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IFAD Remittance Innovation Toolkit

June 2024

This toolkit provides guidance on improving access to secure and swift remittance services through enhanced identity verification and customer due diligence (CDD) practices.

Philippines: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

December 2023

Various sources estimate the population of indigenous peoples in the Philippines at 12-15% of the current national population of 108 million, or a total of about 16-17 million.

Indonesia: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

December 2023

Indonesia is comprised of 13.000 islands with a total area of 7 million km2. It has a total population of 273 million in more than 1.000 various ethnic and sub-ethnic groups with their own cultures and traditions.

Guidelines for Inclusive Agricultural Value Chains Development in Africa

December 2023

These guidelines assess previous Agricultural Value Chains (AVC) development efforts across Africa, propose policies and strategies for developing AVC pathways, and identify the policy and institutional factors needed for successful implementation.

Cambodia: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

December 2023

Indigenous Peoples of Cambodia represent 24 different groups, who reside mainly in the upland forests, plains, and mountains of the northern and north-eastern provinces.

Viet Nam: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

November 2023

This report aims to provide the most recent information on the issue of Ethnic Minorities in Viet Nam in terms of the general situation, poverty reduction, impact of COVID-19, Government policies and programs as well as such as NGOs, ODA and IFAD in Viet Nam.

How to do Note: Designing for and monitoring resilience for vulnerable rural households

November 2022

The RDMT aims at providing a framework for building the resilience of rural households and a step-by-step guide to designing for and monitoring the performance of resilience-building interventions during project implementation.

Myanmar: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

October 2022

Myanmar is one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse countries in the Asian region, and ethnicity is a complex, contested, and politically sensitive issue in the country where ethnic groups have long believed that successive governments of Myanmar manipulate ethnic groups for political purposes.

Bangladesh: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

September 2022

There are different and conflicting opinions, and until very recently, acute shortage of reliable data and statistics, regarding the population size of the different Indigenous Peoples in Bangladesh

Nepal: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

September 2022

Indigenous peoples of Nepal have been living in Nepal since time immemorial.

IFAD Strategy and Knowledge Department Learning Note #2

September 2022

This Learning Note showcases the methodology used for assessing the impacts of IFAD's investments on the livelihoods and lives of its project participants.

Sustainable and resilient Indigenous Peoples’ Food Systems for improved nutrition

May 2022

This toolbox provides guidelines on how to design and assess food biodiversity and dietary diversity projects with local communities, with the aim of improving the diets and nutrition of Indigenous Peoples.

Lao People’s Democratic Republic: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

March 2022

Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) is one of the countries with the largest number of different ethnic groups in the world. The history of these ethnic groups extends beyond human memory.

India: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

March 2022

Internationally, the ‘Scheduled Tribes’ (STs) of India are generally referred to as ‘Indigenous Peoples (IPs)’. However, the Government of India emphatically rejects equating Scheduled Tribes (STs) with IPs even while abiding by the operational directives of bilateral and multilateral agencies with regard to IPs while operationalising projects with their financial aid.

How to do note: Integrating the Gender Action Learning System (GALS) in IFAD operations

March 2022

This note provides practical guidance on how to roll out the Gender Action Learning System (GALS) for IFAD-funded projects.

Understanding market demand: How to use focus group discussions in the development of inclusive insurance

February 2022

Understanding market demand is a critical step in the process of developing solutions to meet the risk management needs of rural poor people, particularly with regard to insurance.

Agricultural and climate risk insurance for smallholder value chains: Identifying common challenges and solutions

November 2021

This brief identifies and describes the principal challenges, and outlines possible solutions that development programmes can support.

How to do note: Seeking, free, prior and informed consent in IFAD investment projects

October 2021

This note offers practical guidance for IFAD staff, consultants and in-country partners for seeking FPIC in the design and implementation of IFAD-funded projects and programmes, in compliance with IFAD policies and procedures.

Making agricultural and climate risk insurance gender inclusive: How to improve access to insurance for rural women

October 2021

IFAD’s technical assistance programme INSURED (Insurance for rural resilience and economic development) has been building knowledge about how to strengthen women producers’ access to climate risk insurance. 

Knowledge Management Resource Centre

August 2021

A resource for IFAD staff and consultants, project staff and partners who want to learn more about KM.

IFAD communications toolkit

August 2021

Communications is key to help poor rural people build better lives. And this toolkit has been created to help us all get the job done.

Rapid prototyping for inclusive insurance: Testing customer challenges and gaining early insights on feasibility

June 2021

Prototyping aims to gather direct feedback on the solution and the wider insurance scheme, incorporate changes before pilot testing, and make any additional adjustments before the official roll-out.

Model terms of reference: Technical assistance in the development and implementation of agricultural insurance

June 2021

The ToRs include an outline of the required steps and processes, a timeline and a list of deliverables, together with information on the profile of the service provider or team of experts.

Model terms of reference for the selection of a service provider for: Agricultural and climate risk insurance feasibility studies

June 2021

These are model terms of reference (ToRs) for use by project designers and implementers in development organizations and governments. The objective of the ToRs is to support the contracting a specialized service provider to carry out one or more agricultural and climate risk insurance feasibility studies within the context of an IFAD-financed project or similar initiative.

