2. Page 2
ENGAGING POOR FARMERS IN
STRAWBERRY VALUE CHAIN IN
AZERBAIJAN
BENEFICIARY NUMBERS (MALE/FEMALE): Total 1700
beneficiaries, 50% female beneficiaries
LOCATION: Central Part of Azerbaijan (Barda, Tartar, Agdam)
STAFF AND PARTNER NAMES: Oxfam staff
PROJECT DURATION: 3 years
YEAR OF IMPLEMENTATION: November 2010 – October 2013
3. Page 3
SECTION I: CONTEXT ANALYSIS
• About the country – Background
Azerbaijan - a nation with a Turkic and majority-Muslim population -
regained its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in
1991. Despite a 1994 cease-fire, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its
conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh
enclave. Azerbaijan has lost 16% of its territory and must support
some 570,000 internally displaced persons as a result of the
conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous and the promise of widespread
wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources remains
largely unfulfilled.
• Population: 9 million
4. Page 4
• Geography - Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea,
between Iran and Russia, with a small European portion north
of the Caucasus range
• Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 99%
female: 96%
• Capital: Baku
• Refugees and internally displaced persons: IDPs –
570,000 (conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh)
6. Page 6
• What were the problems and what did you try to address?
Describe the underlying cause (s) of these problems.
• In rural areas high rate of poverty persists because of neglect of the
agricultural sector
• Dysfunctional water management system and soil husbandry, and
unregulated input supply chain, unproductive varieties are in the
main at the root cause of the barriers that prevent the smallholder
vegetable producing sector to profitably compete in the market.
• Information about relevant laws and rules does not reach ordinary
farmers
• Lack of access to market information, reliable extension support,
proper and affordable storage, and the unavailability of timely credit.
7. Page 7
Vision in Strawberry Value Chain
System of out-grower arrangements based on business
models that embed access to improved seedlings,
information and advice.
A sustainable hub develops in the Central Regions that
make available the more productive strawberry planting
materials and advice
Local processors will be incentivised with the
development of alternative sourcing by buying from local
growers.
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8. Page 8
Project Interventions
Strawberry Interventions/Activities
1.Access to more productive strawberry seedlings
Identifying& work with key players in seedling supply
Identifying& work with key players in the marketing
chain
Facilitate seedling sourcing models
2.Access to bulking and marketing services
Temporary support to a production & marketing activity
to demonstrate result & start the momentum going
Develop bulking / aggregation functions
Build capacity in coordination functions
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9. Page 9
Temporary support to nursery
establishment-0.25 ha (project support
70%)
Temporary support to nursery
establishment-0.25 ha (project support
70%)
Stakeholder mappingStakeholder mapping
Business Model between
processor and contract
farming
Business Model between
processor and contract
farming
Facilitating PO
establishment (2)
Facilitating PO
establishment (2)
Market research-15 traders, 3
Processors were identified as a
potential partner
Market research-15 traders, 3
Processors were identified as a
potential partner
First engagement with right
contacts-Irevanli strawberry
growers
First engagement with right
contacts-Irevanli strawberry
growers
Linking Irevanli growers to
Jalilabad nursery
Linking Irevanli growers to
Jalilabad nursery
Exposure Visit
to Turkey
Exposure Visit
to Turkey
Capacity building by
Aktivta
Capacity building by
Aktivta
Business
Management
Training for the
POs
Business
Management
Training for the
POs
Coordination Meeting
of Stakeholders
Coordination Meeting
of Stakeholders
Cost-Benefit
Analysis of
Future
Expansion
Cost-Benefit
Analysis of
Future
Expansion
Irevanli Nursery functions as a
seed supply source)and
extension service (gives
training and publishes book )
Irevanli Nursery functions as a
seed supply source)and
extension service (gives
training and publishes book )
Facilitating linkages
between processors and
Irevanli nursery
Facilitating linkages
between processors and
Irevanli nursery
Business offer for
joint ventures
Business offer for
joint ventures
Coordination
meeting with
stakeholders
Coordination
meeting with
stakeholders
Open field days –during
harvest season (5000 kg)
Open field days –during
harvest season (5000 kg)
6 POs
operate in
the
strawberry
supply chain
6 POs
operate in
the
strawberry
supply chain
Crowding in of
new traders, POs,
markets
Crowding in of
new traders, POs,
markets
2 Processors sign
interest agreement
2 Processors sign
interest agreement
3 Traders enters
into Joint venture
with 9 farmers-
1.15 ha
3 Traders enters
into Joint venture
with 9 farmers-
1.15 ha
Stimulating
aggregation services
Stimulating
aggregation services
Scale up 25
ha
Scale up 25
ha
Irevanli Nursery
expands to 0.50
ha
Irevanli Nursery
expands to 0.50
ha
Strawberry VC Intervention Logic
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10. Page 10
Changes in Who does? Who Pays?
Before Project
Functions Players
Who does Who pays
Supply of
Fruit
Farmers
(Central
Region)
(10%)
Export-
(20%)
Traders,
Consumers
,
Processors
Extension
Services
None None
Aggregation
services
None None
Initial
investment to
small farming
None None
After project
Functions Players
Who does Who pays
Supply of
seedlings
Irevanli
nursery
Farmers,
Traders
Supply of
fresh Fruit
Farmer(Centr
al Region)
(30%)
Export(20%)
Processors
Traders
Consumers
Extension
Services
Irevanli
Nursery
Farmer
Aggregation
services
Irevanli
Collection
Point
Processors
Trader
Initial
investment to
small farming
Farmers Farmer/Tra
der/Process
or
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Support Functions
• Providing the seedlings
of new variety.
