Evaluation Report Sustainable Land Management Programme (SLMP) Phase-II, Punjab Component by IHSAN NADIR SYED

GREEN

UP-DATED VERSION

Evaluation Report on Project

Sustainable Land Management Programme To Combat Desertification in Pakistan (Punjab Component)

DIRECTORATE GENERAL MONITORING & EVALUATION PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT BOARD GOVERNMENT OF THE PUNJAB MARCH 2021 MONITORING & EVALUATION DIRECTORATE P&D Board, 65-Trade Center Block, Johar Town, Lahore Tel: (042) 99233177-9

Page i of 101

Activity: Construction of Water ponds Site: Distreict Chakwal Date: 11.02.2021

Activity: Raising of Woodlots Site: Distreict Khushab Date: 10..02.2021

Activity: Shelterbelts

Agro-forestey

throufg

Site: Distreict Bhakkar Date: 03.02.2021

Activity: Dry-Afforestation on Farmlands Site: Distreict Chakwal Date: 09.02.2021

Page ii of 101

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Land is considered the principal asset in the rural economy, but unequal access to land and inefficient systems of water management have contributed to land degradation in Pakistan. 63% of the total population is rural and 43% is landless and lacks access to water or irrigation system1. Land provides vital environmental functions and ecosystem services, including provisioning and regulating services. It is also inextricably linked to human well-being and plays a role in food security and livelihoods. When land resources are over-exploited and degraded, quality of life is negatively affected and can result in food insecurity, job losses, displacement, or conflict. Improving economic, social and cultural quality of life therefore requires the management and preservation of land’s capacity to continue to provide goods and services for society. Sustainable Land Management (SLM) plays a pivotal role in this process, as it represents a holistic approach to preserving the vital functions and services provided by land in a long-term, sustainable productive capacity, by integrating biophysical, socio-cultural and economic needs and values.2 A detailed consultation was held with all provincial stakeholders on 06.06.2013 under the chairmanship of Secretary, P&D that was followed with a meeting of Focus Group on 19.06.2013 chaired by Senior Chief, Regional Planning, P&D Department. The proposals of Focus Group were approved by Provincial Coordination Committee on Desertification on 11.07.2013 that was chaired by Secretary, P&D Department. The provincial component is to be approved by PDWP and included in the Umbrella PC-I to be prepared at the national level for seeking approval from the CDWP/ECNEC. Sustainable Land Management Programme (SLMP – II), Punjab component with total cost of PC-I Rs.346.680 Million, was envisaged to combat land degradation, desertification and drought in arid and semi-arid areas of the province. In each of the four districts, the operational activities were executed in a cluster of identified villages in the following rain-fed tehsils: Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (Formerly Talagang) of district Chakwal, Noorpur Thal of district Khushab, Mankera of district Bhakkar and Chaubara of district Layyah. The villages in new tehsils of Noorpur Thal (Khushab) and Chaubara (Layyah) were identified on the basis of experience gained during the initial phase of the project and by using GIS/ RS technology. SLMP-II has direct relevance with the Forestry, Agriculture, livestock & dairy development, Soil/ Water Conservation, Climate Change, Environment Protection sectors of the province. As per 1st Revised of PC-I, major On-ground activities are as follows: i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi.

Community Organizations Soil & Water Conservation (Construction of Water Ponds) Establishment of Water Conveyance System, Rangeland Development, Dry Afforestation on Farmlands, Establishment of Fruit Nurseries,

https://www.landportal.org/voc/regions/pakistan https://knowledge.unccd.int/knowledge-products-and-pillars/best-practices-sustainable-landmanagement/why-sustainable-land 1 2

Page iii of 101

vii. viii. ix.