Core Outcome Indicators measurement guidelines (COI) – online training

April 2021

This online training is a walk through the guidelines that lay out the mandatory methodology developed by IFAD for collecting timely and reliable data on CIs at the outcome-level at project baseline, midterm and completion stages.

How to do note: Access to land for rural youth employment and entrepreneurship

April 2021

This How-to-do Note on access to land for rural youth employment and entrepreneurship complements the Toolkit on land tenure in IFAD-financed operations that highlights the importance of strengthening tenure security for rural development.

How to do note: Crop selection for diet quality and resilience

March 2021

This How to Do Note is part of a series of five Notes that accompany the NUS Operational Framework.

How to do note: Market needs and emerging opportunities assessment in NUS value chains

March 2021

This How to Do Note is part of a series of five Notes that accompany the NUS Operational Framework.

How to do note: Promote neglected and underutilized species for domestic markets

March 2021

This How to Do Note is part of a series of five Notes that accompany the NUS Operational Framework.

How to do note: Interventions in support of NUS export markets

March 2021

This How to Do Note is part of a series of five Notes that accompany the NUS Operational Framework.

How to do note: Mainstreaming NUS in national policy for nutrition outcomes

March 2021

This How to Do Note is part of a series of five Notes that accompany the NUS Operational Framework.

Operational guidelines on IFAD’s engagement in pro-poor value chain development

January 2021

These guidelines address recommendations on ensuring that IFAD’s pro-poor value chain development projects reach out to women and the very poor, apply a programmatic approach when needed, promote an inclusive value chain governance, work with the appropriate expertise and partners, and build capacity for implementation.

Adaptation Framework Tool

January 2021

The Adaptation Framework is a repository of adaptation actions for small-scale agriculture, including livestock, forestry, and fisheries. It provides an approach for incorporating adaptation practices into project design.

Participatory Guarantee System case study report

October 2020

In 2017, after several years of partnership between IFAD and Slow Food on themes related to food security, indigenous peoples and youth, IFAD approved a large grant project, called “Empowering Indigenous Youth and their Communities to Defend and Promote their Food Heritage,” to be implemented by Slow Food over three years.

How to prevent land use conflicts in pastoral areas

July 2020
This How-to-do Note focuses on how conflicts over land and natural resources in pastoral areas can be prevented or transformed into positive outcomes. 

How to do note: Gender and pastoralism

July 2020
This HTDN complements the IFAD Toolkit along with the 2018 HTDN on Pastoralism, which highlights the importance of gender in pastoral production systems.

PARM Final Report (2014-2019)

December 2019
Read this final programme report for more information on the PARM processes and achievements in each country.

How to do note: Rapid livestock market assessment - A guide for practitioners

December 2019
The RLMA guide seeks to facilitate livestock market assessments in order to support those operating in the livestock sector, such as multilateral financial institutions, international development organizations, governments, research organizations, NGOs, community-based organizations, service providers and input suppliers.

A manual in mobilizing migrant resources towards agricultural development in the Philippines

November 2019
This manual discusses the strategy, lessons learned and recommendations of Atikha in scaling up initiatives in mobilizing migrant resources towards agriculture development in the country. 

How to do note: Mainstreaming nutrition into COSOPs and investment projects

October 2019

This How-to-do Note is a practical step by step operational guidance on mainstreaming nutrition in IFAD-supported country strategies and investment projects for use by IFAD staff, consultants and partners.

Supporting nutrition-sensitive agriculture through neglected and underutilized species: Operational framework

August 2019

IFAD’s support for the better use of agrobiodiversity with specific reference to neglected and underutilized species (NUS) and a greater recognition of the traditional knowledge of Indigenous Peoples are important for fighting food and nutrition insecurity

PARM Annual Progress Report 2018

July 2019
Since 2013, PARM has collaborated with partners across eight sub-Saharan African countries in a joint process to make agricultural risk management (ARM) an integral part of policy planning. The process led to the implementation of a number of activities at the country, regional and global level including risk assessments, feasibility studies, capacity development training, knowledge sharing and policy dialogue. This report presents these outcomes and achievements from these activities for the year 2018 looking back to the commencement of the process.

Guidelines for Impact Evaluation of Land Tenure and Governance Interventions

April 2019
The overall objective of the Guidelines for Impact Evaluation of Land Tenure and Governance Interventions is to inform and strengthen the design and implementation of future land tenure and governance interventions to best support lasting tenure security and achieve related impacts on poverty, food security, gender equality, environmental sustainability and security. 

Climate Adaptation in Rural Development (CARD) Assessment Tool

March 2019

The Climate Adaptation in Rural Development – Assessment Tool (CARD) is a platform to explore the effects of climate change on the yield of major crops. 

Guidebook for mobilizing inclusive remittances for rural investment

February 2019
This Guidebook compiles the lessons learned from the implementation of the IFAD-funded Remittances and Diaspora Investment for Rural Development (2014-2018).

Nutrition-sensitive value chains: A guide for project design – Volume II

November 2018
This guide provides validated guidance for design of nutrition-sensitive value chain (NSVC) projects for smallholder farmers. The guide comprises two volumes.

