Southern Nyanza Community Development Project

The project area covers six districts – Homa Bay, Kuria, Migori, Nyamira, Rachuonyo and Suba – that are among the poorest districts in the relatively high-potential agricultural area of southern Nyanza, on Lake Victoria. Communities in these districts have strong sociocultural traditions and norms; poverty levels are high; institutional and policy infrastructure is weak; and the HIV/AIDS rate is higher than the national average.

The project focuses on empowering rural communities by:

• strengthening local institutions and community-driven development activities
• improving access to health care services and safe water, and improving environmental sanitation and hygiene practices
• increasing on-farm labour productivity and strengthening human capacity through improved food security and nutrition
• heightening community awareness of social behaviours and their consequences

Communities articulate their needs and priorities through a community action planning process. Self-help groups form the focus of economic activities. Local community committees manage health care centres, water points and latrines.

Innovative features include local livelihood forums, which promote community awareness of a wide range of sociocultural issues, and support groups for vulnerable households.

Source: IFAD

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In this section Project overview Documents Contact information Mr Robson Mutandi Country programme manager IFAD Via Paolo di Dono, 44 00142 Rome, Italy Tel: +39 0654592260 Fax: +39 0654593260 r.mutandi@ifad.org Facts and figures Total cost: US$17.8 million IFAD loan: US$15.6 million Duration: 2004-2012 Geographical area: six districts in southern Nyanza Directly benefiting: 35,000 households Status: ongoing