Project ID: 1238
Executive Board Document: EB-2003-78-R-25-REV-1

Roots and Tubers Market-Driven Development Project

Who are the beneficiaries? The target population is composed of small producers and processors of roots and tubers (cassava, sweet potatoes, potatoes, yams, macabo and taro) in eight of ten provinces of Cameroon, estimated at about 600 000 households. The recent Enqute camerounaise aupr s des mnages (Cameroon Household Survey) has shown that about 87% of the poor in Cameroon are living in rural areas; 50% of rural households are living under the poverty line, and 52% of the people who belong to poor households are women. The target group is mainly women, who constitute about 90% of the actors in the roots and tubers (R&T) sector, and youths. The programme has identified four categories: producers who have no surplus output for sale (15%), producers/processors who are able to market less than 25% of their produce (80%), specialized producers/processors who are market oriented and sell more than 25% of their produce (2%) and specialized processors (3%). The programme will attempt to focus primarily on the first and second groups, followed by the others.

Why are they poor? Although the reforms undertaken by the Government since 1994 have generated satisfactory macroeconomic results, the benefits have not reached food-crop producers, particularly the R&T producers and small processors. A major reason explaining this situation is the low productivity of their farming system, with yields of around 6 to 8 t/ha for cassava, compared to the potential research yields of 30 to 40 t with the improved varieties. Other reasons include the difficulties of producers to gain access to an adequate extension service, a well-organized input and seed delivery system and a well-structured marketing system because of their poor organization and lack of information and credit, as well as lack of access to social infrastructure.

What will the programme do for them? The programme will support the organization of the R&T farmers at the village, the bassin (that is, a set of villages, with similar cropping systems and marketing strategies) and the regional levels. It is expected that at the end of the programme an apex of an organization of R&T farmers and processors at the national level would be set up. The programme will provide financial assistance for building the capacities of the farmers and processors to develop marketing strategies, including the establishment of a market information system owned and managed by the beneficiaries and improvement of processing technology and farming systems efficiency. The programme will also provide resources for the maintenance of rural roads, the improvement of market infrastructures, the setting up of a sustainable seed production and distribution system, the development of appropriate microfinance products and the support of local entrepreneurs. It will also provide beneficiaries with an R&T development fund and strengthen their capacity to enter into contracts with private or public service providers.

How will beneficiaries participate in the programme?The programme will include active participation and capacity-building tools to help beneficiaries analyse their constraints and draw up and manage R&T action plans, including microprojects adapted to the different categories of producer/processors identified in the villages. Women will represent at least two thirds of the members in the farmers organization units to be set up. Beneficiaries will also be supported in entering into contracts with service providers. The functional literacy sub-component is expected to facilitate the involvement of women and other minorities and vulnerable groups in programme activities and their participation in local organizational bodies. The capacity of beneficiaries to promote genuinely participatory development will be strengthened through ongoing training and the implementation of a mechanism to permit regular exchanges of experiences and best practices.

Loan Amount:

SDR 9.6 million (equivalent to approximately USD 13.1 million)

Total programme cost:USD 21.7 million

Cooperating Institution:

United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)

Project ID: 1126
Executive Board Document: EB-99-68-R-14-Rev-1

National Microfinance Programme Support Project

To a large extent, the Government of Cameroon's ability to reduce poverty and ensure sustainable rural livelihoods for its population depends on the availability of viable microfinance services and networks. The overall objective of this six-year IFAD-initiated project is to help create and maintain a system of properly supervised MFIs whose services are accessible to all segments of the population, including those living in rural areas. In collaboration with other development partners and as part of a national platform for microfinance development, IFAD has assisted the Government of Cameroon in formulating a national microfinance policy that will protect small depositors' money while leaving room for institutional and product innovation.

More specifically, the project's objectives are to:

- increase the ability of government institutions to implement the national microfinance policy and establish a permanent consultative mechanism that brings together concerned government departments, MFI networ ks and professional associations;

- support the consolidation and professional development of MFI networks and the expansion of their outreach;

- replicate, through action research, innovative approaches to rural microfinance; and

- capitalize on and disseminate experiences and best practices.