Nutrition-sensitive value chains: A guide for project design – Volume I

October 2018

The Nutrition-sensitive value chains: A guide for project design has been produced to fill a key knowledge gap in the emerging field of value chains for nutrition by providing guidance on how to design nutrition-sensitive value chain (NSVC) projects, with a particular focus on smallholder producers.

Toolkit: Engaging with pastoralists – a holistic development approach

June 2018
Pastoralism is a way of life based on territorial mobility, adopted in response to the challenges faced by human communities living in harsh or difficult environments.

How to do note: Engaging with pastoralists – a holistic development approach

June 2018
This How To Do Note first outlines the problems developers need to be aware of in pastoral development.

Lessons learned: Engaging with pastoralists – a holistic development approach

June 2018
These lessons learned have been developed for planners and policymakers: (a) to help them avoid investment strategies and policies that impact negatively on pastoralists; and (b) to enable them to ensure that specific policies and plans for pastoral development are more closely tailored to the needs of pastoralists.

How To Do Note: Access to finance for renewable energy technologies

May 2018
In the context of population growth, increasing inequality and natural resource depletion, universal access to energy – specifically to renewable energy (RE) – now has high importance on political agendas. 

Lessons learned: Access to finance for renewable energy technologies

May 2018
Access to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy is often associated with economic development and considered vital to alleviating extreme poverty (World Bank, 2018). Yet access to clean sources of energy is still a challenge for many smallholder farmers, their families and rural entrepreneurs.

Toolkit: Access to finance for renewable energy technologies

May 2018
The toolkit focuses on end-user finance for renewable energy technologies for rural households, smallholder farmers, and rural micro, small and medium enterprises.

Women-led business and value chain development; a case study in Tajikistan

April 2018

Investments in smallholder goat development and related value chains are effective means to reduce poverty and increase the incomes of men and women from resource-poor households. They are also effective channels to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in remote mountainous
areas.
 

Rural women's leadership programme in grass-roots organizations: a case study in Nepal

April 2018
IFAD, with support from the Government of Norway, developed the Rural Women’s Leadership Programme (RWLP) to strengthen the role and voice of women leaders in rural organizations, including in policy dialogue. 

Indigenous Peoples Glossary (English, French, Spanish)

April 2018
This publication presents IFAD’s first glossary of terms related to indigenous peoples. It has been developed jointly by specialized staff in the Office of the
Secretary (Language Services) and the Indigenous Peoples Desk in the Policy and Technical Advisory Division. The purpose of the glossary is to ensure
consistency and accuracy of terminology in English, French and Spanish, and standardize the terminology used in relation to indigenous peoples in official
documentation and publications, and in all aspects of meeting preparations. It is intended for use by IFAD staff, indigenous peoples' organizations and other
interested parties. Terms and definitions are accompanied by details of the source document and its date of publication.

Integrated promotion of gender equality and women's empowerment: economic empowerment, decision-making and workloads

April 2018
The causes of gender discrimination pervade different aspects of our lives – social, economic, political, environmental – affecting gender roles and relations in domestic, productive and public domains and from the local to the international level. Time-bound development projects need to
address the cross-cutting and multifaceted nature of gender inequality through multiple entry points.

Household methodologies

April 2018
Interventions in the agricultural sector to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) mainly focus on strengthening women’s economic opportunities and decision-making capacities as farmers or in groups. However, the same women often remain disempowered within the household.

Toolkit: Supporting smallholder seed systems

March 2018
Agriculture begins with seed. Without seed, there can be no crops and no food production. When harvests fail or seed stocks are lost, seed insecurity ensues, which can reduce food security and livelihoods. 

How to do: Supporting smallholder seed systems

March 2018
This How To Do Note (HTDN) in this toolkit on Supporting Smallholder Seed Systems tackles the complexities of seed systems, setting out a process to support national agricultural policy decision makers, national and international development agencies and IFAD Country Programme Managers (CPMs) in the design and supervision of seed-related projects. The other publications in this toolkit are the Teaser and Lessons Learned.

Lessons learned: Supporting smallholder seed systems

March 2018
This publication, Lessons Learned, presents some key lessons from the experiences of IFAD and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and other seed-related development projects. These lessons will help the reader of the How To Do Note (HTDN) to have a greater understanding and appreciation of the framework for analysing national seed systems and how to use the HTDN to inform the design and implementation of more effective seed projects.

How to do note: Design of gender transformative smallholder agriculture adaptation programmes

January 2018
This How to Do Note (HTDN) is intended to provide guidance on how to design smallholder agriculture adaptation programmes that consider the differential impacts of climate change on women, men and youth smallholder farmers. This includes recognizing that programme interventions – from design to staffing to capacity development of beneficiaries and local organizations – need to consider how gender will affect sustainability and impact. The experiences, social positions and differing access to resources of marginalized populations are fundamental considerations in the design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation of gender transformative smallholder agriculture adaptation programmes.

Belize: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples Issues

December 2017

To facilitate policy implementation at the country level, IFAD‟s Policy on Engagement with Indigenous Peoples (2009) recommended that Country Technical Notes be prepared to provide country-specific information on indigenous peoples, as well as to contribute to the development of country programme strategies and project design.

