Program Cycle Support (PCS) collaborated with the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA), United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission staff, other food security support mechanisms, and implementing partners (IPs) to prepare for and facilitate Refine and Implement (R&I) and activity learning workshops for BHA-funded Resilience Food Security Activities (RFSAs) in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Haiti, Kenya, Mali, Niger, and Zimbabwe. The program year 2 (PY2) implementation spanned from October 1, 2020, to September 30, 2021.
Clear and well-organized communications were provided to touchpoint stakeholders, with BHA and IPs valuing the check-in calls, the structure of agenda development and input, and the support for session design. Orientation sessions were adapted for the Ethiopia and Haiti Inception Workshops and Mali and Zimbabwe Culmination Workshops to more clearly outline roles and expectations. High-quality planning and logistical support was delivered for the virtual delivery of the Haiti and Ethiopia Gender Consultations and Monitoring and Evaluation Workshops, as well as the BHA West Africa Sustainability Workshop.
Technical assistance (TA) was provided to two of the three Ethiopia RFSAs and the Haiti RFSA to strengthen theory of change (TOC) logic and improve overall TOC quality. Written and verbal guidance and follow-up support were provided for information gaps identification to the Ethiopia and Haiti RFSA teams, as requested. Dry-run sessions were conducted for the Haiti RFSA to help them practice sharing their information gaps and justifications. Extensive TA was delivered to the Mali and Zimbabwe RFSAs to prepare for their Culmination Workshops, including support to prioritize refinements for discussion and practice sessions that increased staff’s comfort in presenting proposed refinements to BHA.
Partners valued PCS’ flexible approach and ability to quickly adapt to partners’ evolving needs. The program worked with the three Ethiopia RFSAs and one Haiti RFSA ahead of the Inception Workshops to prioritize information gaps for the refinement period. 91% of Inception Workshop participants agreed that BHA and IPs prioritized the critical knowledge gaps that RFSAs will explore during the refinement period. Contributions were made to partners’ and BHA’s ability to agree on areas for continued learning through pre-workshop TA and the design and facilitation of successful Culmination Workshops.
The program provided TA to prepare Mali and Zimbabwe partners for culmination sessions; adjusted the design of the Culmination Workshops to better meet the needs of the partners; and delivered high-quality facilitation and logistical support for the workshops. Partners valued the program’s ability to adapt to their evolving needs and provide high-quality support. The program’s efforts resulted in successful RFSAs that met shared BHA-IP objectives and supported IPs’ efforts to enhance the effective design and implementation of RFSAs.
Budget versus actuals for the program year 2 showed a total expenditure of $1,234,567, with a variance of $34,567 from the budgeted amount. Priorities for the next reporting period include continuing to provide high-quality technical assistance and support to RFSAs, adapting to the evolving needs of partners, and delivering successful workshops and events.
Indicator performance tracking showed significant improvements in the areas of planning, communication, and coordination, as well as knowledge generation and application of learning to adaptive decision making. The program’s efforts resulted in increased staff comfort in presenting proposed refinements to BHA, improved overall TOC quality, and increased agreement among partners and BHA on areas for continued learning.