Press release number: IFAD 40/05

Rome, October 13, 2005- More than 26,200 rural women and food insecure families will benefit from a new development programme in the poor districts of Attapeu and Sayabouri provinces in the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

The US$25.9 million programme will be financed in part by a US$17.3 million loan and US$693,000 grant from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). An additional US$1.3 million grant will be provided by the World Food Programme and US$2.0 million from the German Government through the German Agency for Technical Cooperation and the German Development Service. The Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic will contribute US$3.4 million. Today's loan agreement was signed by the IFAD President, Lennart Båge, and Soutsakhone Pathammavong , Ambassador of Lao People's Democratic Republic to France , at IFAD Headquarters in Rome .

The programme will assist rural poor people, especially women, living in the uplands, including people who have moved recently from the remote uplands and resettled in more accessible areas. It will enable poor farmers to make better use of services and natural resources to increase their incomes and food security. Better roads will link remote villages to produce markets and help them generate more income. The programme will provide access to essential social services and strengthen the capacity of local community organisations to manage and plan development activities in their villages.

“IFAD firmly supports the LAO PDR Government's efforts to eradicate rural poverty and improve the livelihoods of the rural poor,” said Youqiong Wang, IFAD's country programme manager for the Lao People's Democratic Republic. “The programme will strengthen the capacity of local communities to manage their own social and economic development to ensure the sustainability of the programme and reduce poverty.”

With this loan IFAD will have financed nine projects for a total of US$70.3 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.