Remote sensing for index insurance - Findings and lessons learned for smallholder agriculture

October 2017
Index insurance has a role to play in agricultural development and risk management, yet it faces operational and technical challenges to reach scale and sustainability. Data are a key challenge and were the focus of the project “Improving Agricultural Risk Management in Sub-Saharan Africa: Remote Sensing for Index Insurance”. Limited availability, accessibility, quantity and poor quality of data on the ground are some of the primary technical constraints preventing scale-up and sustainability of index insurance. Without sufficient quality data, either it is impossible to design products for some areas and countries, or products that are designed can become unreliable, not compensating when they should. These inconsistencies intensify vulnerability, lead to distrust of insurance, and ultimately have an impact on demand. This publication details the project, which investigated overcoming issues with ground data by using remote sensing data for index insurance. It describes the different remote sensing options and opportunities available for index insurance, but it also recommends further investment in research and development, supplementary ground data and capacity-building going forward. 

How to do note: Poverty targeting, gender equality and empowerment during project design

August 2017
This How To Do Note (HTDN) provides guidance in addressing targeting, gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the IFAD project design cycle.

Toolkit: Poverty targeting, gender equality and empowerment

June 2017
This toolkit explains how to identify and address the diverse needs, constraints and opportunities of poor rural people through IFAD-supported projects and policy engagement.

IFAD’s approach to policy engagement

April 2017
Typically, IFAD’s approach to policy engagement is one of facilitating, supporting and informing nationally-owned policy processes, so as to enable governments and other national stakeholders to determine themselves the policy change required. 

Module 1: How and when to do mapping and profiling of farmers’ organizations

December 2016
Why is FO mapping and profiling essential? 

Module 3: Support to farmers’ organizations business models

December 2016
A business model is a means by which a farmers’ organization (FO) structures its resources, services and collaboration with members, stakeholders (traders, suppliers, public and private sector), clients and partners to create and capture value. 

How To Do Note: Engaging with farmers’ organizations for more effective smallholder development

December 2016
​Smallholder farmers use different strategies to improve their market presence and to capture more value added in the agricultural sector. These strategies include the creation of cooperatives and other farmers’ organizations (FOs).

Lesson learned: Designing and implementing conservation agriculture of IFAD investments in sub-Saharan Africa

December 2016
This “Lessons Learned” document of the conservation agriculture (CA) in sub-Saharan Africa toolkit reviews experiences over the last two decades.

Toolkit: Designing and implementing conservation agriculture of IFAD investments in sub-Saharan Africa

December 2016
Conservation agriculture (CA) in sub-Saharan Africa has multiple, but often very specific, niches for investment that need to be understood to support its inclusion and implementation in projects.

How to do note: Designing and implementing conservation agriculture of IFAD investments in sub-Saharan Africa

December 2016
This “How To Do” note offers guidance on the design, implementation and scaling up of a CA programme or project in sub-Saharan Africa. It begins with a summary of the key issues and associated questions  and follows this with lessons gained from experience.

Toolkit: Engaging with farmers’ organizations for more effective smallholder development

December 2016
​Smallholder farmers use different strategies to improve their market presence and to capture more value added in the agricultural sector. These strategies include the creation of cooperatives and other farmers’ organizations (FOs).

Module 2: How to support farmers’ organizations in designing their business plans

December 2016
The business plan of an FO is a document providing information on how the FO intends to organize and implement activities so that it is profitable and can succeed. It is an essential tool for the planning, managing and running of a business. It clarifies the operational and financial objectives of a business and contains the detailed plans and budgets showing how the objectives are to be achieved. It may also contain background information about the organization that is attempting to reach those goals.

Scaling up note: Gabon

November 2016
Rural development in Gabon depends largely on growth in the agro-sylvo-pastoral subsector, but the development of the country’s agricultural potential remains incipient. The various strategies adopted by the Government since independence have not succeeded in revitalizing the sector. Currently the agriculture sector employs about 40 per cent of the country’s rural population, although it contributes just 5 per cent of GDP and represents just 0.7 per cent of the government budget. Agricultural land occupies 20 per cent (5.2 million hectares) of the country’s territory, contrasting with the small share of sector activity taking place on less than 10 per cent of arable land. The rural population, which accounted for 20 per cent of the Gabonese people in 2000, is falling steadily as the urban population grows, and represented just 13 per cent of the population in 2013.

How to do Strengthening community-based commodity organizations

October 2016
​With populations growing, fast emerging middle classes are demanding quality produce, luxury goods (tobacco, alcohol) and animal proteins, and there is pressure on domestic agricultural production to meet these needs. 

How to do note - Formalising community-based microfinance institutions

September 2016
The purpose of this publication is to provide IFAD CPMs, MFIs, and all technical and financial partners with a methodological tool that will facilitate efficient implementation of the institutional transformation or regrouping processes of microfinance institutions, especially those that serve rural populations – processes that a priori are highly complex. 

Lessons learned - Formalising community-based microfinance institutions

September 2016
Despite the progress made in the microfinance sector, its expansion has been hindered in large measure by institutional and financial impediments. This situation has led some institutions to embark on an institutionalization, institutional transformation, or regrouping process to overcome the obstacles in their path.

