Enabling poor rural people
to overcome poverty
Implementation experience and issues
Land reclamation
In much of the arable land in Syria a high proportion of rocks of various size and depth has both limited the planting area and dictated the techniques of cultivation. This has been one of the most difficult constraints on small farmers. Therefore, the agricultural development strategy of the Government, supported by IFAD and other donors, embraced large-scale de-rocking as a mechanism for expanding cultivable land and productivity.
At the time of the CPE, 83 800 ha of de-rocking (50% of appraisal targets) had been completed. Because of procurement delays, much of this has been accomplished with old machinery, especially in SRADP-II. De-rocking achievements in this project alone surpassed the appraisal target by 44%. This clearly demonstrated that Syrian mechanics and engineers had the skills and managerial capability to keep much of the heavy machinery fleet operational well past its nominal economic life. Hence, the new fleets provided can be expected to continue de-rocking for many years.
The technical methodology of de-rocking has proved very successful, and operations have been undertaken to a high standard. After de-rocking, fields can be planted, depending on the rainfall, with various crops such as wheat and barley, pulse crops such as chickpeas, and fruit trees such as olives and apples. Agricultural operations are greatly facilitated, with positive effects on productivity. Beneficiaries of de-rocking activities are fully informed about the project arrangements and credit facilities available during the process of land development. Meetings are held prior to land development to explain the programme and discuss the farmers' rights and responsibilities.
The positive impact of de-rocking has been clearly demonstrated (Section V). In particular, benefits were derived on small farms where farmers had been converted from extremely poor workers and employees in neighbouring areas or in other sectors (inside the country and abroad) to active farmers residing on their own land, and with good incomes. Orchards have been established on around 50% of de-rocked land, which has enhanced olive and fruit production and improved the balance between annual and tree cropping.
Although the planting of fruit trees is actively promoted, many beneficiaries prefer to grow annual instead of tree crops, which can result in soil erosion and can decrease water-retention capacity. The most important reasons for this are: (i) the farmer's need for immediate cash from the sale of annual crops in a readily available market (guaranteed by government marketing policies), as compared with his having to wait for three to five years to start earning from fruit trees; (ii) the requirement of a large outlay of capital and technical knowledge for the planting of fruit trees; and (iii) the need for alternative sources of income before fruit trees start to produce. In addition, while de-rocking was associated with a significant increase in yields across crops, these yields are still below potential. Improvement can be expected through the upgrading of technical training for beneficiaries and staff. The CPE was also concerned about the extent of monocropping (the dominance of a single species) on many farms. This can lead to the spread of disease and may endanger economic benefits and sustainability. An emerging issue for increased orchard production is marketing, but good potential exists for expansion.
While de-rocking has contributed substantially to increased crop production and farm income, three issues have emerged concerning potential environmental impact, targeting/area selection and the distribution of benefits from de-rocking. These will be dealt with in the following sections of the executive summary.
Livestock
Apart from BRDP, in which all components revolve around extensive livestock development, livestock interventions in the other projects are limited in scope, with only partial integration into the overall project objectives and strategies. In most cases, livestock development is seen solely from the genetic side through providing high-performing breeds, while fodder availability, feeding and nutrition aspects are left to the decision of individual farmers. Quantitative and qualitative feed shortage is reflected in low average production parameters for all species and breeds. Extension activities for livestock have not been as effective as those for crop production.
The Effects of drought
As a result of the severe drought in 1999/2000, flock sizes may have been reduced by up to 80% in the case of smallholders who were not members of cooperatives, and by around 50% in sheep-breeding cooperatives. Even though not all the effects of the drought have yet materialized, many worrying signs were evident by mid-2000: (i) extremely low livestock prices; (ii) extremely low milk production; and (iii) a more than fourfold increase in rental costs of stubble and fallow (in ASZs 1 to 4). The drought has slowed the rate of implementation of livestock components in the portfolio, particularly for the Badia project.
Extension activities
All projects include strengthening the existing extension services to intensify and upgrade agricultural production technology and practices. IFAD-supported projects (particularly SRDP-II) have promoted a revised approach to service provision based on problem analysis at the farm level and the establishment of village groups. This is resulting in a more responsive service (see paragraph 40). Where de-rocking operations have taken place, most farmers considered that the extension services provided very useful information and assistance for field and tree crops. However, overall potential outreach has been considerably curtailed because of lack of transport and the uneven distribution of extension units throughout various zones in favour of ASZs 1 and 2.
