Projects and references

The Consultant is providing global project management support for the SASME project, assisting the National Project Coordination Unit (NPCU) in the overall management and coordination of the activities of the SASME Project. The objective of this project is to improve access to finance for agricultural SMEs via the Agricultural Development Programme (MALR credit fund body) by:
- increasing Agricultural Development Programme lending through the creation of an additional fund dedicated to SMEs;
- providing technical assistance to key stakeholders in agricultural finance;
- increasing SME absorption capacity by establishing an agricultural credit guarantee scheme;
- improving the productive efficiency of the dairy sector and marine aquaculture sector and the efficient use of the resources allocated to them;
- addressing cross-cutting issues.

The objective of the technical assistance to the Department of Strategy and Statistics (DSS) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Maritime Fisheries is to support the promotion and development of the agricultural statistics system in Morocco. The project will enable the development and design of two systems for processing agricultural statistical data: (i) an operating system for the National Agricultural Register; (ii) an information system for accountancy data on agricultural holdings. It will also act as a communication channel for the EU’s AGRI 2 programme.

The project objectives are to (i) improve provincial agricultural advisory services through the capacity strengthening of the provincial rural extension services (SPERs), of the district economic activity services (SDAEs) and of the agricultural extension officers in the districts, (ii) strengthen the capacity of 480 producers’ groups and support them to legalise producers' associations, (iii) train and support producers' organisations to prepare business plans and to improve commercial agriculture.

The services involve assistance to Water Users' Associations (WUA) and the development of agricultural areas under the PRIASO project (South-West Region Agricultural Infrastructure Rehabilitation Project). Four sites are concerned, the region's main areas of irrigated agriculture. PRIASO aims for the development (rehabilitation or construction) of main channels, dikes, pathways, boreholes, storage warehouses and rural markets. Under the 'capacity building and agricultural development component', this assistance will ensure i) support for irrigation management, ii) support for awareness-raising and the oversight of WUAs, iii) their restructuring by building the social and organisational capacity of the associations and their federation, iv) the technical capacity building of the actors developing these areas, and v) the development and implementation of a project communication and visibility plan.

The overall objective of the PISA Programme (Small-Scale Irrigation and Food Security) is to help promote productive agriculture and food security in Niger, and specifically: i) increase agricultural production, ii) improve the revenues of small-scale farmers, and iii) facilitate market access for agricultural products. PISA is taking place in three regions (Tillaberi, Agadez and Tahoua) VIA A Project Management Unit (PMU) for the implementation of its components.

Technical assistance to the contracting authority in the following areas: (i) reform of the Ministry; (ii) preparation and setting up of the results-based management system; (iii) strengthening of the monitoring-evaluation system; (iv) strengthening of fiduciary management; (v) technical support to the central and regional directorates and specialised agencies in their respective areas of competence; (vi) skills transfer and staff training in the relevant units; (vii) progression towards the PNIASA’s implementation following a sector wide approach.

The objective of the IDSP is to increase yields per hectare and the value of diverse products marketed by smallholders benefiting from investments in irrigation in selected sites served by the project. These sites are located in Lusitu, Mwomboshi and Musakashi.
The project interventions will consist of a four-tier system which will be applied, in whole or in part, at each of the irrigation sites to be developed:
- Tier 1 is for smallholder farmers who wish to take up irrigated agriculture using mainly family labour.
- Tier 2 consists of larger plots of between one and five hectares, for cultivation by emerging small-scale commercial farmers or small groups of farmers, under sprinkler irrigation systems.
- Tier 3 consists of large plots of at least 60 ha under centre-pivot irrigation operated by a private company, or FarmCo.
- Tier 4 consists entirely of existing large-scale commercial farmers who will share the bulk water and other infrastructure provided under the project.