This is a new wrap-around activity with an existing USAID-funded economic strengthening program.

The Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program (ATEP) is a USAID-funded initiative to improve the

productivity and sales of thousands of farmers, processors and traders in Ethiopia. The project focuses on

four agricultural sectors: oilseeds/pulses, horticulture/floriculture, leather/leather products, and coffee. The

primary objective is to increase exports in these sectors by $450 million in three years. ATEP is increasing

production and exports in the above sectors, resulting in increased economic activity and employment in

concentrated urban and rural areas, mainly in Oromiya and SNNPR with some activities in Amhara and

Tigray. ATEP is a $10,500,000 project over three years, with a possible two-year cost extension.

PEPFAR Ethiopia proposes to contribute $250,000 in funding ($125,000 in HVAB and $125,000 in HVOP)

to this program in order to introduce an HIV-prevention component to the existing program. The prime

partner Fintrac, Inc. works with coffee cooperatives, other produce groups, exporters, and trade

associations. This project is well placed to reach a large number of migrant farm workers as well as

business people who own and manage these activities. For example, the sesame harvest requires

thousands of seasonal employees who are housed on location. Commercial flower, vegetable and leather

processing enterprises are rapidly increasing concentrations of relatively well-paid workers. Some of these

enterprises employ large numbers of women. With this increased employment and migration of workers

comes a higher risk of exposure to HIV. Currently the majority of these employers do not provide any

workplace health or HIV education.

With PEPFAR funding, the ATEP Program will provide HIV/AIDS prevention education and awareness

raising activities for employees and leverage employer contributions for these efforts. Fintrac will hire an

HIV/AIDS Prevention Specialist and trainers to conduct rapid assessments of the HIV knowledge, behavior,

and services at different workplace sites. Based on the assessment, the project will conduct an orientation

session with senior management to reach agreement on a memorandum of understanding regarding

activities and the contributions to be made by Fintrac and the participating company.

The ATEP activity will follow the Abt Associates Private Sector Partnership model of training a cadre of peer

educators over a two-to-five-day period on HIV-related topics. Peer educators also learn skills to support

effective counseling and communication with family and community members. Ideally the project trains one

peer educator for every 20 to 30 workers. In turn, the peer educators conduct eight to 16 sessions which

focus on increasing knowledge and fostering behavioral change. The sessions require 30 minutes to one

hour of staff time, which the company provides during working hours. The monthly education sessions use

peer interpersonal communication to teach positive behaviors, including correct, consistent, condom use,

seeking treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STI), and accessing counseling and testing services.

Sessions also address stigma and self-risk perception of males engaging in cross-generational, coercive or

transactional sex.

The project will engage PLWH association members in the delivery of HIV-prevention messages and will

also support companies to design and complete HIV/AIDS workplace policies. To the maximum extent

possible, peer educators will coordinate with local public health workers and facilities to increase the

awareness and access to health services, including counseling and testing for HIV. The targets for this

comprehensive ABC prevention activity are under HVOP. This activity will provide HIV/AIDS education to an

estimated 25,000 employees and train 1,000 peer educators in over 100 workplace sites.

Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program

This is a new wrap-around activity with an existing USAID-funded economic strengthening program.

The Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program (ATEP) is a USG initiative to improve the productivity and

sales of thousands of farmers, processors, and traders in Ethiopia. The project focuses on four agricultural

sectors: oilseeds/pulses, horticulture/floriculture, leather/leather products, and coffee. The primary objective

is to increase exports in these sectors by $450 million in three years. ATEP is increasing production and

exports in the above sectors, resulting in increased economic activity and employment in concentrated

urban and rural areas, mainly in Oromiya and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples regions with

some activities in Amhara and Tigray. ATEP is a $10,500,000 project over three years, with a possible two-

year cost extension.

PEPFAR Ethiopia proposes to contribute $250,000 in funding ($125,000 in HVAB and $125,000 in HVOP)

to this program in order to introduce an HIV-prevention component to the existing program. The prime

partner Fintrac, Inc. works with coffee cooperatives, large commercial farms, other produce groups,

exporters, and trade associations. This project is well placed to reach a large number of migrant farm

workers, as well as business people who own and manage these activities. For example, the sesame

harvest requires thousands of seasonal employees who are housed on location. Commercial flower-,

vegetable-, and leather-processing enterprises are rapidly increasing concentrations of relatively well-paid

workers. Some of these enterprises employ large numbers of women. With this increased employment and

migration of workers comes a higher risk of exposure to HIV. Currently the majority of these employers do

not provide any workplace health or HIV education.

