Release number IFAD/54/07

Rome, 19 December 2007 – A new project in Guinea-Bissau will help about 100,000 poor rural people work with local public administrations, NGOs and the private sector to develop economic and social initiatives that will improve their incomes and living conditions while rebuilding their communities.

The US$5.6 million Rural Rehabilitation and Community Development Project is supported by a US$4.7 million grant from IFAD.

The grant agreement was signed in Rome by Guinea-Bissau’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ingénieur Daniel Suleimane Embalò, and IFAD’s President Lennart Båge. The Government of Guinea-Bissau will provide US$800,000 and project participants will contribute US$92,000.

The project focuses on rehabilitating infrastructure, including 65 kilometres of essential rural roads, improving basic social services and strengthening grassroots organizations. The project will also strengthen the role of the most vulnerable groups – women and youth – in project implementation and community decision-making and management. 

After gaining independence in 1973, Guinea-Bissau experienced
30 years of political instability and a civil war.

“The political scenario has evolved positively since 1999,” said Cristiana Sparacino, IFAD’s country programme manager for Guinea-Bissau. “There are encouraging signs that the new multi-party system can resolve political crises within a framework of democratic institutions. There is now an urgent need for support from the international community to help consolidate the new
framework, and activate a long-overdue process of economic growth.”

The project will support an active role for women in community organizations and in other local public governance institutions, and mobilize NGOs and civil society organizations to complement the public administration in providing services to rural communities.

Project activities will be built around innovations proposed by participants themselves. The local initiative fund will provide financial support to participants who form partnerships to create new local rural development projects. Participants will be part of the project steering committee, together with government representatives, service-providers and NGO representatives.

To date, IFAD has supported two other projects and grants in Guinea-Bissau for a total of more than US$20 million.

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IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries. Through low-interest loans and grants, IFAD develops and finances programmes and projects that enable poor rural people to overcome poverty themselves. There are201 ongoing IFAD-supported rural poverty eradication programmes and projects, worth a total of US$6.8 billion. IFAD has invested US$3.2 billion, with cofinancing provided by partners including governments, project participants, multilateral and bilateral donors. These initiatives will help about 83 million poor rural women and men to achieve better lives for themselves and their families. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has invested US$10.0 billion in 766 programmes and projects that have reached more than 315 million poor rural women and men. Governments and other financing sources in recipient countries, including project participants, contributed US$9.3 billion, and multilateral, bilateral and other donors provided another US$7.5 billion in cofinancing.