Overall, the extension services are well staffed (and sometimes overstaffed) and are performing a valuable role in realizing the potential of the investments in de-rocking. However, a number of constraints relating to sustainability of the farming system (sections VI and VII) are still to be addressed. The technical packages promoted are suitable over all, but there is potential for improving productivity through improved technology generated by the extensive network of research stations and national/international research institutions (e.g., the International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the Arab Centre for Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands (ACSAD)), and by reinforcing the participatory dimension of extension, research and on-farm trials.
Water resource development
Three of the ongoing projects (CMADP, JHADP and BRDP) have packages for water-supply development, the overall objectives of which are to provide water for human consumption and/or agricultural purposes (supplementary irrigation, livestock watering). However, CMADP is the only project in which water resource activities have so far been substantially implemented. On balance, both the scope and scale of interventions in the present projects are appropriate, but they may not be so when demand for water grows. There is also concern for the lack of organization and effective involvement of beneficiaries in the management of the water resources developed by the projects. In addition, techniques of run-off water harvesting seem to be more efficiently used in areas where water is already available (ASZs 1 and 2) rather than in those areas where use of this technique would be more justified (ASZs 3 and 4). In general, there is a need to incorporate measures to encourage both run-off water harvesting and the more efficient on-farm use of irrigation water, which is presently very low.
Cooperative agricultural bank
The Syrian banking system consists of the Central Bank of Syria and five state-owned specialized banks, of which the Cooperative Agricultural Bank (CAB) is responsible for providing credit to the agriculture and rural sectors. CAB is not a conventional agricultural bank but rather a government institution that carries out public-sector credit policies. Any Syrian national who operates land and/or raises animals for agricultural purposes, and is not a defaulter in the repayment of a previous loan, can access CAB credit either through his/her cooperative or directly. The commonly prevailing interest rates are 4% for cooperatives and 5.5% for private farmers. The lending rates, if not negative in real terms6, are low and not adequate to cover all costs of credit dispensation. Low interest rates on CAB loans are perhaps now the only important tool available to the Government for passing on subsidies to agricultural producers.
With the exception of SRADP-I, where both CAB and AFESD finance the credit components, credit funds for the projects are fully covered from CAB regular resources. In SRADP, CMADP and JHADP, CAB is responsible for providing credit for land reclamation, annual crop and fruit tree planting on de-rocked land, and the purchase of livestock, farm equipment and machinery. These loans are intended for participating farmers, rural women and disadvantaged/ landless rural men. Under BRDP, CAB credit is for assisting herders and women with livestock production and other small-scale IGAs.
Through IFAD/Government policy dialogue, CAB has entered into formal agreements with the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform (MAAR), the main implementing agency, to relax a number of its normal terms and conditions to ensure an increased flow of credit to project beneficiaries. One important relaxation is land collateral; two personal guarantors or a farmer cooperative can now guarantee loans.
Credit disbursements
Experience with credit comes mostly from SRADP-II. Achievements have been highly satisfactory. Between 1995 (when disbursements started) and 1999, SRADP-II disbursed a total of 6 737 loans for livestock production and other IGAs. These loans have amounted to 359 million Syrian pounds (SYP) (USD 7.8 million), which is 91% of the design target. This is in addition to payments to about 70% of the farmer beneficiaries for land reclamation costs on credit. About 54% of these loans were for IGAs for rural women. CMADP is the only other project in which credit activities have started, and then only from the beginning of 2000. Up to June 2000, 353 loans, worth SYP 7.9 million (USD 172 000), had been disbursed.
Excluding credit for land reclamation, livestock production (cattle and sheep-fattening and sheep/goat-rearing) accounted for 44% of the total loans under SRADP-II, followed by loans for dairy cows and milking machines (38%) and women's off-farm IGAs (16%). The balance (2%) went for poultry and beekeeping. Under CMADP, women's off-farm and home-based IGAs occupied second place above dairy cows and milking machines.
