Press release number: IFAD 25/02

Rome, Friday, 3 May 2002 – Ministers of Finance, Economic Planning and Agriculture from the Near East and North Africa region are due to meet in Beirut Wednesday 8 May 2002 in a two-day regional conference organized by the United Nations' International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The ''Regional Rural Poverty Assessment and Strategic Opportunities'' conference will be inaugurated by HE Rafiq Hariri, Prime Minister of Lebanon and Mr. Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. About 200 participants, including senior government officials of participating countries, representatives of international organizations, multilateral and bilateral donors, regional development and research institutions, NGOs and civil society are expected to take part in the deliberations of the conference, which is called upon to adapt the IFAD-proposed regional strategy to eradicate rural poverty.

Between 60-70% of the poor in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) live in rural areas where the number of rural poor is estimated at about 60 million people. The problem of acute rural poverty in the region is drawing greater international attention in the light of increasing constraints facing the rural sector including a weakening natural resource base aggravated by declining soil fertility, limited water resources and frequent climatic shocks of droughts and flash floods; and institutional constraints such as unequal land distribution, poor and unsustainable management of physical and social infrastructure, gender imbalances and few grass-roots and civil-society organizations.

Since its establishment in 1978, IFAD financed 84 projects in the region through loans and project component grants amounting to about US$ 1 billion. Taking into consideration co-financing from local regional and international donors, the total value of these projects exceeds US$ 4.3 billion; all to the benefit of some 4 million households or 22.4 million individuals.

The conference will discuss the dimensions of rural poverty and the economic constraints in the rural sector, strategic lessons that IFAD has learned from its 25-year experience of financing rural development projects, the proposed strategy for rural poverty reduction and equitable growth and means of chartering a new course for partnerships between IFAD, donor groups and its Member States to accelerate the base of rural poverty reduction in the region. The President of IFAD, in his keynote address, is expected to urge governments of the region to substantially increase their investments in the rural sector to match and encourage greater international investment in the sector in order to achieve the goal of the Millennium Summit to halve the number of the poor by 2015.

During his 3-day official visit to Lebanon, Mr. Båge is scheduled to hold talks with HE, Emil Lahoud, President of the Republic, HE Rafic Hariri, Prime Minister, HE Ali Abdallah, Minister of Agriculture, HE Fouad Sanyoura, Minister of Finance and HE Mohammed Baydoun, Minister of Hydraulics and Power Resources and other senior government officials. Discussions are expected to deal with a number of national and regional issues relating to the Fund's efforts to address the urgent needs of the rural communities and means of accelerating development on sustainable basis. To date IFAD has financed 4 projects in Lebanon, worth a total of US$ 175.8 million, including IFAD's share of approx. US$ 44.7 million, to the benefit of more than 101 thousand households or about 618 thousand individuals of the poorest rural communities.

The President of IFAD is also expected to undertake a field visit to the sites of the one of the Fund's projects in the country: the Smallholder Livestock Rehabilitation project in the Bekaa Valley. The project, which started implementation in 1993 to rehabilitate the livestock sector damaged by the civil war, was highly successful in reaching its objectives of enabling the government to replenish some of the lost animals and strengthen support services in the rural sector. At a total cost of US$ 21 million including an IFAD contribution of about US$ 10 million, the project helped more than 72,000 families of the poorest rural dwellers to change their lives and secure a better future. It helped farmers replace existing stock with improved breeds; strengthened animal health services to promote increased milk production, reducing milk imports and raised productivity and incomes of smallholders. Rural women have also benefited from project assistance individually or through cooperatives. They have been provided credit and training for fruit and milk processing and other income-generating activities. The project also introduced institutional changes to provide farm support services, credit and agricultural extension to disadvantaged farmers; developed human resources through training and the establishment of farmers' groups; and increased the farmer's access to and benefits from local and export markets.

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IFAD is a specialised agency of the United Nations with the specific mandate of combating hunger and poverty in the most disadvantaged regions of the world. Since 1978 IFAD has financed 603 projects in 115 recipient countries and in the West Bank and Gaza for a total commitment of approximately USD 7.3 billion in loans and grants. Through these projects, about 250 million rural people have had a chance to move out of poverty. IFAD makes the greater part of its resources available to low-income countries on very favourable terms, with up to 40 years for repayment and including a grace period of up to ten years and a service charge of 0.75% per year.