LENS Factsheet

The USAID Jordan Local Enterprise Support activity (LENS) assists micro and small enterprises (MSEs) to grow their businesses and create job opportunities, while developing an inclusive enabling environment for Local Economic Development (LED) in selected municipalities. This USAID-funded cooperative agreement under the FIELD-Support LWA, led by FHI 360, catalyzes inclusive growth networks to help Jordanian businesses and municipalities build resilience to economic and political shocks and works to enable sustainable growth through support for MSEs and LED. Through consultation within selected municipalities and an understanding of opportunities and constraints, LENS engages in sectors with emerging, or high, growth potential such as tourism, food distribution, retail, logistics, and transportation. The activity also targets capacity building of local governments to develop and implement competitive strategies through improving national policy and strengthening local government planning. The LENS approach combines rapid implementation of initiatives that build trust with local partners and municipalities with the establishment of an evidence-base to set the stage for long term, sustainable change.