Overview

Grant program to support agricultural enterprises to upgrade their equipment base and enhance productive capacity and product quality.

Issuance date: October 1, 2024

Submission deadline: Rolling basis for the period October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025

USAID Economic Foundations for a Resilient Armenia Activity (“USAID Economic Foundations”) is releasing Annual Program Statement (APS) No. APS-2024/002-Equipment-to-Agribusinesses to award grants in support of its activities, particularly to improve the productivity of agribusinesses in all regions of Armenia by supporting them to modernize and upgrade their equipment for production, processing, post-harvest, and logistical activities and ultimately get integrated into regional, national, and international markets. Grants will be awarded and implemented in accordance with USAID and US Government regulations governing grants and USAID Economic Foundations’ internal grants management policies.

USAID Economic Foundations conducted in-depth analyses of agricultural value chains based on their potential to increase exports, mobilize investments, and enhance growth. Based on these analyses, several sub-sectors were identified as target intervention areas and constitute the focus of this APS:
1. Viticulture and wine production
2. Fruits and berries (fresh and processed)
3. Vegetables (fresh and processed)
4. Herbs (fresh and dried) and herbal teas
5. Honey
6. Nuts

Grants awarded under this APS will strengthen businesses in the target sub-sectors of agriculture, improve their management practices, and integrate sustainable modernization for production, processing, post-harvest, and logistical activities, as well as contribute to the increase of sales of interconnected entities (e.g. winemakers, producers and processors of berries, fruits, vegetables, herbs and herbal teas, honey, and nuts, suppliers, subcontractors, farmers, agricultural cooperatives, freight forwarders, agricultural logistics and post-harvest operators, exporters, food traders, etc.). Applicant companies seeking grant assistance to improve their facilities and productive capacity shall ensure integration of micro and small farmers into their supply networks, including, where possible, farms established by disadvantaged groups (women, youth, forcibly displaced people from Nagorno Karabakh, people with disabilities, etc.), thus creating an enabling environment for farmers to become sustainable and produce more.

Within the identified sub-sectors, this APS targets agribusinesses that wish to improve their capacity in the following key areas:
– PRODUCTION: upgrades of vineyards, fruit and nut orchards, vegetable fields, herb farms, and apiaries (bee yards) to improve quality standards (e.g. anti-hail nets, drip irrigation systems, etc.).
– PROCESSING: upgrades of production efficiencies when processing grapes, berries, fruits, vegetables, herbs, honey, and nuts (e.g. tools, devices, automated equipment for cleaning, washing, drying, sorting and/or grading, processing, packaging, label sticking, lid closing, etc.).
– POST-HARVEST: upgrades of production efficiencies for collection and storage of agricultural produce after harvesting (e.g. stationary and mobile (on-the-truck) cold storage equipment (excluding the vehicle) with respective insulation systems, humidity control and air circulation systems, modified atmosphere (MA) and controlled atmosphere (CA) technologies, etc.).
– LOGISTICS: upgrades of production efficiencies for transportation and sales of agricultural produce (e.g. equipment for transportation and handling of agricultural produce, etc.).

USAID Economic Foundations’ support of individual grant activities for this specific APS is planned to range from a minimum of $20,000 to a maximum of $150,000, whereby grants will be disbursed in equivalent AMD amounts. Leveraged contributions are planned to start at a minimum of 30% of the total project cost, whereby higher contributions are encouraged resulting in higher scoring during evaluation. Recipients will be able to request VAT exemption for eligible costs to be charged to the grant funding. If approved, VAT exemption letters will be provided by USAID. The period of performance of individual grant activities is planned for a maximum of 12 months from the grant agreement signature date (starting on or after November 1, 2024, and ending no later than December 31, 2026).

Required Qualifications:
Applicants must strictly adhere to the requirements of this APS. Grant applications may be submitted in English or Armenian. Grant applications will be accepted in electronic form only.

Please reference APS-2024/002-Equipment-to-Agribusinesses in any response to this APS.

Any questions related to this APS must be submitted to USAID Economic Foundations’ Grants Team at [email protected]. Questions must be submitted in writing; phone calls will not be accepted. Questions and requests for clarification, and responses thereto, that USAID Economic Foundations believes may be of interest to other applicants, will be circulated to all APS recipients who have indicated interest in submitting applications. Only written answers issued by USAID Economic Foundations will be considered official and carry weight in the APS process and subsequent evaluation.
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