Poverty eradication has been IFAD’s core mandate since its inception in 1978. In 1996, the Fund began to streamline its operations in order to focus even more clearly and effectively on two related global targets that emerged:

• from the Copenhagen United Nations Summit for Social Development: halving the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by the year 2015; and
• from the World Food Summit: a 50% reduction in the number of undernourished people by 2015.

The estimated number of undernourished people or absolute poor in the world at the time of the above-mentioned summits ranged from 800 million to 1.3 billion. The Fund’s proposed medium-term programme is even more explicit about the impact that its operations will make in contributing to such objectives.

In December 1999, DAC released a working paper, On Common Ground: Converging Views on Development and Development Co-operation at the Turn of the Century which outlined a number of common principles that form building blocks for partnership among development actors. Those principles are considered as common to all partnership efforts, whether initiated by developed or developing countries. The DAC paper shares the view that each developing country and its people are ultimately responsible for their own development. Experience shows that success has been achieved only where the people and the institutions of developing countries themselves have made sustained efforts. It therefore follows that the developing country is the essential agent for organising co-operation efforts.

In order to achieve effective sustainable development, paper suggests that it is necessary to address economic and financial issues on the one hand, with structural, social and human issues, on the other, in a balanced way, thereby integrating the following key elements:

• a sound policy framework encouraging stable, growing economies with full scope for a vigorous private sector and an adequate fiscal base;
• investment in pro-poor approaches and social development, especially education, primary healthcare and population activities;
• enhanced participation of all people, and notably women, in economic and political life, and the reduction of social inequalities;
• good governance and public management, democratic accountability, the protection of human rights and the rule of law;
• building institutions, including social safety nets, that cushion the negative effects of and enhance developing countries’ resilience vis-à-vis external shocks and crises while helping them to take advantage of the opportunities offered by globalization;
• sustainable environmental practices;
• addressing root causes of potential conflict, limiting military expenditure, and targeting reconstruction and peace-building efforts towards longer-term reconciliation and development.

Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development/Development Assistance Committee (OECD/DAC)

IFAD has established close working relationships with various international development institutions and donor agencies. One such body is DAC of OECD. IFAD was invited to participate at the Development Partnership Forum, which was held in Paris in December 1999 and aimed at promoting discussions among partner-country representatives and international development agencies of experiences in aid coordination processes (consultative group and round-table mechanisms and related in-country coordination processes).

The Paris forum considered the implications of these experiences for future directions in aid-coordination processes and for practices in support of development goals and partnerships in the 21^st century. It also suggested strategies and approaches to strengthen country leadership and ownership of the process for taking action. Discussions benefited from the conclusions and recommendations of evaluations carried out by the World Bank and UNDP, and also took into account the follow-up to the Review of the Aid System in Mali and newly established coordination concepts such as the previously discussed United Nations Development Assistance/CCA and Comprehensive Development Framework.

The senior-level meeting of the DAC forum addressed the future poverty-reduction strategy of OECD countries. Participants also discussed the means by which a broader coalition can be forged to tackle this important agenda. The forum was informed about IFAD’s Rural Poverty Report 2001, and IFAD is expected to be actively involved in future meetings of the DAC poverty-reduction subcommittee.

---

Organization of African Unity (OAU)

IFAD enjoys a partnership with OAU, and there are ongoing consultations between the two institutions including those between IFAD and OAU offices in New York and Geneva. The key goals of these consultations are to improve living conditions for the people of Africa and to promote international cooperation. Many of the OAU member countries are recipients of IFADs development assistance. IFAD also participates in African conferences and meetings in which questions of mutual interest are discussed. The Fund was represented at the July 1999 OAU Summit of Heads of States, which was held in Algiers.

---

Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and Affiliated Institutions

Since its inception, IFAD has continued to accord due consideration to the promotion of cooperation with OIC member countries, which are both important contributors to IFAD resources and recipients of IFAD assistance.

A cooperation agreement was signed between the two institutions on 21 March 1983. As both parties aim at promoting programmes related to agricultural development, cooperation between OIC and IFAD involves:

• exchange of information and documents on questions of common interest;
• periodic consultations to promote joint cooperation programmes; and,
• reciprocal representation in conferences or meetings where questions of mutual interest are to be discussed.

As of May 2000, IFAD had financed 226 projects in 36 OIC member countries for total project costs of over USD 10.0 billion. IFAD’s own contribution to these projects was in excess of USD 3.0 billion, which represents about 40 percent of all IFAD loans. External donors contributed USD 3.2 billion and recipient governments USD 4.0 billion. Over 20 projects are in the pipeline for OIC members.

