Smallholder Producers Empowerment And Entrepreneurship Development [SPEED]

INTRODUCTION

Agriculture is the major source of income and therefore livelihoods to most of the rural communities in Sub Saharan Africa.  However, many producers go into production without systematic consideration of which enterprise to engage in, why and how to produce, market and where to access business development services including financial services. A majority of farmers in addition sell their produce and or purchase inputs individually and therefore fails to enjoy the economies of scale that are encountered in group marketing such as access to market information, low marketing costs and access to training which are expensive while accessed individually. This 5 days course aim to equip participants with skills including selection of the most profitable enterprise, development of business plan, group formation and linking farmers to business development services including financial services.

DURATION

5 Days

TOPICS TO BE COVERED

Module 1:  Enterprise Selection (crop or livestock products)

Introduction to enterprise selection

• Marketing
• Resources
• Capacity

Evaluating the enterprise

• Initial start-up cost relative to the ability to generate a profit
• Gross profit margin potential
• Maintenance requirements
• Potential cash flow or profitability relative to expenses and risks
• History of success rates among new entrepreneurs
• Current supply and demand in the current marketplace
• Obvious risks for the new enterprise

Module 2: Improving Production Efficiencies and Profitability

• Determining yield potential
• Determining enterprise productivity
• Cost of Production
• Unit Cost of Production
• Increasing profitability: Reducing Costs of Production; Increasing Yield; Market at Higher Price
• Risk Management

Module 3: Business planning

Overview of a business plan:

• Understanding of a business plan, its importance and use
• Discuss the components of a business plan.
• Discuss with the farmers on qualities of a good business plan, when to write a business plan and who writes it.
• Discuss the various Business Planning tools (Visioning, Market mapping, Problem analysis- strengths and weaknesses in the relation to the business, and Pathways analysis)
• Wrap up by outlining the components of the business plan, and project a template of a generic business plan

-  Reasons for preparing a business plan

          -  Importance of a business plan

Activity 2: The components of a business plan

           •  An outline of the business plan

           •  Quality of a good business plan

           •  Visioning

           •  implementation of the business plans

Group work

           1.  Facilitate the formation of discussion groups depending on commodity/ business type/organization

           2.  Each group develops a business plan draft for its organization/ commodity/business using canvas business model

           3.  Each group will then report back to the plenary  and each draft will be taken through a peer review process

           4.  Wrap up the session by reviewing the components of a quality business plan.

Module 4: formation of farmer producer organizations/cooperatives

• Group formation/ Collective purchases and selling
• Market information
• Engaging into formal trading arrangements
• Group savings
• Financial services
• Training and advisory services

Module 5:  Linking farmers to markets and service provides including financial institutions

Conducting bulk marketing and purchase

• Making your marketing plan
• Bulk Marketing Steps and Roles
• Setting (and keeping to) Deadlines
• Important producer group Documents

Budgeting

• Marketing Budget

Business management records

• Types of Records
• Records for Decision-Making

Savings

• Factors Affecting Savings
• Forms of Savings
• Where to Save