With PEPFAR funding, the ATEP Program will provide HIV/AIDS prevention, education, and awareness-

raising activities for employees and leverage employer contributions for these efforts. Fintrac will hire an

HIV/AIDS prevention specialist and trainers to conduct rapid assessments of the HIV knowledge, behavior,

and services at different workplace sites. Based on the assessment, the project will conduct an orientation

session with senior management to reach agreement on a memorandum of understanding regarding

activities and the contributions to be made by Fintrac and the participating companies.

The ATEP activity will follow the Abt Associates Private Sector Partnership model of training a cadre of peer

educators over a two- to five-day period on HIV-related topics. Peer educators also learn skills to support

effective counseling and communication with family and community members. Ideally the project trains one

peer educator for every 20 to 30 workers. In turn, the peer educators conduct eight to 16 sessions which

focus on increasing knowledge and fostering behavioral change. The sessions require 30 minutes to one

hour of staff time, which the company provides during working hours. The monthly education sessions use

peer interpersonal communication to teach positive behaviors, including correct, consistent condom use,

seeking treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STI), and accessing counseling and testing services.

Sessions also address stigma and self-risk perception of males engaging in cross-generational, coercive, or

transactional sex. Commercial sex workers often congregate near construction sites and other places of

business, especially on paydays. The program will aim to provide these individuals with information on HIV

and STI prevention.

The project will engage members of associations for people living with HIV/AIDS in the delivery of HIV-

prevention messages and will also support companies to design and complete HIV/AIDS workplace

policies. To the extent possible, peer educators will coordinate with local public health workers and facilities

to increase awareness of, and access to, health services, including counseling and testing for HIV. This

activity will provide HIV/AIDS education to an estimated 25,000 employees and train 1,000 peer educators

in over 100 workplace sites. The program will also distribute condoms in the workplace sites.

ATEP: Employment Opportunities for HIV-affected Households

This is a new wrap-around COP08 activity with an existing USAID-funded economic strengthening program

that has HIV prevention activities under HVAB and HVOP.

The Agribusiness and Trade Expansion Program (ATEP) is a USAID-funded initiative to improve the

productivity and sales of thousands of farmers, processors and traders in Ethiopia. The project focuses on

four agricultural sectors: oilseeds/pulses, horticulture/floriculture, leather/leather products, and coffee. The

primary objective is to increase exports in these sectors by $450 million in three years. ATEP is increasing

production and exports in the above sectors, resulting in increased economic activity and employment in

concentrated urban and rural areas, in Oromiya, SNNPR, Amhara and Tigray. ATEP is a $10,500,000

project over three years with a possible two year cost extension.

PEPFAR Ethiopia proposes to contribute $350,000 in OVC funding (in addition to $250,000 in HVAB and

$250,000 in HVOP) to this program in order to increase employment opportunities for older orphans and

their guardians, including PLWA. The prime partner Fintrac, Inc. works with coffee cooperatives, large

commercial farms, other produce groups, exporters, and trade associations. This project is well placed to

leverage resources and assistance from the private sector to support PLWA association members and their

children. Fintrac, Inc. will conduct an assessment of employment opportunities with their existing clients for

PLWA and older OVC affected by HIV/AIDS. Providing job opportunities for HIV-affected households will

increase the family's income, nutrition, and ability to maintain adherence to ART. Fintrac will increase the

awareness of AIDS-affected orphans and PLWA about employment opportunities and educate them in

basic employment skills. Educators will coordinate to the maximum extent possible with local public health

workers and will maximize use of pre-existing educational materials. The activity will apply the recently

drafted Standards of Services for OVC in Ethiopia and work with PC3 Program to ensure that beneficiaries

are receiving any needed services in addition to economic strengthening.

The activity will directly benefit 1,500 HIV/AIDS affected individuals and their families. An estimated one-

third will be older OVC and the rest will be caregivers who are supporting HIV-affected OVC. With PEPFAR

funding, the ATEP Program will provide HIV/AIDS prevention education and awareness raising activities for

employees and leverage employer contributions for these efforts. Fintrac will hire an HIV/AIDS Prevention

Specialist and trainers to conduct rapid assessments of the HIV knowledge, behavior, and services at

different workplace sites. Based on the assessment, the project will conduct an orientation session with

senior management to reach agreement on a memorandum of understanding regarding activities and the

contributions to be made by Fintrac and the participating companies.