المعرفة

IFAD’s intention is to help poor rural households by creating sustainable jobs, reducing poverty and guaranteeing food security. To meet this goal IFAD places emphasis on intensifying agricultural output and supporting smallholders within irrigation schemes, as well as helping develop small rural businesses. In particular, IFAD works to improve linkages to financial services and markets, to support providers of financial and marketing services and to strengthen the capacity of poor rural communities and their institutions.

The Government of Swaziland, key stakeholders and IFAD are jointly designing a new investment focusing on rural finance and enterprise development.

Le FIDA prend appui sur les communautés et leurs organisations pour développer des activités génératrices d’emploi, agricole ou non, et de revenus. Les cultures vivrières, la production laitière et la recherche de débouchés commerciaux pour ces produits dans les quatre îles de l’archipel feront l’objet d’une attention particulière, ainsi que la conservation et la transformation locale des produits. 

En ce qui concerne les cultures de rente, le FIDA financera sous forme de don la mise en relation des producteurs avec les marchés équitables.

IFAD’s work in the region is guided by the organization’s Strategic Framework, its four thematic priorities for the region and by individual country strategic opportunities papers (COSOPs), reflecting governments’ own priorities in rural development and prepared in consultation with governments, donors and other partners. 

The thematic priorities encompass: 

(i) a new focus on managing land and water resources for poverty reduction, including the key role of empowerment of community-based resource management groups; 

(ii) achieving a breakthrough in rural microfinance by building partnerships with leading organizations in this area and collaborating with commercial banks and major regional financial institutions;

(iii) tackling rural unemployment by using the results of ongoing action research to identify effective, targeted interventions and; (iv) linking smallholder farmers and the rural poor with international markets by assisting NENA countries in developing export markets for non-traditional products and by working with existing private sector or NGO initiatives in this area.

IFAD’s experience in the region has shown that, with the right support, local people can sustainably manage the natural resources on which their livelihoods depend.

The First Mile Project is about how small farmers, traders, processors and others from poor
rural areas learn to build market chains linking producers to consumers. Good communication
is vital. The project encourages people in isolated rural communities to use mobile phones,
e-mail and the Internet to share their local experiences and good practices, learning from one
another. While communication technology is important, real success depends on building trust
and collaboration along the market chain. Ultimately farmers and others involved develop
relevant local knowledge and experience and share it – even with people in distant
communities – to come up with new ideas.

Good communication is vital to small farmers who
need better access to markets and to reliable information about
prices, product quality and market conditions. Can new
information and communication technologies (ICTs), especially
the Internet, help? The First Mile is a two-year pilot project
supported by the Government of Switzerland. It is
implemented in collaboration with the Agricultural Marketing
Systems Development Programme of the Government of the
United Republic of Tanzania. Technical assistance is being
provided by the International Support Group.