Agro-Forestry through Shelterbelts, Raising of Wood Lots, Establishment of Community Nurseries

Implementing Partners (IPs) like ABAD, BARI Chakwal, FW&F Department, NRSP, UNDP and GEF executed activities (Table 3, Table 10). SLMP-II has designed community-based approach to implement programme interventions through community organizations. Evaluation has been carried out analyzing the aspects of relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, sustainability and impact. The detailed methodology includes document review, field visits and data collection through questionnaire, direct observation and key informant interviews to gauge the socio-economic potential/impact of the project. Because, of scattered and large geographic spread of the Project target areas, and keeping in view the limitations of time and operational cost in comparison with overall project cost it was decided that sample will be calculated on 90% confidence level with 20% margin of error. However, it was ensured that no geographical area as well as operational activity should be missed. As per PC-IV till 30.11.2020, total release are of Rs. 304.926 Million and actual expenditure of Rs. 298.707 Million (98%). Capacity Building Programme was responsibility of BARI Chakwal, ARZI Bhakkar, PFRI Faisalabad and ABAD but on the basis of review of documents, data analysis of field survey and interviews, it was observed that only BARI Chakwal conducted all capacity building programmes. All communications between the Implementing Partner (IPs) and community was to be done through CBO resolutions and documented in CBOs meeting minutes (Karwai Register) but those were not recorded. It was observed that Karwai Register of CBO Dagar Kotli, District Bhakkar was already taken away NRSP field team. In PC-I, twenty percent (20%), In-kind contribution of the community for on-ground activities was mentioned but during field visits it was observed that no mechanism was designed and implemented to report, record in Karwai Register and official documents. During review of documents (PC-I), it was observed that criteria for selection of target villages for on-ground activities/ programme interventions was not mentioned. It was observed that for construction of water ponds, accessibility and level of water pond should be taken care of while selecting the site. In PC-I, for water conveyance system, specifications of peter engine along with its capacity should be mentioned. It was also noted that 3’’ dia of pipe has been installed with peter engine and for delivery pipe 4’’ dia has been used. Participation of CBOs in reseeding on rangeland was not observed at CBO Khew, tehsil Mankera District Bhakkar and implementing partner also did not provide the relevant documents (Karwai Register). PC-I had mentioned to plant indigenous species like Acacia tortilis, A. albida, Prosopis juliflora, Zizyphus numularia and Albizzia lebbek but during field visits of woodlots it was observed that overall, 96% Eucalyptus and 4% Tamarix xaphylla were planted. It was observed that no information boards, mentioning the SLMP-II On-ground activity/ programme intervention along with year, cost, name of the beneficiary, location found at sites in Bhakkar, Chakwal and Layyah. Page iv of 101

To achieve intended goals and for sustainable impact of on-ground activities/ programme interventions it is recommended to develop a pool of master trainers with relevant knowledge, skills and abilities for capacity building on SLM activities of target communities. As Karwai Register is the source document, it is recommended to digitize and maintain record copy of all communications among CBOs, IPs and PCU, SLMP-II at concerned offices. For sustainability of on-ground activities, best practices should be implemented to record and report their twenty percent (20%) In-kind contribution. For selection of site for construction of pond, accessibility to the site for movement of material and machinery is necessary to make the intervention successful. For quality work, standard tests/mechanism for compaction of earth is required to be adopted. Other sort of interventions such as wind energy, solar energy, land levelling may also be helpful to raise and uplift the life of the locals. It is recommended to enhance and strengthen the role of CBOs in selection of suitable site for reseeding on state land and without confirmation of concerned CBO, this type of activity should not be implemented. It is recommended to implement the solar operating pumps and engines for shelter belts, woodlots. It is recommended to cover the maximum area an Avenue Kilometer (Av. Km) in linear plantation to get planned outcome of agro-forestry through shelterbelts. It is recommended to prepare criteria for selection of target villages, union councils for on-ground activities and social organizing based on scientific research and community need assessment. PCU, SLMP-II should ensure that all in process on-ground activities/ programme interventions of concerned executing agencies and implementing partners (IPs) are completed as per time line. On the basis of evaluation, SLMP-II has been fully relevant, moderately efficient, moderately effective, fully sustainable and medium impact. All on-ground activities and programme interventions have relevancy with sectoral growth strategies of Ministry of Climate Change, Government of Pakistan, Planning & Development Board, Government of the Punjab, Forest, Wildlife & Fisheries Department, Government of the Punjab and Punjab Agricultural Department. On the basis of above findings, SLMP-II has been successful.