Out of the OIC 55 members 50 are also Members of IFAD. The Islamic Member States play a key role in framing the Fund’s policies and priorities. They have contributed a total of USD 828.1 million through the last three replenishments, or about 27 percent of the total resource flow, and a pledge of USD 52.5 million to the Fourth Replenishment, 13 percent of total pledges.

IFAD was represented at the General Meeting of the United Nations and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference in July 1998. The meeting focused, among other issues, on enhancing the co-operation mechanism between the UN system and the OIC and its institutions. IFAD submitted a paper on IFAD/OIC cooperation which was fully incorporated in the Secretary General’s report to the 53rd Session of the UN General Assembly.

---

Cooperation with Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizaton (ISESCO)

In July 1995, IFAD and the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) signed a cooperation agreement in order to help promote agricultural and rural development objectives in Islamic countries that are members of both institutions. The Cooperation Agreement involves:

• exchange of information on issues of common interest;
• periodic consultations to establish joint cooperation programmes and to review questions of mutual concern; and,
• reciprocal representation to the parties’ governing bodies

Within the framework of this agreement a number of activities have been undertaken by the two institutions, including the organisation of a seminar on irrigation management and legislation. The event was organised at Bamako, Mali, in May 1997, with IFAD providing a USD 27,000 grant as co-sponsor. The seminar was attended by experts from ten countries in the sub-Saharan region, plus representatives of IsDB.

---

Co-operation with Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRTCIC)

IFAD has maintained periodic contacts with the Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries (SESRTCIC), a subsidiary organ of OIC, and regular high level meetings have taken place both in Rome and Ankara between the parties’ representatives. IFAD organised a regional workshop jointly with SESRTCIC to identify and strengthen the capacities of focal points for technical cooperation in agricultural and rural development in the African OIC member countries. The workshop, held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, in November 1995, was addressed by the President of IFAD as well as by the Minister for Agriculture of Burkina Faso.

---

League of Arab States (LAS) and Affiliated Institutions

IFAD has continually sought to contribute to the goals of cooperation between LAS and the UN. These joint goals include maintaining peace and security and promoting social and economic development with the Arab states. IFAD played a significant role in supporting and embracing many regional and interregional initiatives in the region and has established excellent working relations with several regional and specialized agencies there. The Fund continues to enjoy support from Arab countries, all of whom have been important contributors to the Fund’s initial resources and replenishments. Of these, the largest contributors have been the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

In addition to designing and financing projects, IFAD provides technical assistance grants (TAGs) with the main but not exclusive goal of supporting adaptive research in areas of special relevance to smallholders, the transfer of appropriate technologies and networking.

Grants worth USD 8.8 million have been supported by IFAD, mainly through and in cooperation with the two leading institutions: the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD), and the Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Drylands (ACSAD).

Research and technical backstopping grants include:

• a grant of USD 1.0 million for the Date Palm Research and Development Network Programme, through ACSAD;
• a grant of USD 1.5 million for the Camel Applied Research and Development Network Programme through ACSAD;
• a USD 1 million grant for the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program for the Control of the Date Palm Red Weevil, Stem Borer and Grubs in the Near East and South Asia through AOAD and the International Center for Insect Physiology and Ecology;
• a grant of USD 400,000 to support the Programme on Technical Information Services for Fisheries Development in the Arab Region, headquartered in Bahrain.

Additional technical assistance grants, directly benefiting member countries of OIC have been provided to the Programme for Strengthening Agricultural Research and Human Resource Development in the Arabian Peninsula (USD 500,000), for the purpose of institution-building in the region; and to the Programme for the Establishment of a Regional Animal Disease Surveillance and Control (RADISCON) Network in North Africa, the Middle East, and the Arab Peninsula (USD 1.25 million), which deals with three endemic animal diseases that have major economic implications – foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, and bruceilosis, the latter also afflicting humans. The leading role of IFAD in the eradication of the new world screw-worm from North Africa in 1992 was instrumental in making the programme an outstanding success.

IFAD was represented at the General Meeting of the United Nations and the League of Arab States (LAS) held in July 2001 in Vienna. The meeting focused, inter alia, on enhancing the mechanisms of cooperation between the UN system and the League of Arab States and its institutions. IFAD submitted a paper on IFAD/LAS cooperation that was incorporated into the Secretary-General's Report to the Fifty-Sixth Session of the UN General Assembly.

---

Education (Jomtien, 1990); Children (New York, 1990); Nutrition (Rome, 1992); Environment (Rio de Janeiro, 1992); Human Rights (Vienna, 1993); Population (Cairo, 1994); Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995); Women (Beijing, 1995), Human Settlements (Istanbul, 1996); and Food Security (Rome, 1996).