BHA/TPQ/SPADe Madagascar RFSA Activity Design

Project Information:

Title of Project: BHA/TPQ/SPADe Madagascar RFSA Activity Design

USAID Sector: Agriculture & Food Security

Country: Madagascar

Lead Institution: Abt Associates

Project Length: 04/24/2023 – 02/29/2024

Research Objective:
The LASER PULSE Consortium seeks to partner with USAID/BHA/TPQ/SPADe to provide
critical research products to inform the design processes for BHA’s Resilience Food Security
Activities (RFSAs) in Madagascar.
The buy-in will produce several products, including desk review and market study, political
economy analysis, and secondary data analysis. These products are intended to provide BHA
design teams and potential implementing partners with a deep contextual knowledge of the
targeted geographic areas and inform decisions related to USAID and BHA policy and
legislative requirements.

Project Description:
The overall purpose of the USAID/BHA/TPQ/SPADe Madagascar Resilience Food Security Activity (RFSA) Design project is to inform the design of the FY24 Resilience and Food Security Activity (RFSA) in Madagascar. The project is supported through a buy-in from USAID/BHA/TPQ/SPADe into the Long-term Assistance and Services for Research (LASER) project currently in place between USAID/IPI/ITR/R and LASER PULSE consortium led by Purdue University under cooperative agreement #7200AA18C00009. This research has been executed by Abt Associates under a sub-contract with Purdue University.

The buy-in has three studies: Desk Review and Market Study (DRMS), Political Economy Analysis (PEA), and Secondary Data Analysis (SDA). The purpose and objectives of each study are presented below.

Study 1: Madagascar Context Desk Review and Market Study (DRMS)

DRMS Purpose
The purpose of the DRMS is to inform the BHA multi-year activity design process and serve as a publicly available resource for implementing partners developing concept notes and applications to BHA multi-year RFSA solicitations in Madagascar.

DRMS Objectives
– To provide BHA and potential implementing partners with a deep contextual understanding regarding the resilience and food and nutrition security context, stakeholders, and key activity design issues for consideration.
– To inform the Bellmon determination and the selection of food assistance modalities for each of the targeted geographic areas.

Study 2: Madagascar Political Economic Analysis (PEA)

PEA Purpose
The purpose of the resilience, food, and nutrition security PEA study is to inform the design of a potential RFSA solicitation in Madagascar and to serve as a publicly available resource for implementing partners for applications responding to a RFSA solicitation. The PEA will provide context-specific situational awareness.

PEA Objectives
BHA seeks a synthesis of existing information regarding:
– The interests and behavior of key actors and institutions.
– The patterns and causes of the conflict.
– How governance, political instability, and conflict impact the resilience of local populations.
– The sociopolitical context in which they are situated.
– Political-economic dynamics in Madagascar and how they influence patterns of vulnerability and chronic food and nutrition insecurity.

Study 3: Secondary Data Analysis (SDA)

SDA Purpose
The purpose of the Secondary Data Analysis (SDA) of resilience, food and nutrition security, and poverty study is to use secondary data to inform the targeting and design strategy for multi-year resilience food and nutrition security programming in Madagascar. The study will use the Demographic and Health Survey’s (DHS) Standard 2021 survey datasets for Madagascar.

SDA Objectives
– To identify the characteristics of children and households who are vulnerable to food insecurity.
– To identify associated correlates or predictors of poverty, stunting, and wasting in sub-national areas.

Outputs (click here)