While national in coverage, the project devotes special attention to the more disadvantaged segments of the population with little or no access to financial services. Poor, small-scale users of resources, who are clients of rural and urban MFIs, constitute the target group. The project will also contribute significantly to improving the situation of women, since the majority of MFI clients come from the informal sector, in which women predominate.

Innovative Features:

- IFAD has played a key facilitator role in this project by bringing together government agencies, donors, MFI networks and NGOs in an effort to facilitate the development of the entire rural microfinance system. The project will help coordinate the activities of all major stakeholders and will intervene in particular areas to extend the financial services of sustainable microfinance institutions to rural women and the poor.

- The project focuses on expanding and strengthening MFIs and on broadening the range and coverage of financial services. Project implementation has been conceptualized in a decentralized manner, with beneficiary MFIs and networks taking responsibility for their own delivery and recovery systems as well as monitoring and control mechanisms.

- The strength of the project will be direct implementation of project activities by the agencies, supported by technical assistance and other resources provided under the project.

Loan Amount:

SDR 8.1 million (approximately USD 11.1 million) on highly concessional terms.

Total Project Costs:

Estimated at USD 13.5 million, of which USD 2.0 million will be provided by the Government and USD 478 000 by the beneficiaries.

Cooperating Institution:

UNOPS.

Project ID: 1080
Executive Board Document: EB-98-64-R-16-Rev-1

National Agricultural Research and Extension Programmes Support Project

This four-year World Bank-initiated project is a follow-up to a pilot phase supported by the World Bank. It aims to increase productivity of smallholder agricultural producers, with particular emphasis on resource-poor and women farmers, through the generation and transfer of economically and ecologically sustainable technologies. The objective will be achieved by:

(i) strengthening the participatory approach under the Government's agricultural research and extension strategy;

(ii) developing a farmer-demand- driven agricultural research approach;

(iii) improving the effectiveness and efficiency of agricultural research by introducing competition for research funds;

(iv) rehabilitating and refunding the national institute for agricultural research; and

(v) promoting the formation of farmers' associations and their linkages with the private sector with a view to diversifying demand and organizing their market in order to supply industries.

The project will contribute to building strong institutions through intensive training of staff, continuous participatory diagnostic work with farmers by extension and research staff, intensive exchange of information, and use of mass communication. Since the project supports a national government strategy, the project area is the entire agricultural area of the country. At the time of the last agricultural survey (1991), there were about 1.1 million agricultural households in Cameroon, of which 97% were engaged in crop production, 72% kept livestock in addition to growing crops, and 3% were pure pastoralists. Up to 30% of the farmers in all ten provinces of Cameroon will be targeted as direct beneficiaries of the project. Women farmers, who represent more than half the farming population and over 80% of foodcrop producers, will be targeted by special efforts to identify technology relevant to their needs during on-farm diagnosis and to increase the representation of women in contact groups meeting with front-line staff. The poorest rural populations will be targeted by ensuring that extension services are available in the remotest areas of the country.

Innovative Features:

Project activities are related to the development of commodity systems (or filires) for products such as maize and cassava, and to encouraging partnership arrangements between beneficiaries and other stakeholders in the public and private sectors. Linkages between farmers/farmer groups and suppliers of inputs and equipment are expected to be improved. The World Bank-financed pilot phase successfully transformed a classical top-down, training-and-visit programme into a demand-driven operation, introducing participatory diagnoses and a "farmers-first, bottom-up" approach to programme planni ng and priority setting. Participatory assessment of problems will give particular attention to socio-economic strata and gender; and contact groups will be separated by socio-economic characteristics or gender in order to deal with problems not faced by other farmers.

Loan amount:

SDR 7.9 million (approximately USD 10.5 million) on highly concessional terms.

Total project costs:

Estimated at USD 46.1 million, of which USD 15.1 million will be provided by the International Development Association (IDA), USD 10.3 million by the African Development Fund (AfDF) and USD 10.1 million by the Government.

Cooperating institution:

IDA.