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IFAD country programme in Bangladesh: Knowledge in action 2005-2006 This note has been prepared in order to facilitate improved knowledge sharing between IFAD and the development community in Bangladesh. The note highlights a selection of project results from IFAD’s Bangladesh country programme in 2005-06. The project results illustrate progress in seven key strategic areas:
Access to productive resources One of the main objectives of IFAD’s new country strategy for Bangladesh (April 2006) is to increase rural poor people’s share of productive natural resources. Three ongoing IFAD projects and programmes with a focus on community-based fisheries management (CBFM) are helping poor fishermen gain more equitable access to inland open-water fisheries. They are:
The CBFM-SSEA also supports six community-managed water bodies in the Sunamganj district. Project results indicate that a greater share of benefits accrues to poor fishers rather than to powerful elites, and that overall productivity of the resource can be increased through improved management. The same benefits have been registered for the 20 ox-bow lakes in the AqDP area, where lake management groups supported through the project have increased fish stock, improved management of the lakes and benefit from increased income. Development of agricultural technology A second key goal of IFAD’s new country strategy for Bangladesh is to improve small farmers’ access to agricultural technologies. Technology research
A small grant was also provided to an international NGO, the International Development Enterprise (IDE).
The programme imported drum seeders and arranged for them to be tested by the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute and the Department of Agricultural Extension in fields across ten districts. The results were exceptional. Paddy yields from a popular rice variety (BRRI dhan 29) increased by 12.7 per cent on average and in some districts by as much as 30 per cent. The growth duration also decreased by an average of 11 days. The additional benefit of an early harvest has important implications in terms of reducing the risk to the winter crop of flood damage caused by pre-monsoon rainstorms as the crop matures. Given these promising results, BRRI and DAE imported a further 2,500 drum seeders for a demonstration programme in 2005. Private companies are reportedly importing a further 6,000 drum seeders to be sold for the next season. Adopting and adapting technology For some years IFAD, along with other partners such as the Department of Livestock Services (DLS), Danida and recently the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) and its partner NGOs, has been involved in the development and promotion of an improved semi-scavenging backyard poultry system, in which poultry scavenge part of their feed from around the homestead but are also given some supplementary feed to boost productivity. By combining improved breeds of chickens, disease control, better housing and microcredit, the system has been successful in enabling poor women to establish homestead poultry enterprises as a first step on the pathway out of poverty. Initially the supply of day-old chicks of improved types (especially Sonali, which is a cross between the Faomi and Rhode Island Red breeds) was limited by the lack of capacity of government farms and problems to develop sustainable distribution systems. Early attempts to incorporate breeding stock production into the backyard system were not very successful, in part because it was found that backyard mini-hatcheries did not work successfully. Because the hatching rate was low, project participants could not afford to pay a sufficient premium for fertilized eggs for hatching, and both mini-hatcheries and fertile egg production were unprofitable. As a result, the enterprises were not popular with project participants, and projects had to rely on a limited supply of Sonali chicks from DLS farms or abandon promotion of improved breeds and revert to less productive local chickens. Since then, the introduction of improved breeds of chicken has helped maximize benefits for poultry farmers. The Microfinance and Technical Support Project (MFTSP) implemented by IFAD and PKSF has made an important breakthrough in enabling women to operate mini-hatcheries successfully. The project:
Rural finance and microfinance A third key strategic objective of IFAD’s new country strategy for Bangladesh is improving access to financial services for small farmers and entrepreneurs. Microfinance is an important feature of all five ongoing IFAD projects in Bangladesh. The Microfinance for Marginal and Small Farmers Project (MFMSFP) focuses on lending to farmers and is currently in its start-up phase, with new groups in the process of being formed. In the past, small-scale and marginal farmers had very limited access to credit from banks, and they tend to be excluded from current microfinance programmes that target poor landless people. Yet such farmers number about 6.4 million, and operate 37 per cent of the total area of agricultural land. Because of the strong links between poverty reduction, agricultural growth and growth of the rural economy, it is important to provide financial services to small-scale and marginal farmers.
