Second day of West and Central Africa regional implementation workshop: A pledge to have more performing projects in 2011!

On the second day of the West and Central Africa workshop participants were already sharing and exchanging their experience and knowledge at breakfast! After all that is the best moment of the day to share “fresh” ideas and the ‘thoughts’ you’ve slept on - and be ready to hear the reports of the four different working groups who the previous day had discussed the following topics.

• Rural entrepreneurship
• Professionalization of organizations
• Financing modes and modalities
• Good governance

The 4 working groups did an excellent job in identifying the fundamental pillars of successful value chain projects. They did an equally great job in identifying how the above four topics could and should be seamlessly integrated in the design and implementation of value chain projects.

The presentations sparked an animated and informed discussion during the plenary session. It was great to see the strong will of participants and their desire to succeed and work together so that next year the list of s

uccessful projects would become longer and longer.

Today, during the plenary session, the participants applauded Senegal’s Agricultural Development Project in Matam - Phase II, Niger’s Project for the Promotion of Local Initiative for Development in Aguié (PPILDA), Cape Verde’s Rural Poverty Alleviation Programme, Gambia’s Rural Finance Project, Ghana’s Rural Enterprises Project - Phase II and Mauritania Oasis Sustainable Development Programme.

Wondering why they got almost a standing ovation? Because they were the best top six 2010 performing projects in the West and Central Africa portfolio.

With 2011 just a couple of months away, the plenary discussed the challenges of how to improve project implementation so that next year the list of poor performing projects comes smaller or better even completely disappears and the list of top performers becomes even longer, thus offering more participants to share their successful stories and experiences.

This led to the afternoon sessions, where the participants discussed: the following topics:

• Monitoring and evaluation
• Withdrawal applications and procurement procedures
• Decentralization of IFAD
• Upscaling

Stay tuned, we’ll blog the outcomes of these discussions in the next couple of days. Tomorrow we’ll be going to the field and will be visiting a government funded projects.

Engendering and Greening the Mauritanian Sahel:the experience of IFAD's Programme Durable des Oasis

The mid-term review mission of the IFAD-financed Programme de Developpement Durable des Oasis (PDDO) in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania has just returned from the field. The PDDO covers 5 regions: Adrar, Tagant, Assaba, and the two Hodh. The mission was given security clearance for the Adrar and the Assaba where it was accompanied by very professional and friendly military escorts.

The mission visited 9 oases in the Adrar...and it was amazed over the potentials of farming vegetables, fruits and wheat in the desert! This is all thanks to the support which the PDDO is elaborating for small-scale irrigation and "farming under palm tree" techniques in partnership with the villagers of the different Oases. The green colour of the wheat was such a contrast to the aridity of the sandy soil below! In addition to wheat, farmers are producing various kinds of vegetables (carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, gombo, etc.) and even fruit trees are planted in the oases, including lemon trees. Clearly, this has had an impact on the nutrition of the population as the villagers themselves confirmed to the mission.

The villagers welcomed the mission in their oases with their wonderful hospitality-some even took care of during the night where they set up their beautiful tents (haima). The mission thus had an incredible opportunity

to truly discuss with the villagers their feelings about the PDDO and the Oasis projects which preceded it. It was a pleasure to hear from the villagers themselves the important impact the Programme is having on their lives. But more than anything, it was amazing for the mission to see how women were involved in the discussions and truly speaking their minds.

In various instances the women said publicly how the most important impact of the PDDO and the previous Oasis II project is that 15 years ago, they did not have the courage to speak out or to take any decisions over the way the projects/programmes should be implemented. Through the project's literacy and information/education/communication campaigns and the quotas that the programme/projects have established for women in the various management committees, women have been able to better participate in the different project/programme economic activities, including farming. Today, they feel more comfortable to speak out in public and when they bring money home, their husbands are happy. Could this be the beginning of a new future for this young lady?