The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development of Nepal and the Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE), in close collaboration with IFAD’s Asia and the Pacific Division, co-organized a national workshop for the Country Strategy and Programme Evaluation (CSPE) conducted by IOE in the course of 2019, as a final step in the evaluation process.

The main objectives of the national workshop were to:

• Discuss the main findings, conclusions and recommendations from the CSPE;
• Provide inputs for the preparation of the evaluation’s Agreement at Completion Point (ACP); and
• Discuss the opportunities and challenges of the future partnership between IFAD and the Government of Nepal, taking into account the country context as well as IFAD’s corporate context.

The national workshop took place on 19 December 2019 in Kathmandu, Nepal, and was attended by over 30 participants. Dr. Yubak Dhoj GC, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, and Mr Shreekrishna Nepal, Joint Secretary, International Economic Cooperation Coordination Division, Ministry of Finance, gave keynote remarks. Among the other participants were representatives of the Nepali Government, IFAD Senior Management and project management staff of IFAD-funded projects and programmes covered by the CSPE, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and international development organizations.

Mr Oscar Garcia, Director, IOE, and Mr Donal Brown, Associate Vice-President, Programme Management Department, opened the workshop with introductory speeches. Mr Fabrizio Felloni, Deputy Director, IOE, presented the main findings and recommendations of the Nepal CSPE. Mr Nigel Brett, Director, Asia and the Pacific Division, and Mr Tarek Kotb, IFAD Country Director for Nepal, shared the key directions for the new country strategy. The workshop was also an opportunity to discuss the main rural development needs and constraints faced by local governments, especially in light of the issues that may arise due to the country’s new federal system.

Prior to the workshop, an IFAD delegation undertook a field visit to the former High value agricultural project in hill and mountain areas and the current Agriculture Sector Development Programme, in the Karnali Province, Surkhet District. This provided an opportunity for the delegation to interact with project stakeholders as well as with representatives from provincial and municipal governments, and to see project activities on the ground.