Table 2: Smallholder Agricultural Improvement Project: Changes reported by users of microcredit
Source: Impact of Micro-Credit on Livelihood Improvement, EADS, 2004 (sample of 308 members)
Rabeya’s husband was a hand loom weaver, and they have four daughters. They led a hand-to-mouth existence until Rabeya joined the Provati Mohila Samity in March 2001. In July 2001 she took out her first loan of Tk4,000 (US$75), invested in a wooden hand loom and began to weave towels. She managed to repay the loan over the next 12 months, and in August 2002 secured a second loan of Tk7,000 (US$123). By adding Tk3,000 of her savings to the loan amount, Rabeya was able to buy an improved loom. The business was expanded through a third loan of Tk25,000 (US$416) in October 2003, which was used to buy a large manually operated loom. By this time the condition of the family had improved, and the two younger daughters were attending school. In September 2004 Rabeya borrowed a further Tk50,000 (US$770) and bought a power loom. She and her husband have now established a small weaving mill with four salaried staff and 21 workers paid on a daily basis. Rabeya’s towels are sold in Dhaka and Chittagong.
Market linkages and partnership with the private sector IFAD’s new country strategy for Bangladesh includes a focus on improving access to markets for small rural entrepreneurs. Linking with the private sector An IFAD grant-financed project implemented by IDE to test and disseminate affordable innovative technologies for poor farm households has focused on forging links between farmers and the private sector. Workshops have helped bring together farmers and input dealers. As a result, some dealers have begun to sell quality seeds and fertilizers in small packets that are better suited to the needs of smaller farmers. A steady linkage has also been established between the vegetable export processing unit of a large NGO, Building Resources across Communities (BRAC), in Tongi and agents of the Seed Store Bazaar of Bhaluka in Mymensingh district. With the help of export agents and traders, small farmers have learned the benefits of cleaning, sorting and grading their products. As a result, different types of vegetables worth hundreds of millions of taka are now being exported from the area.
A new project linking remote areas with markets The market assessment concluded that there is a clear need to develop market infrastructure and to improve the operation and management of markets. Market infrastructure is overstretched, and little investment has been directed at expanding markets to meet population and economic growth. This is even more apparent in char areas, where land area has been increasing. Market users frequently emphasized the need for connecting roads and boat landing stages, and the fact that improving roads from farms to markets would lead to big potential savings in marketing costs. It is also clear that market management is weak and unrepresentative. Markets generate significant revenue, but little is reinvested in maintenance and further development. One option is for market ownership and operation to move to the private sector. While there are a few examples of successful private markets, it would be unrealistic to expect the private sector to take full responsibility for overall future development of markets, especially in remote and poor rural areas. However, greater involvement of the private or NGO sector is possible and desirable, especially as markets are often partially built on private land. Issues of market policy, regulations and management need more investigation and review, and a policy dialogue should also be part of project implementation. The Market Infrastructure Development Project in Charland Regions was approved by IFAD’s Executive Board in December 2005 and will be financed by an IFAD loan of about US$25.0 million, together with a grant from the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Dhaka of US$5.0 million. IFAD’s regional strategy for Asia includes a major emphasis on the empowerment of women. IFAD’s Country Programme Evaluation for Bangladesh, completed in June 2005, observed that "…one of the most successful aspects of the programme has been its impact on gender equity and the condition of women…". IFAD had already acquired considerable experience in the successful delivery of microfinance services to rural women in Bangladesh through earlier collaboration with pioneers in microfinance such as the Grameen Bank and BRAC. According to the evaluation report, IFAD projects, particularly microfinance activities, have contributed to a gradual transformation of rural women’s self-image, their relationships with others and the recognition accorded to them as income-earners by the community at large. This has been possible because NGOs have focused on women for microcredit activities, because women have proved to be more reliable borrowers than men. Most IFAD projects have involved group formation by NGOs together with the provision of microcredit. The majority of group members have been women, who have also benefited from skills training provided by the projects in sectors such as agriculture, livestock and fisheries. In addition, the formation of microcredit groups has provided an important opportunity for community participation by women. Their regular weekly meetings build solidarity among group members, who provide mutual support in times of crisis and encourage enterprise and risk-taking. An example of women’s participation is provided in Table 3 using data from a survey carried out for SAIP by Environment Agriculture and Development Services (EADS) on the impact of credit. The table shows how the project has helped increase the participation of women in economic and social activities. Table 3: Smallholder Agricultural Improvement Project
Source: Impact of Micro-Credit on Livelihood Improvement, EADS, 2004 (sample of 308 members) Empowerment of indigenous peoples and other marginalized groups IFAD’s regional strategy for Asia also focuses on the empowerment of indigenous people.