Toolkit: Formalising community-based microfinance institutions

September 2016
Microfinance institutions (MFI) take various forms these days, among them: projects, credit union or village banking networks, savings and credit cooperatives and mutual institutions, associations, capital companies, etc.

Gender in climate smart agriculture, Module 18 for the Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook

July 2016
This module provides guidance and a comprehensive menu of practical tools for integrating gender in the planning, design, implementation, and evaluation of projects and investments in climate-smart agriculture (CSA). The module emphasizes the importance and ultimate goal of integrating gender in CSA practices, which is to reduce gender inequalities and ensure that men and women can equally benefit from any intervention in the agricultural sector to reduce risks linked to climate change. Climate change has an impact on food and nutrition security and agriculture, and the agriculture sector is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases. It is crucial to recognize that climate change affects men and women differently. The initial assumption is that social differences, particularly gender inequality, must be taken into account to strengthen the effectiveness and sustainability of CSA interventions. Women are key players in the agricultural sector, yet compared to men, they own fewer assets and have access to less land, fewer inputs, and fewer financial and extension services.

Compendium of rural women’s technologies and innovations

April 2016
It’s a well-worn cliché that women’s work is never done. But in many parts of the world, it’s still undeniably true.

Toolkit: Reducing rural women’s domestic workload through labour-saving technologies and practices

April 2016
Labour-saving technologies and practices promote inclusive development by reducing the domestic workload and freeing up time to perform productive tasks, to participate in decision-making processes and development opportunities, and to enjoy more leisure time.

Lessons learned: Reducing women’s domestic workload through water investments

April 2016

There is a recognized need in the water sector for more accurate data on access to water in terms of the distance travelled and the time needed to collect water to meet all household needs, and who or what combination of people are involved in water collection.

How to do note: Reducing rural women’s domestic workload through labour-saving technologies and practices

April 2016

This How To Do Note looks at the opportunities provided by labour-saving technologies and practices for rural women in the domestic sphere. The purpose is to inform IFAD country programme managers, project teams and partners of proven labour-saving methods available to reduce the domestic workload and how they can best be selected and implemented – to help promote equitable workloads between men and women and contribute to poverty eradication.

Lessons learned: Pastoralism land rights and tenure

April 2016
This note describes the land tenure issues faced by pastoralists and how IFAD has dealt with some of these through its programmes and projects.

Toolkit: Digital financial services for smallholder households

March 2016
Recent advances in technology and telecommunications have the potential to make financial services more accessible and affordable for smallholder households in rural areas. With digital platforms such as mobile phones, smallholders can now use financial services without having to visit a bank branch. 

How to do note: Public-private-producer partnerships (4Ps) in Agricultural Value Chains

March 2016

This HTDN provides guidance for project design teams on how to design a 4P component and how to support the implementation of 4Ps within IFAD-funded projects.

It builds on findings and lessons learned from previous IFAD-supported projects, as summarized in the 2013 report, IFAD and Public-Private Partnerships: Selected Project Experiences, and the Institute of Development Studies (IDS)/IFAD publication, Brokering Development: Enabling Factors for Public-Private-Producer Partnerships in Agricultural Value Chains.

This HTDN begins by defining the 4P and related concepts and then analyses the basic elements that need to be considered when designing and establishing a 4P followed by recommendations for the implementation of 4Ps.

How to do note: Digital financial services for smallholder households

March 2016
Advances in digital technology and telecommunications are presenting new financial inclusion opportunities for smallholder farmers in rural areas.1 A growing number of payments, savings, credit and insurance products can be delivered digitally to address the financial needs of smallholder households. Smallholders
can especially benefit from mobile phone platforms, which offer immediate, safe access to government subsidies, cash transfers and remittances. The messaging features of mobile phones can complement digital financial services (DFSs) by offering timely information on weather conditions, farming tips, market
prices and potential buyers, which can help increase farming yields and profitability.

Lessons learned: Digital financial services for smallholder households

March 2016
Recent advances in technology and increasing penetration of telecommunication systems into rural areas have the potential to make financial services more accessible to smallholder households. Mobile telephony and data networks, coupled with agent networks, can enable the use of digital payments and savings and
provide a platform for credit and insurance, without smallholders having to visit a bank branch. Mobile phones can also bridge information asymmetries by offering weather forecasts and real-time market prices, which can improve the ability of farmers to prepare and respond to inclement weather and price fluctuations.

How to monitor progress in value chain projects

January 2016
 This note helps IFAD design and supervision teams to improve the M&Eindicators of VC projects

How to do note: Livestock value chain analysis and project development

January 2016

The step-by-step approach to VC analysis and project design follows the basic IFAD project design cycle.Each step is briefly described and followed by guiding questions for the project design team. The VC approach should be adopted early in the project cycle, such as when developing project concept notes for a country strategic opportunities programme (COSOP).

Scaling up note: Ghana

December 2015
Since the mid-1980s, Ghana’s impressive development has made the country one of the strongest performers in Africa, although economic challenges and a fiscal deficit are currently slowing down the pace of growth. 