Page v of 101

Page vi of 101

Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... iii Project Brief .................................................................................................................................xv Project Location ....................................................................................................................... xvii 1.

Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.1

Project Background ........................................................................................................ 4

1.2

Project Development Objective .................................................................................... 4

1.3 SLMP-II Outcomes, Outputs/ Sub-Outputs, On – ground Activities/ Programme Interventions .............................................................................................................................. 5 2

Evaluation Purpose/ Objective and Structure ................................................................. 8 2.1

Evaluation Methodology ............................................................................................... 9

Team Composition ............................................................................................................. 9

ii.

Identification of Key Performance Indicators .......................................................... 10

iii.

Data Collection Methods and Source ........................................................................ 11

iv.

Data Analysis ................................................................................................................ 19

2.2

Data Limitations ........................................................................................................... 19

2.3

Ethical Consideration................................................................................................... 19

2.4

Copyright....................................................................................................................... 19

Data Analysis and Findings ............................................................................................. 20 3.1

Construction of Water Ponds ..................................................................................... 21

3.2

Water Conveyance System for Agriculture/ Orchids ............................................ 24

3.3

Dry-Afforestation on Farmlands ................................................................................ 26

3.4

Fruit Nurseries for Farmers ........................................................................................ 28

3.5

Agro-Forestry through Shelterbelts ........................................................................... 30

3.6

Woodlots wind eroded lands ..................................................................................... 33

3.7

Community Nurseries for Farmers ........................................................................... 37

3.8

Rehabilitation of Degraded Rangelands ................................................................... 38

3.9

Community Organizations (CBOs) ........................................................................... 39

3.10

Time Analysis ............................................................................................................ 44

3.11

Project Cost Analysis ................................................................................................ 45

DG M&E Assessment of SLMP on-ground Activities/ Programme Interventions49

Project Site/ General Observations ................................................................................. 52 5.1

Relevancy....................................................................................................................... 61

5.2

Efficiency ....................................................................................................................... 61

5.3

Effectiveness .................................................................................................................. 61 Page vii of 101

5.4

Sustainability................................................................................................................. 61

5.5

Impact ............................................................................................................................ 62

Conclusions.......................................................................................................................... 63

Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 64

Annex – I ...................................................................................................................................... 68 Annex – II .................................................................................................................................... 69 Annex – III ................................................................................................................................... 70 Annex – IV ................................................................................................................................... 72 Annex – V .................................................................................................................................... 77 Annex – VI ................................................................................................................................... 78 References.................................................................................................................................... 80

Page viii of 101

List of Figures FIGURE 1 SLMP-II LOCATION MAP FOR PUNJAB .................................................................. xvii FIGURE 2 SLMP-II CAPITAL COST ............................................................................................... 3 FIGURE 3 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: COMPONENT/ TARGET AREA WISE .......................... 14 FIGURE 4 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: TARGET AREA WISE .................................................... 15 FIGURE 5 SAMPLE SIZE: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS ................................................... 22 FIGURE 6 SAMPLE SIZE: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM ........................................................... 25 FIGURE 7 SAMPLE SIZE: DRY-AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS ............................................. 27 FIGURE 8 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES .............................................. 29 FIGURE 9 SAMPLE SIZE: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS...................................... 30 FIGURE 10 PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES .......................................................................... 31 FIGURE 11 SATISFACTION LEVEL ................................................................................................ 32 FIGURE 12 SAMPLE SIZE: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS ................................................... 33 FIGURE 13 WOODLOTS – PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES .................................................. 35 FIGURE 14 SATISFACTION LEVEL ................................................................................................ 36 FIGURE 15 CBOS – EDUCATION LEVEL ...................................................................................... 40 FIGURE 16 CBOS – RESOLUTIONS PRESENTED BY WOMEN ..................................................... 41 FIGURE 17 CBOS – SLMP-II TEAM AND IMPLEMENTING PARTNER’S (IPS) SUPPORT .......... 42 FIGURE 18 REFLECTION FROM THE FIELD ................................................................................... 43 FIGURE 19 TIME ANALYSIS .......................................................................................................... 44 FIGURE 20 PC-I PHASING, ALLOCATION, RELEASES AND UTILIZATION ................................ 46 FIGURE 21 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE ........................................ 48 FIGURE 22 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE ........................................ 48

