National Development Agency: Sustainability Fund Evaluations

The National Development Agency (NDA) commissioned a progress evaluation of the Eksteenskuil Agricultural Cooperative Grapevine Project. This is an income generation project previously funded by the NDA. Sustainability funding specifically aims to give a ‘cash injection’ to projects identified by the NDA as potentially sustainable, but in need of a ‘boost’. To address key challenges affecting the sustainability of the grapevine project, Eksteenskuil successfully applied for sustainability funding from the NDA to the value of R248 449 for the purchase of 5 500 vented picking trays.

The research objectives of the evaluation sought to assess the following:

• if the sustainability funding agreement between the NDA and the Project has been implemented, and if not, why not;
• if the goods/equipment agreed to be delivered to the project have been delivered by the NDA, and if not, what had delayed the delivery of the goods/equipment;
• if the sustainability funding by the NDA is adding any measurable value to the project; and
• the strengths, weaknesses and challenges that have affected the implementation of the sustainability funding of the project, from the perspective of both the project staff and the NDA staff.