Overall, the design of the credit activities supported under the four ongoing IFAD-assisted projects is appropriate, and appreciated by recipients, especially women. Proper use of credit is ensured through supervision by extension staff, and timely loan repayments by intensive CAB staff contact with borrowers. To reinforce this system and further reduce risks, CAB and project authorities adhere closely to the policy of lending in kind. The following problems, however, need further attention: (i) the linkages between the credit activities and the core land development components are relatively weak, i.e., the interventions are not mutually reinforcing (see paragraph 36); (ii) no explicit targeting mechanisms are in place to direct credit towards asset-less poor or destitute rural women and no efforts are devoted to building up a 'small loans guarantee fund' to encourage CAB to incorporate these rural disadvantaged in its lending programme; (iii) no attention has been given to savings promotion; and (iv) despite design stipulation, the credit line is not so far operating as a revolving fund.
Targeting
In practice, priority targeting of the poorest rural households has proven more difficult to achieve in Syria than in many other countries. This is partly because of the scant data available on poor rural households and partly because of the nature of the portfolio's emphasis. For de-rocking, technical and economic considerations can preclude the adherence to targeting criteria. De-rocking areas are selected on the basis of applications from villages. Attempts are made to give priority to the poorer villages, but selections are governed by technical and logistical considerations (such as the most suitable and easiest areas to de-rock and the accessibility for heavy equipment) rather than by the size of beneficiaries' holdings and income levels. Hence, de-rocked areas consist of mixed landholdings, and the operation does not always reach the poorest. In some instances, the selection may also be influenced by local power structures. In terms of credit, the targeting was not to reach the poorest (men and women) but rather the 'productive poor'. Credit is not used effectively to make up for the difficulties encountered in targeting de-rocking.
Nevertheless, the trend in design and implementation towards targeting the poor and women is encouraging. For example, while in SRADP targeting for land reclamation was identified as a weakness, in that poorest groups were not singled out, in CMADP priority for land reclamation activities is being given to households headed by women. Additional difficulties in targeting the poor during implementation include: the absence of the usual group-based targeting approach and support by non-governmental organizations (NGOs), unspecified targeting mechanisms, and insufficient emphasis on targeting during project supervision and by monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems.
Participation
Participation has been an uphill battle in the present portfolio (although, the future is promising). First, there is no custom in Syria of intended beneficiaries participating in the design of government programmes. This has resulted in a passive beneficiary attitude and acquiescence to the status quo. Second, government field staff, such as agricultural extension agents, are not accustomed to performing their roles in a way that encourages active participation by area farmers. Third, there are few group or civil-society mechanisms for channelling the participation of farmers or women; nor are there NGOs to mobilize and support the process at the village level. Recently, some donors began to support a number of promising community-based participatory approaches in rural areas (paragraph 79-82).
With the exception of BRDP, none of the project designs include well-defined mechanisms for beneficiary participation, although, as described below, some of these mechanisms are being introduced during implementation. Project staff were generally not keen to consult farmers on issues related to project activities. The belief was that conflicts of interest would create a difficult situation and affect the sustainability of services provided. In one project, staff asserted that advice from participants was out of question because of the deep conflicts among various spring water users. In addition, the design of the first four projects adopted a centralized approach, placing the responsibility for their implementation firmly in the hands of project management and the central MAAR and its provincial arms. The existing popular organizations, the General Union of Peasants (GUP) and the General Union of Women (GUW), are politically based associations, each with a specific mandate. As such, they were included as possible project facilitators in the design of some projects. During implementation, GUP facilitated provisions of some services (de-rocking and credit) and GUW provided trainers from its experienced staff.
SRADP-II took an important leap into using participatory approaches by setting up informal groups (organized by topics such as fruit trees, field crops, livestock, women's activities) of around 15 farmers each to communicate with extension officers on, among other issues, the incidence and severity of particular local problems. Subsequent projects have become more ambitious in their participation goals, but it is still too early to see results. Under JHADP, women's participation in development activities is expected to promote women's involvement in community affairs, while CMADP is to identify beneficiaries on the basis of their expressed needs and to include participation in land-clearing, tree planting and village water supplies. So far, BRDP has placed the strongest emphasis on participation, and the project aims at demonstrating a replicable participatory approach to natural resource management, with the participation of herders in planning, implementation and monitoring. For the first time in the Syria portfolio, an NGO (based in Amman, Jordan) is involved in the Badia project to promote community participation.