Page ix of 101

List of Tables TABLE 1 PROJECT BRIEF .............................................................................................................. xv TABLE 2 PROJECT LOCATION .................................................................................................... xvii TABLE 3 CAPITAL COST ................................................................................................................ 3 TABLE 4 SLMP-II ON-GROUND ACTIVITIES/ PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS ......................... 6 TABLE 5 TEAM COMPOSITION ....................................................................................................... 9 TABLE 6 SLMP-II KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS ................................................................ 10 TABLE 7 SAMPLE SIZE: COMPONENT WISE (NOS./ ACRES/ AV. KM) ........................................ 12 TABLE 8 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: COMPONENT / TARGET AREA WISE ........................... 13 TABLE 9 PROJECT DIRECTOR(S) TILL COMPLETION .................................................................. 16 TABLE 10 STAKEHOLDERS INTERVIEWED ................................................................................... 16 TABLE 11 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS PRESIDENTS STAKEHOLDERS INTERVIEWED ....... 18 TABLE 12 EXECUTING AGENCY: ON-GROUND ACTIVITY/ PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS .... 20 TABLE 13 TARGET: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS ........................................................... 21 TABLE 14 SAMPLE SIZE: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS ................................................... 21 TABLE 15 CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS ........................................................................... 22 TABLE 16 COST ESTIMATE OF WATER POND ............................................................................. 23 TABLE 17 TARGET: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM ................................................................... 24 TABLE 18 SAMPLE SIZE: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM........................................................... 24 TABLE 19 COST ESTIMATE OF WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM ................................................. 25 TABLE 20 TARGET: DRY – AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS .................................................. 26 TABLE 21 SAMPLE SIZE: DRY – AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS .......................................... 26 TABLE 22 TARGET: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES ...................................................... 28 TABLE 23 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES.............................................. 29 TABLE 24 TARGET: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS ............................................. 30 TABLE 25 SAMPLE SIZE: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS ..................................... 30 TABLE 26 SPECIES PLANTED ......................................................................................................... 31 TABLE 27 PETER ENGINE WITH ALL ACCESSORIES ...................................................................... 31 TABLE 28 SATISFACTION LEVEL .................................................................................................. 32 TABLE 29 TARGET: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS ............................................................. 33 TABLE 30 SAMPLE SIZE: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS .................................................... 33 TABLE 31 SPECIES PLANTED ......................................................................................................... 34 Page x of 101

TABLE 32 WOODLOTS – PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES .................................................... 34 TABLE 33 SATISFACTION LEVEL .................................................................................................. 36 TABLE 34 TARGET: ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY NURSERIES .......................................... 37 TABLE 35 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY NURSERIES ................................. 37 TABLE 36 TARGET: REHABILITATION OF DEGRADED RANGELANDS....................................... 38 TABLE 37 TARGET: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS .................................................................. 39 TABLE 38 SAMPLE SIZE: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS .......................................................... 39 TABLE 39 CBOS - EDUCATION LEVEL OF PRESIDENT ........................................................... 40 TABLE 40 CBOS – RESOLUTIONS PRESENTED BY WOMEN ........................................................ 41 TABLE 41 CBOS – COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SATISFACTION LEVEL............................... 42 TABLE 42 CBOS – REFLECTION FROM THE FIELD ...................................................................... 43 TABLE 43 TIME ANALYSIS ............................................................................................................ 44 TABLE 44 PC-1 PHASING, ALLOCATION, RELEASES AND UTILIZATION .................................. 45 TABLE 45 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE .......................................... 47 TABLE 46 DG M&E ASSESSMENT .............................................................................................. 50

