CLA Through Co-creation - The Engine Powering a Systemic Change Activity

“Look, we implement wonderful projects. We know if we put x amount of investment per farmer, those farmers’ incomes will surely increase. I’m not just looking for another project. I want something that will truly create systemic, transformative, and sustainable change.”

This was the development challenge posed to USAID/Honduras’ Economic Growth team in 2016. They knew to get systemic, sustainable change in Honduran market systems, they would need to work across political, social, and economic systems. To sustain change, local actors would have to be the ones to identify, design, implement, and own the change. And they knew what is started in year 1 would likely be different than what is needed in year 3.

This triggered an organizational development challenge – how do you design, award, and implement an Activity in which much of the scope – sectors, issues, outcomes, indicators, and targets – is defined after award, will change over time, yet still be accountable to results?

This case story describes how CLA was not only prompted by these development and organizational challenges, but more or less demanded it, and the processes, resources, and culture which have enabled USAID/Honduras and Transforming Market Systems (TMS) implementing partner ACDI/VOCA to collaborate, learn, and adapt with local actors in the design and implementation of TMS, an activity in which CLA is inextricably intertwined with the very engine of the activity – co-creation.