The project has supported the development of eight Adivasi ecological villages as a pilot activity, providing facilities such as tube wells for safe drinking water, sanitary latrines for improved primary health care, internal village roads, biogas plants, community centres and ponds for aquaculture. Building and strengthening grass-roots organizations Another major element of IFAD’s regional strategy for Asia is an emphasis on helping empower poor rural people through grass-roots organizations. Community organizations managing waterbodies In addition to establishing community-based organizations (CBOs) to take responsibility for the management of each of the project waterbodies, Cluster Management Committees (CMC) have been set up to support CBOs in each of the two waterbody clusters. The more northerly cluster of smaller waterbodies under the NGO Shushasoner Janya Nagorik (SUJON) formed a Cluster Management Committee in April 2004. The nine-person committee was elected by secret ballot, with three members from each of the three waterbody CBOs. The CMC has helped negotiate leases for small waterbodies by forming its own youth group and reaching agreements with other youth groups over bidding prior to the auction. It has settled conflicts between one of the CBOs and the previous leaseholders, and has also negotiated leases for two additional waterbodies (one of 5 acres for Tk5,200 and one of 3 acres for Tk2,500) that are being managed by the existing CBOs. The committee participates in meetings of the official Upazila Jalmohal Committee and was also active in organizing relief during severe floods in 2004. Source: IFAD
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A particular achievement of the SCBRMP was securing an allocation of leases for 93 public waterbodies in the Sunamganj district in 2005. About 55 of these waterbodies are now being run by project-sponsored beel management groups (beel is a local term for a small lake), an activity that the group members view as a major achievement. Leases were obtained through an agreement between the Ministry of Land, which was responsible for leasing public waterbodies, and the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, which was responsible for the project. Through the project, selected waterbodies were withdrawn from the three-year lease auctioning system and the leases were transferred to the agency implementing the project for a ten-year period. 
The IFAD/IRRI programme recently introduced a highly successful technology for farmers in flood-prone rice agro-ecosystems. The drum seeder technology has been imported to Bangladesh from Viet Nam. A drum seeder is a simple, low cost roller used for direct seeding of rice. Traditionally paddy has been transplanted, but labour shortages are becoming a constraint. Although paddy seed can be directly sown by broadcasting, the drum seeder ensures a more even distribution of seed and by sowing seed in rows it facilitates weeding with hand-operated push-weeding tools. 
Generally it is difficult to transport chicks from commercial hatcheries to isolated areas. Mini-hatcheries make it possible to produce day-old chicks in remote locations. Hatchability results for 37 mini-hatcheries ranged from 38 per cent to 89 per cent, for an average of 60 per cent. Because many rural villages have no access to electricity, these hatchability figures can be considered excellent. The average production of chicks per batch was about 250, and average net income earned was Tk1,500 (US$21.40) per batch. Earning this amount in a three-week period represents a significant addition to the income of the women who operate the hatcheries. Rather than relying on project management to organize supplies of hatching eggs, hatchery operators have agreed with other members of their group to set up and operate parent stock units, while others rear the day-old chicks for sale as pullets. The good performance of hatcheries means that operators can afford to pay a higher price for fertile eggs, making the parent stock units profitable. Participants themselves are now making further innovations to the system (see box).
Aklima Begum heard of the mini-hatchery during her training as a poultry worker (she was a village-level vaccinator). She has a parent stock breeding unit with Rhode Island Red cocks and Fayoumi hens from Thengamara Mohila Sabuj Sangha (TMSS), which is one of the project NGOs. 
Improved low-cost irrigation systems
In the second half of 2005, the four remaining projects were lending to more than 200,000 members of project groups, and about 90 per cent of them were women. More than half of them were borrowing through the Microfinance and Technical Support Project. By the end of 2005 more than US$17.5 million was outstanding in loans to project participants.
NGOs continue to provide microfinance after projects have been completed. In November 2005, at an award ceremony held in the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel, the Minister of Finance and Planning, Saifur Rahman, presented Rabeya Khatoon with the Citigroup-United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) award as best micro-entrepreneur of the year. Rabeya, from the village of Uttargaon in Gazipur district, is a member of a group organized by Padakhep Manabik Unnayan Kendra (PMUK), one of the partner NGOs of the Agricultural Diversification and Intensification, which was completed in 2004. 
During 2005 IFAD planned a new project in partnership with the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) and the Royal Netherlands Embassy. The Market Infrastructure Development Project in Charland Regions (MIDPCR) will develop the physical infrastructure, institutions and human capacity to enable poor people to access markets in coastal chars. Charland is land that is located in an active river basin subject to erosion and accretion. Charlands make up some of the poorest and most vulnerable coastal areas of Bangladesh. Project formulation activities included an assessment of current market facilities in the locality, and of the institutional environment and terms of access. This involved visits to 44 markets where key data were collected and discussions were held with local authorities and market stakeholders.
The ongoing 
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