Gender
Gender issues have received increasing attention in the Syria portfolio. Women-in-Development (WID) programmes included the following components: (i) provision of medium-term credit; (ii) facilitation of educational awareness and acquisition of new skills that would enhance self-esteem and income-generation; and (iii) inclusion of small-scale livestock interventions aimed at increasing household income and family nutrition. The programmes proved to be popular among and empowering to women, particularly for those women who undertook IGAs based on livestock, but potential exists for improvement.
A large number of women have benefited and are benefiting from the wide variety of training courses provided by the projects. In SRADP-I, a reported 4 705 women benefited from home visits by the extension services specifically targeting them. SRADP-II's WID programme targeted 60 000 women with agricultural extension, demonstrations of new techniques, literacy courses, skill and project management training and credit for land development, agricultural inputs and IGAs. Other projects are less advanced in their implementation of WID activities; partly because of logistic constraints on the availability and mobility of trainers.
43. Many of these skills training courses, however, are not well linked either to the activities proposed under the credit programme or to marketing outlets (particularly for sewing and knitting). This will limit the profitability of the activities and the prospects for income-generation. Most of those who attend the literacy courses and other skills training activities are younger women, between 15 and 25 years old. For many, the attraction seems to be the opportunity for social skills enhancement rather than for undertaking IGAs. Literacy courses are particularly sought after, as many young women have received limited education. However, there are indications that the training programmes have bypassed married women, who cannot afford the time to participate. Some of the older women also indicated that they were not even aware of the project or its activities, and others stressed that training programmes were not coordinated with the seasonal demands of women's fieldwork.
The need for microfinance for on and off-farm IGAs have proved crucial for women. However, some obstacles need to be addressed: (i) credit in kind limited the choice of borrowers in terms of quality and price and delayed credit delivery; (ii) credit has not been sufficiently geared to the poorest women, as CAB does not provide cash to cover operational expenses; and (iii) the relaxation of the collateral requirement to two guarantors improved access, but not to the extent required.
Overall, projects are still addressing women needs mainly through relatively small and separate components rather than through an integrated focus on gender issues. These components' linkage to other project activities is not well articulated, which makes them appear as add-ons to project design. This is illustrated by the fact that the project management units (PMUs) in all projects maintain the WID unit as a separate entity. In addition, most M&E reports are not gender sensitive. With the exception of WID activities, all other data and reports were presented without reference to gender-differential roles. There have been attempts to mainstream gender concerns in extension, credit and even in one project (CMADP), land development. Success has so far been hampered partly by institutional and cultural constraints, and in some instances by lack of a comprehensive appreciation of gender issues during design and implementation.
The design for project management incorporated a number of features aimed at (i) increasing the autonomy of project management in a relatively centralized economic administration, (ii) expediting decision-making and processing in order that IFAD might respond swiftly to field conditions, and (iii) integrating some services using existing institutions such as agricultural extension for improvement of farm practices and for rural women's development, including IGAs. This is a measure mainly for enhancing future sustainability of project activities and benefits.
Decentralization
MAAR has the responsibility for implementing all IFAD-supported projects. To enhance autonomy, independent project management units were created and subsequently given the status of directorates. The PMUs are headed by a project director. Though this measure puts the project on par with other directorates in MAAR, the institutional setup, especially in terms of finance, does not guarantee the desired level of autonomy. Some aspects of the projects are implemented through existing governorate-level units, e.g. extension and the women's programmes, while others, e.g. land reclamation (de-rocking), are undertaken by units established under the projects. This arrangement has helped to strengthen governorate units, resulting somewhat in the promotion of decentralized structures. This, at least in principle, was further strengthened by the establishment of project implementation units in each governate for the multi governorate projects. In reality, most of the decisions related to the field operations are made by the concerned project director. The policy-level decisions, and most of the operational decisions, are subject to ministerial financial approvals. Nonetheless, the projects have contributed to supporting the Government's gradual policy of decentralization.
A positive aspect enhancing sustainability of projects is the full dependence on the extension services of the MAAR and its provincial directorates. This close association - whereby the project provides the necessary resources while the corresponding extension department provides the technical packages and the professionals to implement project-related programmes - has contributed to institutional strengthening and the sustainability of project benefits.