Note sur la transposition à plus grande échelle: Nigéria

December 2015
En dépit de l’abondance des ressources agricoles et pétrolières du pays, la pauvreté est omniprésente au Nigéria et elle n’a cessé de gagner du terrain depuis la fin des annés 90. Environ 70% des habitants vivent avec moins de 1,25 USD par jour. La pauvreté est particulièrement grave en milieu rural où jusqu’à 80% de la population vit en dessous du seuil de pauvreté tandis que les services sociaux et l’infrastructure y sont limités. Les femmes et les hommes pauvres des zones rurales sont tributaires de l’agriculture pour leur nourriture et leurs revenus. Environ 90% de la production vivrière nationale sont fournis par les paysans qui cultivent de petites parcelles et dépendent des pluies plutôt que de l’irrigation. 

Scaling up note: Egypt

December 2015
​Egypt has undergone dramatic political upheaval over the last four years, following long-simmering grievances over the lack of economic opportunities and political inclusion that led to a revolutionary uprising in early 2011.

Scaling up note: Ethiopia

December 2015
With a population of 92 million, Ethiopia is the second most populous country in sub-Saharan Africa and one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, with consistent growth averaging more than 10 per cent over the last ten years. Per capita income is, however, markedly lower than the average for developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa as a whole (US$400 compared with US$1,547 per capita per year).1 Much of Ethiopia’s growth is attributable to the agricultural sector, which accounts for about 45 per cent of GDP, almost 90 per cent of exports and 85 per cent of employment. About 90 per cent of the agricultural land under cultivation is devoted to subsistence agriculture. Livestock and livestock products are important in Ethiopia and contribute about 10 per cent of the country’s foreign exchange earnings, with hides and skins constituting about 90 per cent of this.

Scaling up note: Peru

December 2015
Peru is an upper-middle-income country with one of the fastest-growing economies in the region. In the last decade, the country more than halved its poverty rate, which fell from 59 to 24 per cent. Reduction was uneven geographically, however. In the rural areas of the highlands and the rainforest areas, poverty still affects about 53 and 43 per cent of the population1 respectively, and particularly indigenous communities. 

Scaling up note: Sudan

December 2015
The analysis underlying the results-based country strategic opportunities programme for the Republic of the Sudan (RB-COSOP) developed in 2013 identified major constraints on the reduction of rural poverty. These included prolonged conflicts, the separation of South Sudan (2008), reduced oil revenues for the Government of Sudan; greatly increased numbers of people and livestock reliant on static technologies; environmentally and economically unsustainable pressures on finite natural resources exacerbated by the negative impacts of climate change; and little residual capacity within the public sector, all within a problematic geopolitical environment.

Scaling up note: Bangladesh

December 2015
Bangladesh has recently been classified as a lower-middle-income country and aims to reach upper-middle-income country status by 2021. To achieve this, the Government of Bangladesh will need to overcome considerable challenges in agricultural development and rural economic growth. The country’s annual GDP growth averaged about 6 per cent between 2000 and 2013, and was accompanied by a decline in the national poverty rate from 48.9 per cent to 31.5 per cent over the first decade of the century, effectively lifting some 16 million people out of poverty.

Scaling up note: China

December 2015
In terms of population, China, with 1.35 billion people, is the largest country in the world. It is the first developing country to achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of reducing by half the number of its people living in extreme poverty and hunger, and only 6.3 per cent of the population were estimated to be living in extreme poverty in 2013. Substantial progress has been made with respect to overall development and China is now considered in the high human development category of UNDP’s Human Development Index, ranking 91 out of 187 countries.

Scaling up note: Mauritania

December 2015
In recent years, Mauritania has enjoyed political stability, with the June 2014 presidential elections taking place peacefully. In addition, the country registered a robust growth rate of 6.7 per cent in 2013 and continues to be characterized by macroeconomic stability. The country, however, remains exposed to vulnerabilities related to lack of diversification, international price volatility and reliance on foreign inflows. While it has succeeded in increasing per capita income in recent years, income distribution has remained relatively unchanged for the last two decades, and the challenges of unemployment remain daunting. Sound management of natural resources is essential to foster inclusive and long-term growth. 

Scaling up note: Indonesia

December 2015
​Indonesia is the largest economy in South-East Asia and has developed rapidly over the past decade into a competitive and decentralized electoral democracy with a fast growing middle class. Despite the country's positive progress in reducing poverty, vulnerability and inequality remain high. Nearly 40 per cent of Indonesians are highly vulnerable to shocks, which can push them back below the poverty line. 

Toolkit: Integrated homestead food production

November 2015

Since its founding, IFAD has focused on enabling smallholder farmers to increase agricultural production and productivity as a means for reducing poverty.

However, experience shows that increased productivity and incomes do not automatically translate into improved nutritional status of poor rural people, especially women, young people and children. 

Lessons learned: Integrated homestead food production (IHFP)

November 2015
This note presents lessons learned on integrated homestead food production (IHFP) emerging from projects and programmes implemented by IFAD and other development actors around the world. It aims to complement the How To Do Note (HTDN) on the same subject by illustrating success stories and good practices through case studies.

