IFAD approves $218 million for rural poverty works worldwide

Thursday, September 17, 2009, 9:47
Aid
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By Naagesh, N.

Microfinance Focus, Sept. 17, 2009: At its board meeting in Rome, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has approved $161.56 million in loans and $56.26 million in grants for projects helping smallholder farmers adapt to a changing climate and contributing to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

These include projects from Chad’s water network to support the seasonal movement of shepherds and livestock, encourage small-scale water resources management to increase yields in Bangladesh and strengthen water harvesting and soil conservation measures in Lebanon.

The Board also approved $3.35 million in grants to international research centres and intergovernmental organizations.

IFAD’s Executive Board which met in Rome on Tuesday to approve these projects usually oversees the organization’s general operations and approves its programme of work. It consists of 18 members and 18 alternate members who hold three-year terms. The board meets three times a year.

Projects approved by the 97th Executive Board session:

Western and Central Africa – two project loans – $31.5 million

Chad – Pastoral Water and Resource Management Project in Sahelian Areas – Total cost: $39.5 million; IFAD Debt Sustainability Framework (DSF) grant: $19.5 million

Mauritania – Value Chains Development Programme for Poverty Reduction – Total cost: $17.8 million; IFAD loan: $6 million; IFAD DSF grant: $6 million

Eastern and Southern Africa – two project loans- two project grants: $96.0 million

Ethiopia – Pastoral Community Development Project II -
Total cost: $139 million; IFAD loan: $19.5 million; IFAD DSF grant: $19.5 million

Uganda – Supplementary loan and grant for the District Livelihoods Support Programme – Total cost: $58.93 million; IFAD suppl. loan: $18.00 million; IFAD supplementary grant: $2 million

Uganda – Supplementary loan for the Community Agricultural Infrastructure Improvement Programme – Total cost: $81.9 million; IFAD supplementary loan: $17.0 million

Zambia – Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme – Total cost: $23.5 million; IFAD loan:$20.0 million

Asia and Pacific – two project loans – $40.33 million

Bangladesh – Participatory Small-scale Water Resources Sector Project – Total cost:$107.3 million; IFAD loan:$22.0 million

Pakistan – Crop Maximization Support Project – Total cost: $20.3 million; IFAD loan:$18.33 million

Latin America and Caribbean – four project loans – one project grant – $42.39 million

Brazil – Semi-arid Sustainable Development Project in the State of Piaui – Total cost: $39.14 million; IFAD loan: $20.0 million

Ecuador – Ibarra-San Lorenzo Development Project – Total cost: $13.68 million; IFAD loan: 8.63 million

Haiti – Small-scale Irrigation Development Project – Total cost:$ 34.1 million; IFAD DSF grant: $5.66 million

Mexico – Community-based Forestry Development Project in Southern States – Total cost: $18.53; IFAD loan: $5 million

Paraguay – Supplementary financing for the Empowerment of Rural Poor Organizations and Harmonization of Investments Project – Total cost: $17.8 million; IFAD suppl. loan: $3.1 million

Near East and North Africa Division – two project loans- $7.61 – million

Lebanon – Hilly Areas Sustainable Agricultural Development Project – Total project cost: $16.64 million; IFAD loan: $4 million; IFAD grant: $0.60 million

Sudan – Revitalizing the Sudan Gum Arabic Production and Marketing Project; Total cost: $10.88 million; IFAD DSF grant: $3 million

Grants approved by the Executive Board:

CGIAR (Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research) institutions – $1 million

Bioversity International: Programme for Impact Evaluation Approaches for Agricultural Research for Development; IFAD grant: $1 million

Other institutions – $2.35 million

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD): Development Marketplace 2009: Climate Adaptation (DM2009); IFAD grant: $1.1 million

Global Mechanism of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification: Programme for Designing Integrated Financing Strategies for UNCCD Implementation in Selected Countries of Asia and the Pacific, and Latin American and the Caribbean – Second instalment; IFAD grant: $1.25 million

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Tags: bangladesh, Bioversity International, Brazil, CGIAR, Chad, Climate Adaptation, Community Agricultural Infrastructure Improvement Programme, Community-based Forestry Development Project, Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, Crop Maximization Support Project, Development Marketplace, District Livelihoods Support Programme, DSF, Ecuador, Empowerment of Rural Poor Organizations, Ethiopia, Global Mechanism, Haiti, Harmonization of Investments Project, Hilly Areas Sustainable Agricultural Development Project, Ibarra-San Lorenzo Development Project, IBRD, IFAD, IFAD Debt Sustainability Framework, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, International Fund for Agricultural Development, Latin America and Caribbean, Lebanon, Mauritania, Mexico, pakistan, Paraguay, Participatory Small-scale Water Resources Sector Project, Pastoral Water and Resource Management Project, Piaui, Sahelian, Semi-arid Sustainable Development Project, Small-scale Irrigation Development Project, Smallholder Agribusiness Promotion Programme, Sudan, Sudan Gum Arabic Production, Ugana, UNCCD, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, Zambia

3 Comments on “IFAD approves $218 million for rural poverty works worldwide”

Dr. Kamble wrote on 30 March, 2010, 19:17
Good, you should have more network. We are in Nagpur and wish to join with your activities. please let us know about the plan you have to start new centres?

Dr. Kamble
STRIPEINDIA ( Siciety of Technocrats for redressing issus on poverty and environment and Bhartiya Vikas Trust, Manipal wrote on 15 May, 2010, 21:58
We are a society of seven technocrats ex-bankers at present engaged in the promotion of Solar Home light and solar water heating systems in rural India with head quarter at Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh , India’s largest populated state. We have coordinated with commercial banks and prepared a financing module for financing solar home lighting and water heating systems which are affordable by the rural poor. These loans are self liquidating nature and thousands of such systems have been installed. However, keeping in view wide gap between supply and demand of electricity there is a tremendous task ahead for promotion of SHLS. We are facing some problems in creating awareness amongst rural poor who are living in remote villages. Though we have conducted a number of training programmes to teach branch managers on the technical , financing social and other related aspects on SHLS and there is a good response from them. Banks officers still need required changes in the attitude in financing such units. Country’s Apex bank and Govt of India have already issued directions to then to finance such units. However,the number of training programmes arranged for them are not sufficient and we have to arrange a number of such more programmes.
The need to harness solar energy need not to be emphasised here.It not only reduces emission of green house gases but also makes electricity available to the rural people who can not expect accessibility of grid power during their life time. Where ever we installed SHLS the families their children and have been benefited a lot. The children are able to read by using electricity and the families have access even to reach world by watching television.
We wish to implement the following:
1. Arranging capacity building programmes for the bank managers
2. Arranging short awareness camps for villagers in rural areas
3. granting financial assistance to the poorest of poor .
We shall be thankful if you can guide us in our above venture.
Dinkar Rao
Senior consultant BVT and
President STRIPEINDIA