Counterpart Funding
49. This has not been limiting in any of the IFAD-supported projects. Coordination is adequate in all the projects, and elaborate coordination mechanisms exist, including coordination committees at the central, governorate and project levels. Most coordination at the field level, however, is through direct contact among field units (including the extension units), CAB branches, and other technical departments (such as the Department of Irrigation and Water Use).
Procurement
Lengthy bureaucratic procedures proved to be a major hindrance to international procurement (not only of vehicles and heavy machinery and equipment but also smaller items such as sewing machines, motorcycles and communication equipments). These and other lengthy procedures led to extended procurement delays, which presented the most important managerial problem during programme implementation. This was the primary reason for the very low disbursement rate of all projects. This rate is expected to improve dramatically, however, following the recent contract awards.
Institutional support: technical assistance (TA) and staff training
TA programmes provided a useful mechanism for filling skills gaps and providing on-the-job training. So far, SRADP-II has fully implemented its TA programme; other programmes are just starting. For SRADP-II, TA was funded by means of a UNDP grant and contracted to FAO, while TA programmes in JHADP, CMADP and BRDP are working in close collaboration with UNDP, FAO and ACSAD. The CPE found that the way the TA programmes are being implemented is exceptionally beneficial for the projects. This is because the stakeholders are able to modify the programmes during implementation to meet actual needs, the project management contributes to the selection of consultants and TA progress and results are actively monitored by a tri-partite committee specially established for this purpose.
All the projects include local and overseas staff training, in a wide spectrum of relevant subjects. Training activities for CMADP and JHADP are still in their early stages, but the management of these projects indicated that arrangements similar to those of SRADP-II (which have proved successful) will be adopted. Training in Syria benefited from the presence of ICARDA and ACSAD. In addition to project staff, relevant MAAR staff at the provincial and district levels benefited from project training. BRDP is utilizing the Co-operative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE) in its local training activities (the training programme is also associated with FAO, which is experimenting with the training of beneficiary representatives as development facilitators). The CPE concluded that the training programmes for staff and beneficiaries were proving an important and sustainable aspect of project achievements, which should increase individual and institutional capabilities. An important aspect to be strengthened in the future is training in participatory approaches and methodologies.
Supervision
In its role as cooperating institution for IFAD's four ongoing projects in Syria, AFESD has sent four field supervision missions to Syria since 1995. Their reports adequately list and analyse quantitative achievements and project performance relative to physical input and output. They do not, however, strategically assess quality and effectiveness, or the implications of operational decisions on the target group and project objectives. It is not evident that the supervision process has provided the needed implementation support to the projects. In addition, the time periods separating one mission from the next have had an impact on the effectiveness of supervision. To support project implementation, IFAD has fielded a number of follow-up missions to address specific implementation issues.
Monitoring and Evaluation 54. In all the projects, separate M&E units have been established under the authority of each project director. The M&E units have been successful in establishing systems for the continual monitoring and reporting of project activities: information is collected in collaboration with field extension workers, field working groups and other implementation officers. The indicators monitored have largely been related to physical achievement of planned activities (for example, the primary indicator used for assessing de-rocking activities has been plan fulfilment measured in terms of land area cleared of rocks). This information is useful for monitoring the progress of implementation, but progress made in achieving the project objectives and reaching the target group is not adequately considered or integrated into periodic M&E activities.7
Assessment of project effects and impact has been undertaken only to a limited extent and has not considered gender (except that regarding women's programmes), social issues or poverty reduction. Further, the resources required for assessment surveys are not allocated. Training activities to develop M&E have had a positive effect on all IFAD projects and have led to improvements in the M&E systems. One result has been that M&E officers now better appreciate the role they should play in assessing project results and supporting project implementation. Except for those in SRADP-II, the number of staff vehicles and computers for provincial monitoring officers is a matter of concern. Participatory monitoring and evaluation would require extensive training for all concerned.
6/ It is difficult to estimate the annual rate of price changes or inflation because of lack of published data on prices. The inflation rate for 1998 was estimated by UNDP at 2.2%.
7/ To assist in this area, the CPE prepared a series of impact indicators for the consideration of the M&E officers.