Nurseriesnprovides
quality seedlingsties
and fertilisers.
Seedling
and
fertilisers
providers
Financial
Services
Difficulties to access low rate
interest loans especially for
women farmers. No collateral
No referee No insurance.
Considered to be high credit
risk. MFI offer six months rate
Rules and
functions
Poor quality
communal
services
(gas,water,
electricity
Impact of
processing
companies: 3
processor is
interested to
purchase from
small growers
Equal distribution
of land & water
between men &
women but mainly
men decide what to
grow
Low paid work. High
profitability from
Viktoria affects
wages
Waged Workers
80 % women
mainly in
harvesting and
weeding. Agro service centres
funded by WB not
functioning. Some
women extension
workers. Nurseries
function as an
extension service
Laws on cooperatives.
People working as
cooperatives pay 14% tax
but individuals pay 2%.
Disincentive to collective
business action. New
cooperative law proposed
by Oxfam & partners read
in parliament. 6 POs
emerged
Small farmers have
limited access to
loans
Technologie
s
Small/Big
Processing
companies/wome
n employees 40%
Wholesalers & traders
(10% women) in Baku
main markets & city
supermarkets (40%
women employees
Irevanli, Seydimli,
Gayali, POs
Bazaars &
markets in
other Districts
(10% women)
Jelilabad &
Khachmaz
(90% men)
Difficulties in
trading.
Advantages of new
strawberry make it
easy to trade. PO
capacity and power
Contacts with
traders, POs,
processor and
markets
No planning in cultivating
the agricultural crops. No
Rotation plan. Prognosis
for Bulk and sale for
demands and supply
• No good agricultural practice
• No access to machinery
• Limited condition for soil, water
analyses.fertilizers/modern
technology.
• Drip irrigation and new growing
methods are being applied for
Lack of trust
between
market actors.
Joint ventures
with contract
basis
Market
Information
Agro
Information
Services
Lack of contacts
(traders/market)-
Contacts with
traders, POs,
processor and
markets
THE STRAWBERRY CURRENT MARKET MAP
Distributer
s
No reliable market
information sources .
Low capacity. Weak
relations. Contacts
with traders, POs,
processor and
markets make the
information
Foreign
Suppliers
Traders/retailers in Barda &
Ganja bazaars & markets
(40% women)
Smaller
markets (10%
women)
Joint trader-
farmer venture
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SECTION III: STAKEHOLDER
ANALYSIS
• Main stakeholders in SMART Farmers Project: strawberry
growing farmers, strawberry nursery, traders, input shops and
processing companies
• Establishment of relationships with key actors through:
a. Selection of right contact persons
b. Clear explanation of the project goals
c. Correct business vision
d. Trust building issues among stakeholders (joint venture)
• Most critical stakeholders to our approach to achieving
change: farmers and processing companies
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Market level
outcomes in
Strawberry
Value Chain
Economic
Impact
3 local traders and 9 small growers (all women)
entered into a joint venture (GTE) to open a new
cropping area of 0.65 hectare.
344 Farmers (210 of whom are women)have
access to quality seeds and advice
Processors -are ready (with an official
agreement) to buy strawberry from smallholders
Strawberry Nursery is functioning already as a
seedlings supply source
110 HH out of 217 in 4 target communities
growing new variety. Overall 110 HH from
different districts grow new variety
Small growers directly benefited from increased
income – i.e., between 2 to 3 times more
compared to the traditional growers and against
the baseline
The performance of Irevanli Strawberry Nursery
translates to 200% more income compare to
traditional growers
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Social
Impact
Women waged workers switch to strawberry farming
Women make additional income from kitchen garden
and this empowers her position within community and on
a household level
Women enter into negotiation with market actors which
enhances their power
Small farmers invest to expand their business and
becomes an entrepreneur
PO encourages community voice with their
communication with government agencies to solve
community problems (Irevanli PO)
Women spend additional income to health and
education of themselves and their children
Family spend their income to purchasing additional
assets like furniture
Irevanli Strawberry Nursery purchases new machinery
–tractor and engages in additional business
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SECTION V: WHAT WORKED WELL
AND WHAT DIDN’T?
• What was particularly successful? Involvement of the not
strawberry growing farmers into strawberry business
• What was relatively unsuccessful? Some of the farmers did
planting of strawberry without having the analyses of the soil and
irrigation water. And due to high water salinity and lack of
necessary elements in the soil, they lost their crops (lesson learnt)
• What were the success factors? Three big processing
companies with written official letters expressed their interest to
buy strawberries from our farmers.
• What approaches or factors constrained your ability to
achieve wider change? Lack of access to the reliable agricultural
credits made barriers for poor farmers to start their strawberry
businesses with drip irrigation systems
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SECTION VI: LEARNING AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
• How could you change what you are doing in future? Looking through
the lessons learnt from the project and make necessary changes in good
way the project can achieve more success in the future
• With the benefit of hindsight, what should you have done differently?
Women are not automatically in a position to actively participate and take on
a leading role that can be opened as a result of initial interventions. There is
a need to include also as a priority some key activities that will inform a
more targeted and informed intervention that will facilitate women becoming
active and taking on lead roles in making change happen
• What advice would you give to someone facing a similar situation?
Use gendered market and household economic mappings as tools to
facilitate the identification of interventions that can be better targeted and
rightly informed
