Call for Submissions
(Round Three)
To learn more about the Best
Practices and Innovations
(BPI) Initiative, please visit:
www.interaction.org/best-
practices-innovations
If you have any questions,
please contact:
Danielle Heiberg
Program Associate
dheiberg@interaction.org
or
Brian Greenberg
Director of Sustainable
Development
bgreenberg@interaction.org
www.InterAction.org
1400 16th Street, NW
Suite 210
Washington, DC 20036
202-667-8227
January 2011
Best Practices &
Innovations (BPI) Initiative
Agriculture & Rural Livelihoods
W
ith support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), InterAc-
tion is launching Round 3 of its Best Practices & Innovations (BPI) Initiative, which
focuses on agriculture and rural livelihoods. The purpose of the initiative is to pro-
mote information sharing on effective program approaches, and to improve practice standards
to boost the efficiency and impacts of field programs. With persistent poverty and food inse-
curity continuing to affect more than a billion people, and with development programs affected
by tight budgets, identifying and learning from “what works” has never been more crucial.
Organizations are invited to submit descriptive information on interventions that have suc-
ceeded in improving food security, reducing poverty, increasing resilience, and/or improv-
ing productivity. Interventions in a wide number of program areas are eligible, from climate
change adaptation to pest and disease management, to value
Key Dates
chain development. A full list of eligible program areas can be
found on the initiative’s Submission Form. January 17, 2011
A Selection Committee of experts in agricultural develop- Window for
Submissions Opens
ment will review all submissions to identify best practices and
promising innovations. All submitted interventions will be fea- February 18, 2011
Deadline for
tured on InterAction’s online map of NGO food security and
Submissions
agriculture projects. Those receiving “best practice” or “prom-
ising innovation” designations will also be featured in Mon- April 2011
Round 3 Best Practice
day Developments Magazine. In addition, best practice and and Innovation Awards
innovations programs will also be invited to present on their Announcement
technical approaches at a workshop in the spring of 2011.
How to Apply
To apply, please complete the BPI initiative submission form—available on InterAction’s
website—and submit it to Danielle Heiberg at: dheiberg@interaction.org. The deadline for
submissions is February 18, 2011.
What is a best practice? What is an innovation?
A best practice is an approach or technique that has led to tangible and demonstrable
improvements in people’s lives in multiple settings, is sustainable, and can be replicated
or adapted. An innovation is an approach or technique new to its context or setting that shows the potential to
address a serious development challenge and can therefore lead to improvements in people’s lives.

Who is eligible to participate?

Only InterAction member organizations or members of IFAD’s Agriculture Working Group are eligible to submit
interventions for consideration. Submissions must meet the eligibility criteria below.

Eligibility Criteria

Best Practices Innovations

• Related to agriculture & rural livelihoods • Related to agriculture & rural livelihoods
• Implemented in a developing country • Implemented in a developing country

• Solid evidence of effectiveness/impacts in • Approach new to its context or setting

poverty reduction or improved food security
• Implemented in more than one setting • Evidence of potential to significantly reduce poverty or
improve food security
• Pilot/demonstration projects eligible

How will submissions be evaluated?

Submissions will be evaluated by an 8-person Selection Committee composed of representatives from InterAction
member organizations and non-member experts. Individuals serving on the committee will have expertise in a variety of
areas related to agriculture and rural livelihoods, such as agronomy, high value horticulture or staple crop production,
value chain & market development, irrigation management, pest management, program evaluation/impact assessment,
and gender in agriculture.

What will the evaluation criteria be?

Best practice and innovation submissions will both be evaluated based on evidence documenting the following five criteria:
1. Effectiveness/evidence of success: Evidence is provided demonstrating the exceptional impact of the intervention
in improving food security, reducing poverty, increasing resilience, and/or improving productivity.

2. Efficiency/cost-effectiveness: Evidence is provided establishing an impressive ratio of poverty reduction and/

or food security benefits against overall costs of the intervention. Specific development gains are identified and
compared with costs to establish impressive returns on program investment.

3. Equitable outcomes for women and men: Evidence is provided to document that the intervention enables or
facilitates the participation of, and result in, equitable benefits for both women and men?

4. Sustainability: Information is provided describing the steps taken or mechanisms put in place to ensure that the
intervention will be socially, financially and environmentally sustainable in the long-term?

5. Replicability/adaptability: Information is provided documenting that the intervention has been replicated or adapted
based on successful program experiences in other settings, or that the project has expanded operations based on
demonstrated success in its pilot or phase one areas of operation.

PLEASE NOTE: An organization may submit up to three submissions in a single round of BPI.