Since 2021, Fair and Sustainable (F&S) has partnered with Tanager as its Local Service Provider (LSP) in Ethiopia under the Impacting Gender and Nutrition through Innovative Technical Exchange in Agriculture (IGNITE) project (2018-2024). With the launch of IGNITE+ (2024-2029) which is an extension of the IGNITE project, F&S continues to scale locally led technical assistance for gender and nutrition integration, strengthening institutional capacity and ensuring sustainable delivery beyond the project life.
Through a co-delivery approach, Tanager and F&S have supported various agricultural institutions in Ethiopia to design, implement, and evaluate gender-responsive and nutrition-sensitive agricultural interventions. Institutions such as Hailemariam and Roman Foundation, Ethiopian Agricultural transformation Agency, Bopinc, and the Ethiopian Poultry Production and Processing Association received tailored services for gender and nutrition integration.
These services include staff sensitisation and trainings; policy and strategy development; institutional audits on gender and nutrition capacity and monitoring and evaluation (M&E), including identification of relevant gender and nutrition indicators, development of inclusive results frameworks, building of gender dashboards for tracking progress; tool development and budget review and planning.
Lessons Learned in Technical Assistance Delivery
The IGNITE+ journey starts with the signing of MoU with agricultural institutions. This is followed by a diagnostic assessment aimed at helping these institutions identify their institutional strengths and gaps, enabling provision of tailored support. Beyond technical assistance, effective project management and strong soft skills are essential when working with these agricultural institutions. Below are some of the key lessons learned in delivering technical assistance to IGNITE+ supported agricultural institutions.
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) as a commitment to collaboration
MOUs are signed with AAIs as a commitment to advance gender and nutrition integration within their organisations and programs. The MoUs further create a framework of accountability and expected outcomes. F&S will continue to co-deliver tailored technical assistance on gender and nutrition integration to these institutions.
Diagnostic Assessments: The IGNITE+ diagnostic assessments is a consultative process that is led by the institution and facilitated by IGNITE+ team including the LSPs. The findings reveal both strengths and gaps in gender integration and nutrition as well as opportunities to make a transformative difference.
Completed assessment reports are delivered to each client, providing a clear roadmap for implementation. These reports become living documents guides for action, tools for accountability, and references for monitoring progress. Following the assessments, tailored working plans are co-developed to each institution. These plans outline specific actions, timelines, and responsibilities. Importantly, the co-creation process is important to reinforce principle of shared ownership.
Capacity Building: Training, Coaching, and Follow-Up
IGNITE+ invests strategically in capacity building activities at institutional and programmatic levels including tailored trainings, learnings, workshop sessions, and monitoring evaluations and Learning (MEL) systems development. These activities are derived from the findings of the diagnostic assessment aimed at equipping the AAIs with practical skills and systemic advancements. This is often combined with coaching and follow-ups to ensure that knowledge is embedded and sustained.
Communication:
Regular communication is key, this is evident through meetings, and phone calls between F&S, Tanager and IGNITE+ supported institutions. That have been nurtured ensuring transparency, trust and confidentiality. The institutions share their realities, and reciprocity is fostered both at professional and personal level.
Bridging Cultural Gaps
One of F&S’s unique contributions is its ability to bridge cultural differences between the institutions and partners. This cultural sensitivity is the cornerstone of trust-building. With experience working on diverse projects, F&S is aware that cultural nuances often shape how partnerships function hence navigates these dynamics by translating technical language into culturally relevant terms, mediating between different organizational cultures, and ensuring that gender and nutrition concepts are contextualized into local realities, enhancing cordial engagements.
Working together with transparency and trust
F&S focused on earning trust and becoming transparent and accountable to IGNITE+ clients. Trust was not granted; it was rather built through consistent actions by delivering reports on time, following through on commitments, and maintaining open and consistent communication. At F&S, we have learnt that transparency and trust are bigger than just being “soft skills” they are strategic business assets.
Key Achievements
- 4 MoUs signed with public institutions, and international organizations for technical support.
- Diagnostic assessments completed with actionable reports delivered.
- On-going trainings, coaching, and follow-up sessions strengthened institutional capacity.
- Cultural bridging: F&S mediated cultural gaps, ensuring smoother collaboration and stronger relationships.
Looking Ahead to 2026
In 2026, F&S will leverage on the strong foundation built to enhance outreach and more collaborations with institutions dedicated to advance gender and nutrition integration.
The lessons of trust, accountability, and communication will continue to guide our future partnerships.
We are committed to creating new opportunities for African Agricultural Institutions (AAIs) dedicated to strengthening institutional and workforce capacities in gender integration and nutrition sensitive agriculture approaches. Gender and nutrition remain core global development priorities, and they resonate deeply with the mission of F&S and Tanager’s IGNITE+ project, reinforcing the importance of empowering women and embedding nutrition within agricultural systems.
F&S story of 2025 goes beyond diagnostic assessments, reports, and trainings. It has been about relationships; how communication, trust, and cultural sensitivity transformed technical support into meaningful partnerships. Looking ahead to 2026, we carry forward the conviction that successful project management is built on partnerships, and partnerships are built on communication. We aim to reach more AAIs, uniting and amplifying the transformative agenda of gender and nutrition. F&S recognizes 2025 as the year of trust building and accountability, and we embrace 2026 as a year of expanded outreach and deeper collaboration building and accountability, and we embrace 2026 as a year of expanded outreach and deeper collaboration. building and accountability, and we embrace 2026 as a year of expanded outreach and deeper collaboration.
Acquisition meeting in F&S Office, Addis Ababa
