This blog post originally appeared on the Feed the Future blog
So, you’re interested in how your business can team up with the Feed the Future initiative. Or, maybe you’re just a food or agriculture business with resources, expertise, and a desire to help the poor and expand into new markets.
What if there was a tool to help you explore the concept (and benefits) of collaborating with the U.S. Government’s Feed the Future initiative and share your interest in a partnership?
Well, now there is.
The Public-Private Partnership Opportunity Explorer is the latest addition to the private sector engagement hub on the Feed the Future website. This interactive online tool is the first stop on your way to a partnership with Feed the Future.
Use it to determine if a partnership is right for your company and, if so, get the ball rolling.
Who can use it?
This online tool helps level the playing field for companies of any size and in any location to work with Feed the Future.
Feed the Future is looking to partner with private companies that:
- Work in an area pertinent to improving food security and nutrition
- Work or want to work in Feed the Future countries and sectors
- Can bring new resources that meet minimum resource requirements
- Bring a win-win mentality to achieving business and development goals
Does this sound like you? Check out Feed the Future’s private sector engagement hub to learn more and get started.
How does it work?
Use this tool to quickly learn about public-private partnerships, find out where Feed the Future works and where your company might fit in, and submit your interest.
As the lead agency for this U.S. Government initiative, we have a private sector team at USAID that will review your submission and help you navigate the process of working with the U.S. Government. We’ll match you with the right agencies and opportunities to address your interest and provide a go/no-go answer.
The goal is to reduce the transaction costs on both sides—public and private—of initial exploration. We know time is money for businesses, and this tool and our team are here to maximize it.
On a technical level, you need to have Javascript and cookies enabled on your desktop computer in order to use the tool at this time—the cookies expire when you close your browser, so we’re not saving any information you haven’t formally submitted to us.
Why did you create it?
Feed the Future has some big goals for global food security and we can’t achieve them alone.
The development landscape is changing and we’re embracing the critical role that private investment plays in it, including growing and maintaining local capacity and markets. Private businesses bring efficiencies, resources, markets, expertise and innovation that can ultimately create the conditions where development assistance is no longer needed.
We want to work with companies who see partnerships as making good business sense. So, through Feed the Future, we’re engaging the private sector to develop joint work that is integral to core business strategies and global food security. Together we have a greater and more lasting impact than if we worked alone.
This tool helps streamline the discovery process, get us on the same page, and get to a decision quickly.
When can I expect to hear back from Feed the Future?
Feed the Future will follow up with a response to your interest within two weeks. Why so long? Given that this is a whole-of-government initiative drawing on the strengths of ten U.S. Government agencies, there are many points of entry to a public-private partnership. We take the time to look at your idea and help match you to the right opportunity.
If we decide that working together is a good fit, it can take anywhere from six months to a year to get a partnership off the ground. You can learn more about all the phases of partnership and what to expect on the Feed the Future website.
It takes some time, but it can be totally worth it. Your business can achieve its goals while being a part of something even greater: fighting hunger, poverty and undernutrition.
Start the process today by visiting Feed the Future’s website and checking out the tool.
Want more?
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