How to do note: Integrated homestead food production (IHFP)

November 2015
Integrated homestead food production (IHFP) is considered to be a nutrition-sensitive, pro-poor and women-controlled approach to household food production that includes vegetable and fruit gardens, backyard livestock-raising and small fish ponds. It can enhance poor rural people’s access to a variety of nutritious fresh foods, grown in close proximity to their households and requiring relatively limited human, financial and productive resources. The how to do note provides operational guidance on how to design and implement projects that incorporate IHFP.

How to do note: Fisheries, Aquaculture and Climate Change

November 2015
Fisheries and aquaculture are important contributors to food security and livelihoods at household, local, national and global levels. However, while aquaculture production is growing rapidly throughout the world, particularly in Asia and Africa, many of the world’s fisheries are at grave risk from human pressures, including overexploitation, pollution and habitat change. Climate change is compounding these pressures, posing very serious challenges and limiting livelihood opportunities.

Zipping up the Evidence - Dealing with non-counterfactuals in Viet Nam and Ghana

September 2015

Participatory Impact Assessment and Learning Approach (PIALA)

 

Case study: Family life model, Uganda

September 2015
This case study illustrates how the Family Life Model (household methodology) has been used effectively in Uganda, highlighting how it has worked in a particular context. 

How to do note: Household Methodologies

September 2015
This How To Do Note provides a step-by-step guide on how to implement Household Methodologies (HHMs). It describes activities at the household level, different approaches for implementing HHMs, service providers and the facilitator system, and the role of the community and the wider environment. The main points to consider when incorporating HHMs in project design and implementation are noted.

How to do note: Climate change risk assessments in value chain projects

September 2015
​This HTDN is directed primarily at the design phase of IFAD value chain projects, though it does have some relevance for both pre-design and implementation phases.

How To Do Note: Measuring Climate Resilience

September 2015
This How To Do Note is intended as a tool for IFAD staff and partners involved in investment projects with climate resilience objectives.

How to do note: Mainstreaming portable biogas systems into IFAD-supported projects

June 2015
Access to modern renewable energy services is a key factor in eradicating poverty and ensuring food security.

Toolkit: Youth Access to Rural Finance

May 2015
With the mounting awareness of the unmet demand for youth financial services and the growing evidence that serving young people is viable, there is also a need to assess and document the implications for rural areas. This toolkit on Youth Access to Rural Finance aims to contribute to filling that gap.
The Lessons Learned and How To Do Note on this topic provide IFAD country programme managers, project design teams and implementing partners with insights and key guidance on designing and offering appropriate financial services for rural youth. The toolkit on Youth Access to Rural Finance synthesizes best practices and offers examples from around the world.  

Lessons learned: Youth Access to Rural Finance

May 2015

Although there have been improvements in YFS access, youth are still lagging significantly behind adults in being able to access financial tools. Across high- and low-income countries, young people are less likely than adults to have a formal account. There are even starker differences related to a country’s income level, with 21 per cent of youth in low-income economies having a formal account compared with 61 per cent in upper-middle-income economies (Demirguc-Kunt et al., 2013). 

Even with this data, determining the exact extent of youth access to financial services can be complicated because there is a lack of consistent data and definitions on youth (see Box 3). The lack of data is more limited for rural areas.
While there is some analysis of the urban-rural gap in access to financial services, with those living in cities significantly more likely to have an account than rural residents (Klapper, 2012), there are currently no comprehensive studies with disaggregated data for rural youth.

Scaling up note: Nutrition-sensitive agriculture and rural development

May 2015

In 1977, IFAD made improving “the nutritional level of the poorest populations in developing countries” one of the principal objectives of its founding agreement. Since then, governments, civil society and development organizations also have come to recognize the central importance of nutrition – which comprises undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies and overweight – to development.

 

Scaling up note: Agricultural water management

May 2015
Water is of fundamental importance to human development, the environment and the economy. Access to water and water security is paramount to improving food security, incomes and livelihoods of rural communities. Reliable access to water remains a major constraint for millions of poor farmers, mostly those
in rainfed areas, but also those involved in irrigated agriculture. Climate change and the resulting changing rainfall patterns pose a threat to many more farmers, who risk losing water security and slipping back into the poverty trap.The need, therefore, to strengthen the communities’ capacity to adopt and disseminate agricultural water management technologies cannot be overemphasized.

Scaling up note: Gender equality and women’s empowerment

April 2015

IFAD has achieved significant results in promoting innovative gender mainstreaming and pro-poor approaches and processes in its operations, making this an area of IFAD’s comparative advantage. 

Effective project management arrangements for agricultural projects: A synthesis of selected case studies and quantitative analysis

March 2015
In 2013, IFAD commissioned a study to analyse project management arrangements for market‑oriented smallholder agriculture. As IFAD adapts to the changing development discourse, the organization has focused increasingly on improving Project Management Unit (PMU) arrangements in order to provide more effective and expanded management and technical skills. This review was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of PMUs and their alignment with the Paris Declaration principles, as well as to identify lessons or frameworks to guide future project management and implementation arrangements. It investigated five case studies drawn from different regions and types of projects.  

Scaling up note: Land tenure security

February 2015

Equitable access to land and tenure security for IFAD’s target groups are essential for rural development and poverty eradication. Tenure security influences the extent to which farmers are prepared to invest in improvements in production and land management. 

