Press release number: IFAD 36/05

Rome, September 25, 2005 – Fishing families and small farmers whose livelihoods were destroyed by the December 2004 tsunami disaster will benefit from a new asset recovery programme in the Maldives.

The US$5 million programme will be financed in part by a US$2.1 million loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). IFAD will also provide a US$ 200,000 grant. An additional US$500,000 grant will be provided by the Italian Government and the Government of the Maldives will contribute US$93,000. Today’s loan agreement, the first of two, was signed by the IFAD President, Lennart Båge, and the Maldive’s Minister for Finance and Treasury, Qasim Ibrahim, at the World Bank’s MC Building in Washington D.C.

When the tsunami washed across the Maldives on 26 December 2004, nearly one third of the population lost their source of income. The giant waves destroyed fishing vessels, crops, water and sanitation facilities, electrical infrastructure, tourist resorts and roads. Schools, health centres, houses and agricultural lands were severely damaged. Farmers lost their harvests and poor fishing families lost their fishing gear.

The asset recovery programme will help restore the country’s fisheries and agricultural sectors to levels equal to or better than before their devastation by the tsunami. The programme will provide fishing communities with new boats and cold storage facilities and build new receiving stations for cleaning and processing fish. Small farmers who lost their harvests will be assisted with sustainable farming techniques to help improve their crops and make them less vulnerable to natural disasters. New farming tools and equipment will replace those damaged by the tsunami and a new agricultural produce market will be built in Male’ to help establish new marketing channels for producers on remote islands.

“The best way to help people who have suffered so much is to support them in rebuilding their livelihoods quickly by building-back-better, while creating new development opportunities for them”, said Sana Jatta, IFAD’s Country Programme Manager for the Maldives.

With this loan IFAD will have financed four projects in the Republic of Maldives for a total of $10.2 million dollars.

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IFAD is a specialized agency of the United Nations dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries. Seventy-five per cent of the world's poorest people - 800 million women, children and men - live in rural areas and depend on agriculture and related activities for their livelihoods. Through low-interest loans and grants, IFAD works with governments to develop and finance programmes and projects that enable rural poor people to overcome poverty themselves.

There are 192 ongoing IFAD-supported rural poverty eradication programmes and projects, totalling US$6.5 billion. IFAD has invested about US$2.8 billion in these initiatives. Cofinancing has been provided by governments, beneficiaries, multilateral and bilateral donors and other partners. At full development, these programmes will help more than 100 million rural poor women and men to achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has invested almost US$8.7 billion in 690 projects and programmes that have helped more than 250 million poor rural men and women achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Governments and other financing sources in the recipient countries, including project beneficiaries, have contributed about US$8.4 billion, and multilateral, bilateral and other donors have provided about US$6.9 billion in cofinancing.