Income-Generating Activities - Action Against Hunger

Field handbook • Scientific and Technical Department
I. TYPES OF PROGRAMMES PROPOSED
This section will give a general vision of the programmes carried out by ACF during
the previous years, including a simple typology of target population, the duration
of the activities and the generalities of the implementation.
The first type of programme will focus on recapitalization activities, targeting
groups or individuals who have lost their productive assets due to external shocks. The
second type of programme will focus on the improvement of the economic results of
existing activities, or the creation of new activities.
As well as differing in terms of objectives and in the type of context in which they
can be developed, these two large groups of programmes vary in terms of their implementation,
the activities to be carried out and of course, in their duration. These
two types of programmes will be briefly introduced, along with an explanation of the
contexts in which they can be proposed as alternatives directed towards the recuperation
of food security, and finally, a description of the activities included in their implementation
will be offered. Chapter 4 gives further details for putting into practice
the steps explained here.
I.I. Rehabilitation of IGA
As previously mentioned, promotion of IGA is not a response to an emergency situation;
in fact it is not recommended in contexts of open crisis and high levels of insecurity,
given that in these cases food aid or alternatives to food aid may be better
suited to meet the needs of the population. However, once food needs are covered and
adequate security conditions are met, it can be an appropriate alternative.
The material damage suffered after a natural disaster, a massive displacement of
people, an armed conflict or the sale of productive assets in order to survive periods
of scarcity provoked by adverse climatic conditions or an economic crisis, can have an
impact on the productive capacity of families that had been working in IGA as part of
their livelihood strategy. To recuperate pre-existing levels of food security, the provision
of the lost productive assets can be a first step to rehabilitate the economic activities.
The loss of productive goods leads to an increase in vulnerability and possible food
insecurity, which calls for a rapid intervention with short-term results. The distribution
of productive assets is usually directed towards sectors of the population that
were previously working in IGA and thus have previous knowledge and experience.
With the assessment and analysis already carried out, the potential market evaluated
and the object of the programme defined, the next important activities are:
• Presentation of the programmes to the local authorities and the communities
INCOME GENERATING ACTIVITIES: A KEY CONCEPT IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SECURTIY
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