Interventions to be scaled-up are in this note are: (i) Recognition and recording of multiple and sometimes overlapping rights in community-level land use, watershed management, territorial, rangeland and forest management planning processes; (ii) Registration of land ownership and use rights; (iii) Equitable land access; (iv) Land conflict resolution and access to judiciary and legal aid and; (v) Civic education and public awareness-raising. 

Scaling up note: Smallholder livestock development

February 2015

Smallholder livestock production is largely based on family farming and is key to poor rural people’s livelihoods, food security and employment creation. 

Scaling up note: Inclusive Rural Financial Services

February 2015
With almost four decades of engagement in more than 70 countries and more than US$1.1 billion invested in rural finance (RF) initiatives, IFAD has rich and multifaceted experience, a global network of partners working at the frontier of innovation and hundreds of different types of providers addressing the financial needs of poor rural households as their clients. Most of the 3 billion people in rural areas still live on less than US$2 a day. Challenges such as economic shocks, food shortages and climate change affect poor people disproportionately. Poor rural households are typically excluded from opportunities in the formal financial sector.

Scaling up note: Climate-resilient agricultural development

February 2015
Smallholder farmers are in the front line of climate change impacts. The ecosystems on which they rely are increasingly degraded and their access to suitable agricultural land and to forest resources is declining.

Scaling up note: Smallholder institutions and organizations

December 2014
The initial step in scaling up smallholder organizations is to clarify and examine the elements that work best and decide which of these to scale up. The elements to be considered include the organizational components embedded in projects related to capacity-building, such as the managerial and technical skills and governance systems that enable organizations to fulfil their core functions and achieve their missions more effectively.

Foro de los Pueblos Indígenas en el FIDA

December 2014
Taller regional de América Latina y el Caribe en preparación de la segunda reunión mundial del Foro de Pueblos Indígenas en el FIDA.

Africa Regional Workshop Report

December 2014
Africa Regional Workshop in preparation for the Second Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum at IFAD.

Case study: Men's Campfire Conference, Zambia

December 2014
This case study illustrates how the Men's Campfire Conference (household methodology) has been used effectively in Zambia, highlighting how it has worked in a particular context. Links are provided to resources and online materials.

Case Study: Household approach for gender, HIV and AIDS mainstreaming, Malawi

December 2014
This case study illustrates how the household approach for gender, HIV and AIDS mainstreaming has been used effectively in Malawi, highlighting how it has worked in a particular context. Links are provided to resources and online materials.

Lessons learned: Strengthening smallholder institutions and organizations

November 2014
This note highlights the lessons learned in supporting smallholder institutions and organizations. 

Burundi: Country Technical Note on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues

November 2014

The Twa “Pygmy” of the Republic of Burundi are a small minority of around 80,000 people that self-identify as indigenous and are considered as such by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the UN system. 

How to do note: Analyse and strengthen social capital

November 2014
This How To Do Note guides design and country teams in conducting an initial analysis of organizations and their capacity development needs at the project design stage. It provides a conceptual framework and practical suggestions and tools to help practitioners systematically collate and summarize information captured during design missions. 

Pacific Regional Workshop Report

November 2014

In February 2013, the First Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples Forum took place at the IFAD headquarters in Rome, in conjunction with the 36th session of the Governing Council. In attendance at this inaugural meeting were 31 indigenous people’s representatives from 25 countries in Asia, Pacific, Latin America, Africa and the Caribbean regions. Of the 19 Asia- Pacific regional representatives, two were from the Pacific; Mr. Anthony Wale, the Executive Director Aoke Langalanga Constituency Apex Association (ALCAA), and Ms Rufina Peter, Senior Research Officer at the PNG Institute of National Affairs.

During the meeting the Pacific representatives highlighted the need for the Pacific to have a “separate identity” as per the outcomes of Asia Pacific regional preparatory workshop in Bangkok. The issue was one of visibility for the Pacific Region due to its unique, rich and diverse cultures and traditions, its significant land and sea area and its high biodiversity. The Pacific Regional meeting proposed three action plans, of which the Pacific Regional Workshop in preparation of the Second Global Meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Forum at IFAD is a direct result.

Case study: Chiefs and traditional leaders, Zambia

November 2014
This case study illustrates how the Chiefs and Traditional Leaders Household Methodology has been used effectively in Zambia, highlighting how it has worked in a particular context. Links are provided to resources and online materials.

Case study: Household approach, Zambia

November 2014
This case study illustrates how Household Approach (household methodology) has been used effectively in Zambia, highlighting how it has worked in a particular context. Links are provided to resources and online materials.

A field practitioner's guide: Institutional and organizational analysis and capacity strengthening

November 2014

The purpose of this Guide is to support institutional and organizational analysis and strengthening (IOA/S) for design and implementation of programmes and projects.
The Guide is designed to be a practical, hands-on set of directions to those needing to answer the following questions: “how to go about doing institutional and organizational analysis? And once I’ve done it, how do I go about using this analysis to promote sustainable institutions and organizations?”

This is intended as a user-friendly Guide, the use of which could help identify strategic partners and key areas for intervention at COSOP level; to deepen the COSOP analysis at the design stage by generating interventions that support sustainable institutions and organizations, and progress
at implementation stage should be easier to monitor and evaluate effectively. 

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