Stephanie Gallatova is an Agribusiness Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, responsible for agro-industry and agribusiness development.
Stephanie has over 20 years of experience in the area of food and agricultural development programmes on the African continent. Her specific interests include the design and implementation of Public Private Partnerships for agribusiness development (agri-PPPs), improving the efficiency and inclusiveness of agricultural food value chains, and enhancing the competitiveness of small and medium agro-enterprises.
Prior to joining FAO, Stephanie worked with the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) UK, in support of initiatives on small-scale food processing, value addition and post-harvest handling and marketing. Stephanie holds a BSc and PhD in Food Technology from the University of Reading, UK.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
Dear FSN Forum members, thank you so much for your valuable and valid comments on the agri-PPP guidelines.
These comments will be shared with participants at the agri-PPP roundtable in Zambia on 13 – 14 August 2019 for further consideration.
Best regards,
Stephanie Gallatova
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Joromana Phiri
Dear Joromana, thank you for your comments. It is indeed a very valid point that a cross section of Ministries and government agencies as well as relevant private sector entities should be considered in the design of a PPP and a stakeholder analysis is a good way of achieving this.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Mpulu Makayi
Dear Mpulu, thank you for your comprehensive comments. You have made some excellent points, including the need for technical assistance to assist governments to develop processes for the design of agri-PPPs. Your point about the difficulty of engaging the domestic private sector and the limited space for SMAEs is also extremely valid. The roundtable dialogue will try to address these and some of the other issues you have raised.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Stanley Tembo
Dear Stanley, thank you for your comments and it is encouraging to note that young people in Zambia are starting to consider agriculture as a viable business career path. I hope that agri-PPPs can support this trend.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Arlette Saint Ville
Dear Arlette, thank you for your insights. Indeed, the nature of the relationship and level of engagement between the actors engaged in the PPP is critical and needs to be built on trust, shared vision as well as a business case.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Monica Opole
Dear Monica, thank you for your comments. Indeed, the choice of commodity is critical. In our work, we have found that some commodities seem more suited to PPP arrangements than others, but considering some diversification would be usful.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Getaneh Gobezie
Dear Getaneh, thank you for the valid points you have raised. The issue of affordable finance for the agricultural sector is a long-standing one. We need financiers who understand the agricultural sector and can analyze agricultural business plans. The issue of incentives vis-à-vis measures is well noted – it is fine line to draw. This will be raised at the roundtable dialogue.
Dr. Stephanie Gallatova
@ Olga Gwanda
Dear Olga, thank you for your valuable comments. Indeed, an exit strategy is critical for sustainability but it is not always well thought through in the design of the PPP. More thought needs to be put into how the public sector can exit after a set period.