E-news Number 30 for project teams and all those interested in Sustainable Farming in New Zealand

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Sustainable Farming Fund Team!

Dear all                He mihi nui ki a koutou

In this edition of E-news:

• 2010/11 funding round update
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for SFF projects
• Project information for MAF budgets
• Farewell to Diana Mathers
• Community Irrigation Fund now open

2010/11 funding round update

We received 119 applications at Phase 1 of the 2010/11 funding round (SFF grants of $20 000 or over). As usual the round was well over-subscribed wih requests for nearly $30 million of grant funding being received. The Phase 1 panel has now met and recommended a short list of projects to go through to Phase 2. SFF has advised all applicants of the outcome by email and letter.

In general, the panel considered the applications to be of a high standard, which made selection very difficult. However, some worthy projects missed out on being selected for Phase 2 because insufficient attention was paid to the SFF assessment criteria. Some applications addressed significant issues, yet the benefit was of a commercial nature that benefited a few individuals. Other projects were researcher-led and not driven by a genuine farmer or grower-led community of interest, which is fundamental to the SFF grant scheme.

Upcoming dates

Phase 2 applications (for shortlisted projects requesting over $20 000) must be with the SFF by 2 March 2010. The application forms and guidelines have been emailed to the successful project teams.

Applications for grants requesting $20 000 or under are also due in by 2 March 2010. Application forms and guidelines can be downloaded from the SFF website.

Interested in finding out more?

For further information contact your project adviser or call the Fund Administrator on 0800 00 83 33.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for SFF projects

SFF has now introduced Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to assist with project monitoring and evaluation. KPIs can describe and measure environmental, economic, and social change. This should enable SFF project teams to have a more robust measure of whether the project has met its original goals.

The SFF can use the KPI measures to assist with the overall evaluation of the Fund as an investment of public monies.

The 2010/11 application forms will now have a section for describing KPIs. We expect 3-6 KPIs for projects requesting funding of over $20 000 (Phase 2), and 2-3 KPIs for smaller projects (requesting funding of $20 000 or under). The application guidelines provide a fictitional example of project KPIs (available on the SFF website after 18 January or directly from your project adviser in the meantime).

If you are unfamiliar with the concept of KPIs, a SFF project adviser will be able to assist. You will also have the opportunity to adjust KPIs prior to contracting should your application be successful.

What is the difference between a KPI and a milestone?

All SFF projects have a set of milestones which form the basis of the contract with SFF. The milestones are a series of tasks that need to be completed satisfactorily, and within a given time and budget, in order to uplift the grant money. However, a project could conceiveably achieve all the milestones yet not necessarily make a difference to the overall goal. For example, the overall goal may be to reduce pesticide applications by developing an integrated pest management programme. A key milestone may be to develop a grower manual. Once the manual is completed and distributed the milestone is technically completed. However, if no-one implements the information contained within the manual then the goal of reducing pesticides will not be achieved. So the KPI could be that a percentage of growers will implement the best practice information contained in the manual by the end of the project.

Some KPIs are longer term and are unlikely to be achieved with the 1-3 years of a SFF project. Using the example above, it may be unrealistic to expect 100 percent grower uptake of best practice within 3 years, however, 5-7 years post-project could be realistic. Therefore, it is reasonable to include one or two KPIs which will not be able to be evaluated fully or reported on until well after the project.

Interested in finding out more?

For further information on developing project KPIs contact your project adviser.

Project information for MAF budgets

For forecasting purposes and to accurately calculate year end accruals, MAF requires a cash flow forecast for the months of March to June for each project. We will be sending out a spreadsheet template in February for each project finance manager to complete. The template must be returned by 12 March, which is also the due date for the four-monthly Progress Reports for the period ending February 2010.

Farewell to Diana Mathers

Our Hastings-based project adviser, Diana Mathers, is leaving SFF at the end of the year to take up a new position with the Foundation for Arable Research. Diana has been with the SFF for over three years and has made a huge contribution to MAF and the Sustainable Farming Fund during that time. We wish Diana all the best in her new role.

For those of you who have Diana as your project adviser, we will be in touch in the New Year regarding your new SFF contact. In the meantime, please contact our Fund Administrator, Mairéad Roche (0800 00 83 33 or 04 894 0612).

Community Irrigation Fund now open

The Community Irrigation Fund (CIF) is a separate fund administered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry that is available to promoters of community water storage and/or irrigation schemes for generating investor and community support. Funding may be provided for up to four years.

Applicants should have completed a feasibility study for the irrigation scheme (potentially funded by SFF) before applying. The CIF is now open for applications for the 2010/11 funding round. Applications close on Monday 22 February 2010.

The CIF provides grants to assist:

• promoters of community water storage and/or irrigation schemes for generating investor and community support; and
• local government-led water strategies that consider the potential for rural irrigation related infrastructure.

Click here for more information and the CIF application forms.

Interested in finding out more?

For further information contact Loretta Dobbs, CIF project adviser, phone 04 894 0632 or email CIFund@maf.govt.nz

Ending

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Kia rongo korero ano matou i a koutou

Kind regards
Denis, Diana, Helen, Janine, Louise, Mairéad and Nic.