IFAD’s strategic framework will be the key reference or starting point in the preparation of each individual COSOP. In this regard, the strategic framework document provides key guidance on the boundaries for COSOP design and implementation.  Two key elements of the strategic framework – the hierarchy of objectives, and the key principles for engagement  - are summarized below

IFAD’s Development Objectives as articulated in the Strategic Framework

The hierarchy of development objectives (see Figure below) defines the over-arching goal to which all IFAD’s work is oriented; and it articulates a logical hierarchy that provides a causal link between its outputs and the achievement of that goal. It will serve as the starting point for all IFAD’s development efforts, and the basis for results frameworks in IFAD country strategies and IFAD-supported projects, and within the organization itself.

Hierarchy of Development Objectives in the Strategic Framework

Over-arching Goal Poor rural women and men in developing countries are empowered to achieve higher incomes and improved food security.

Strategic Objectives Poor rural women and men have enhanced access to, and have developed the skills and organization they require to take advantage of: Natural resources - land and water Improved agricultural technologies and effective production services A broad range of financial services Transparent and competitive agricultural input and produce markets Opportunities for rural, off-farm employment and enterprise development Local and national policy and programming processes.

Operational outcomes In the six areas of IFAD’s strategic objectives: Increased incomes and enhanced food security for immediate target group of IFAD-supported projects, providing basis for evidence-based institutional and policy reform. In-country capacities for rural poverty reduction strengthened through: Policy framework (PRSP etc, sector policies) that enables poor rural people to overcome poverty Efficient public institutions focused on core tasks relative to rural poverty reduction Strengthened organizations and institutions of (or supporting the interests of) poor rural people Enhanced private sector capacity and investment levels in rural economy Improved capacity for programme development and implementation (government, NGO, private sector).

Outputs In the six areas of IFAD’s strategic objectives: Country programmes, comprising: Innovative projects with scaling up mechanisms Multi-stakeholder programmes whose direction IFAD has helped shape Local and national level policy dialogue Regional and global programmes, comprising: projects, to build knowledge policy dialogue, using experience derived through field level activities Knowledge products: policy papers, publications, etc

IFAD’s over-arching goal is that rural women and men in developing countries have higher incomes and improved food security.  To achieve this it must realise its strategic objective – that poor rural women and men have enhanced access to, and are able to effectively use: (i) natural resources, (ii) improved agricultural technologies and production services, (iii) financial services, (iv) agricultural input and produce markets, (v) opportunities for rural off-farm employment and enterprise development, and (vi) local and national rural policy and programming processes.  This will require the realisation of two linked operational outcomes – described in terms of increased incomes and enhanced food security for the immediate target group of IFAD-supported projects, and strengthened in-country capacities to for rural poverty reduction. These in turn will result from the outputs – the services and products – that IFAD will deliver to its member countries.  

Key principles of engagement as articulated in the Strategic Framework

Selectivity and Focus. IFAD will focus on those areas in which it has a clear comparative advantage.  It will not work outside the rural areas. It will not target the non-poor. It is not mandated to respond directly to emergencies and provide relief.  IFAD will finance social service delivery – local water supplies, health and education facilities – only in response to the defined needs of local communities, where the facilities are limited in scope and critical for the achievement of project objectives, and where other financing source are not available. IFAD’s expertise is specific to the rural sector: it will engage in policy dialogue only in the areas of its competence, and it will not use General Budget Support as a means for disbursing its resources.

Targeting.  A focus on targeting is central to IFAD’s identity.  Its target group is made up of poor rural people, as defined by MDG1, who have the capacity to take advantage of the economic opportunities offered by IFAD engagements.  IFAD’s target group will vary according to local circumstance: in some countries it will be those excluded from rural economic growth, in other countries poverty will be the condition of the majority of rural people. IFAD will work mostly with those who depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. It will focus particularly on women; indigenous peoples will also be important in certain parts of the world. IFAD’s experience in targeting will also shape its engagements in policy dialogue with governments and in multi-stakeholder SWAps.

Empowerment of Poor Rural People. If poor rural people are to be enabled to overcome their own poverty, they must be assisted to build the knowledge, the skills and confidence they need to pursue their own economic agenda.  Yet individually, poor rural people remain marginalised; by building their own collective organizations they can better manage assets, negotiate with market intermediaries, and access economic opportunities, service providers and government officials.  IFAD will work with, and strengthen the capacity of, a range of organizations formed by, and of, poor rural people. They will include those of entire communities and of specific populations or interest groups, they will be both formal and informal, and they will operate both at the local and the national levels.

Innovation, Learning and Upscaling. IFAD is not a large-scale development financier.  Its role is to establish partnerships for developing innovative approaches for rural poverty reduction at the local level, testing methodologies, institutional arrangements, partnerships or technologies that are new within the context in which they are being applied.  All elements of IFAD’s country programmes will be expected to be innovative. Yet innovation without upscaling is of little value: all engagements will thus be expected to have internal learning arrangements, as well as mechanisms for feeding lessons to the higher, usually national, level.

Effective Partnerships. Partnerships are an important element of the Aid Effectiveness agenda, and IFAD will give increasing attention to working through them, as well as to becoming a better partner for others. It will participate more actively in the partnerships established by the international development community; it will itself form partnerships in order to solve key problems; and it will use partnerships for influence relative to its experiences in rural poverty reduction. The key partners are with national stakeholders, but IFAD will also develop closer partnerships – operational and strategic – with other international development agencies, both in-country and at the institutional level.

Sustainability.  Ensuring the sustainability of development support is critical; IFAD will give explicit attention to the issue. It will improve its project design quality, so as to ensure development impact; and it will maintain its support until such time that the impact can be sustained.  It will promote national leadership over projects and programmes, which should all fit within, and contribute to, national policies and strategies.  Above all, it will ensure that the projects and programmes are owned by the rural poor themselves: they will be involved in their definition and implementation, enabled to develop the skills and organization they need to manage the economic opportunities, and assisted to engage effectively and more profitably with market intermediaries and service providers beyond the life of the project.

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