-mile challenges, driving inclusion and serving as a productive asset for livelihood. This intervention seeks to:

Co-invest with market actors to conduct action research to test the functionality and commercial viability of EVs for agro-inputs and produce transportation (in different use cases).
Use the results from the action research to facilitate the development of financial products that support the purchase of EVs by various market actors.

Piloting an Integrated Agroforestry Cocoa PES in Afi and Mbe Forests, Cross River State

This intervention involves:

Co-investing with market actors to conduct action research, including supply chain analysis, within a transboundary forest landscape to test agroforestry Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) models to improve smallholder cocoa productivity and enhance sustainable sourcing in line with global traceability standards.
Conducting assessment and designing PES and carbon abatement models with smallholders through incentive-based payment mechanism for restoration, cocoa agroforestry and avoided deforestation.
Conducting feasibility study and designing a Licence Buying Agents (LBA) Service Delivery model aimed at LBA professionalisation and responsible cocoa sourcing.
Socialising and planning with selected farmers to establish climate-adapted seedling nursery enterprises, pruning and artificial pollination services to meet production demands.

P3: Enabling Policies

We support the strengthening of an enabling environment for sustainable food and land-use systems.

Interventions:

Strengthening Institutional Capacity for Livestock Disease Prevention

This intervention aims to institutionalise routine animal health vaccination by promoting a public-private partnership (PPP) model, providing technical assistance for the design of a PPP framework and in the development of relevant standards of practice (SOP) for animal health vaccination in Nigeria. This involves:

Strengthen the supply of and production of suitable vaccines and animal health services
Advocacy for the increase in budgetary allocation for disease prevention, animal health services and systems strengthening of the sector.
Strengthen disease reporting and surveillance systems.

Policy Support: Edo State Forests and Agricultural Development Strategy and Operationalisation

This intervention involves providing technical assistance to the Edo State Government in the sustainable management of its Forests and Non-Timber Forests Commodities. It seeks to:

Facilitate the strengthening of the Edo State Oil Palm Project (ESOPP) office, as well as the passage of a sustainable oil palm law – the Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) Bill which defines the allocation of lands for oil palm concessions and requires integration of smallholder oil palm developments and forest restoration and conservation as part of the business model.
Support the set-up of the Executive Board of the Edo State Forestry Commission and the Appointment and onboarding of the Chairperson.
Facilitate TA to co-develop a 25-year Okomu Forest Management Plan in partnership with the Edo State Government.

Replicating Africa Sustainable Commodities Initiative (ASCI) in Ekiti State

The ASCI is a framework for governments committed to balancing the need for agricultural production with forest protection and conservation. This intervention seeks to:

In partnership with the Ekiti State Government, conduct land and forest cover mapping and ground truthing to determine the state, size, and geolocations of intact forest and agricultural lands, as well as administrative forest boundaries including high conservation value areas and the types of tree crops/commodities.
Develop updated Ekiti land and forest cover maps and shapefiles with land cover classification and the preparation of a proposal to the Ekiti government for a private sectored agroforestry and restoration concession model.
Socialise and facilitate the development and adoption of shared principles for sustainable oil palm production with an action roadmap and a signed MOU by the Governor of Ekiti State to operationalise ASCI in Ekiti State.

Facilitating the Development of Relevant State Agricultural Policies

We are providing technical assistance to selected State Governments to develop or review their Agricultural Policies to ensure their continued relevance and effectiveness in promoting agricultural development in their states. This involves:

Facilitating multi-stakeholder engagements and consultations and buy-in.
Facilitating the development and review of the draft processes.
Facilitating policy validation workshops and further updates to the drafts.
Advocacy for policy approval and supporting the integration of the policy into the appropriate governance systems as well as the implementation of the policies.

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