CFAs: Food Systems Resilience and Livelihoods Programme (Cameroon)

Deadline: 17-Sep-2026

The World Food Programme (WFP) supports organizations working to improve food security, livelihoods, nutrition, and climate resilience among food-insecure populations in Cameroon’s Adamaoua and North regions. The program focuses particularly on women, youth, smallholder farmers, and communities affected by climate change through food assistance, technical support, financial inclusion, livelihood development, and stronger local food systems.

About the World Food Programme Support Program

The program aims to strengthen the ability of vulnerable and food-insecure communities in the Adamaoua and North regions of Cameroon to meet their food and livelihood needs while becoming more resilient to climate and economic shocks. Support combines immediate assistance with longer-term measures designed to improve food production, household incomes, access to finance, nutrition, and local markets. Women and climate-affected communities receive particular attention because they often face greater barriers to accessing productive resources, financial services, markets, and livelihood opportunities. Key Objectives of the Program The initiative focuses on strengthening food security and resilience through several interconnected objectives: - Improve sustainable food production and productivity. - Strengthen access to nutritious and diverse diets. - Expand access to financial and credit services. - Create income-generating opportunities for vulnerable populations. - Improve livelihood opportunities for women and youth. - Strengthen disaster preparedness and resilience to climate change. - Improve post-harvest management, food handling, and processing. - Strengthen local food value chains. - Expand reliable market opportunities for smallholder farmers. - Improve the efficiency of commercial food supply chains. - Increase purchases from smallholder farmers. - Improve access to affordable, safe, and quality food in local markets. Who Is the Program Designed to Support? The program focuses on organizations working with food-insecure and vulnerable populations in the Adamaoua and North regions of Cameroon. Priority groups and beneficiaries include: - Food-insecure households and communities. - Women facing livelihood and financial barriers. - Youth seeking income-generating opportunities. - Communities affected by climate change. - Smallholder farmers. - Subsistence producers. - Local food-system actors. - Commercial supply-chain actors. - Communities involved in local food value chains. The program is particularly relevant to organizations that can help translate WFP support into practical improvements in food security, livelihoods, resilience, and local food systems. Food Assistance for Assets and Nutrition Support One component of the initiative involves nutrition-sensitive Food Assistance for Assets (FFA). This approach links food assistance with activities that help communities strengthen their productive assets and resilience. The goal is not only to address immediate food needs but also to contribute to longer-term improvements in household and community livelihoods.

Support may therefore contribute to:

- Improved food security. - Better nutrition outcomes. - Community assets and productive capacity. - Greater resilience to climate-related challenges. - Improved livelihood opportunities. Support for Disaster Preparedness and Climate Resilience Climate change can increase food insecurity by affecting agricultural production, livelihoods, natural resources, and access to food. The program therefore includes technical assistance for disaster preparedness and resilience-building. Organizations supported through the initiative can contribute to measures that help vulnerable communities: - Prepare for climate-related and other shocks. - Strengthen resilience. - Protect livelihoods. - Improve food production systems. - Reduce vulnerability to disruptions. - Develop more sustainable approaches to food security. Sustainable Food Production and Food-System Productivity A major objective is to increase sustainable food production while improving productivity across food systems. The initiative promotes approaches that can help communities produce sufficient and nutritious food while strengthening the sustainability of their livelihoods. This includes supporting diversification and productivity across food systems so that households have better access to nutritious diets and communities are less dependent on limited sources of food and income. Financial Inclusion and Access to Credit Access to financial services is another important component of the program. Many vulnerable households and small-scale producers face difficulties obtaining the financing needed to invest in productive activities. The initiative seeks to expand access to inclusive financial services and credit.

This can support:

- Subsistence activities. - Income-generating activities. - Small-scale productive investments. - Livelihood diversification. - Greater financial autonomy. Women and youth are particularly important target groups for these opportunities. Income-Generating Opportunities for Women and Youth The program aims to help vulnerable populations strengthen their economic independence by creating opportunities to generate income. Women and youth can benefit from initiatives designed to improve their access to: - Productive activities. - Financial services. - Credit. - Markets. - Livelihood opportunities. - Skills and technical assistance. Improving economic opportunities for these groups can contribute to stronger household resilience and greater autonomy. Support for Smallholder Farmers Smallholder farmers are a major focus of the initiative because they play an important role in local food production and food security. The program provides support aimed at helping farmers adopt improved and innovative technologies and practices.

Areas of technical support include:

- Post-harvest management. - Food handling. - Food pr