Page xi of 101

Acronyms ABAD ADP APR ARR AWP Ac. Av. Km AZRI BARI CBO MOCC CDWP CNIC CO DGM&E DLDD DRM DRR DSS FD FPA GEF GHG GIS GoP GPS IA IFS INRM IP IUCN IWRM KPI NAP NCU NDCC NGO NPC NRSP P&D PARC PCU PDCC PDWP PFRI PPP

Agency for Barani Areas Development Annual Development Programme Annual Progress Review Annual Review Report Annual Work Plan Acre Avenue Kilometer Arid Zone Research Institute Barani Agricultural Research Institute Community-Based Organisation Ministry of Climate Change Central Development Working Party Computerized National Identity Card Community Organization Directorate General Monitoring & Evaluation Desertification Land Degradation & Drought Disaster Risk Management Disaster Risk Reduction Decision Support System Finance Division Foreign Project Assistance Global Environment Facility Green Hmidouse Gas Geographic Information System Government of Pakistan Global Positioning System Implementing Agency Integrated Financial Strategy Integrated Natural Resources Management Implementing Partner International Union for Conservation of Nature Integrated Water Resources Management Key Performance Indicators National Action Programme National Coordination Unit National Desertification Control Cell Non-Governmental Organization National Project Coordinator National Rural Support Programme Planning and Development Pakistan Agriculture Research Council Provincial Coordination Unit Provincial Desertification Control Cell Provincial Development Working Party Punjab Forestry Research Institute- Faisalabad Public Private Partnership Page xii of 101

PPRA PS/CC PSDP QPR RBM RP RS RSPN SAWCRI SLM SLMF SLMP SOP TE UNCCD UNDP VLUP VDO VO

Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Provincial Steering/Coordination Committee Public Sector Development Programme Quarterly Progress Report Result Based Management Responsible Party Remote Sensing Rural Support Programme Network Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute Sustainable Land Management Sustainable Land Management Fund Sustainable Land Management Programme Survey of Pakistan Terminal Evaluation United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification United Nations Development Programme Village Land Use Plan Village Development Organization Village Organization

Page xiii of 101

Source3

https://knowledge.unccd.int/knowledge-products-and-pillars/best-practices-sustainable-landmanagement/why-sustainable-land 3

Page xiv of 101

PROJECT BRIEF The brief of the basic information of the SLMP, “Sustainable Land Management Programme to Combat Desertification in Pakistan (Punjab Component) – GEF/ UNDP Assisted” in Table 1. TABLE 1 PROJECT BRIEF Project Title

Sustainable Land Management Programme to Combat Desertification in Pakistan (Punjab Component) – GEF/ UNDP Assisted Sponsoring Government/ • Government of Pakistan (GoP) Agency • Government of the Punjab (GoPb) • Global Environment Facility (GEF) • United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Sector Regional Planning (RP)/ Planning & Development (P&D) Sub Sector Agriculture/ Forest/ Water/ Social Executing Agency(s) • Ministry of Climate Change through National Coordination Unit (NCU)/ National Desertification Control Cell (NDCC) at Federal level; • Planning & Development Board through Provincial Coordination Unit (PCU – Punjab)/ Provincial Desertification Control Cell (PDCC) with the support of concerned line agencies and other relevant stakeholder Locatin of the Project • Tehsil Mankera (District Bhakkar) • Tehsil Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (District Chakwal) • Tehsil Noorpur Thal (District Khushab) • Tehsil Chaubara ( District Layyah) O&M after Completion • Planning & Development Board through Provincial Coordination Unit (PCU – Punjab)/ Provincial Desertification Control Cell (PDCC) with the support of concerned line agencies and other relevant stakeholder; • Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Department, • Agriculture Department, • Agency for Barani Areas Development (ABAD), • Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) through relevant line departments, • RSP/ NGO i.e., National Rural Support Programme (NRSP), • Community Based Organizations (CBO’s) and other relevant stakeholders Page xv of 101

PC-I Original Cost Federal Share/ Government of Pakistan (through PSDP) Provincial Share/ Government of the Punjab (through ADP) Donors/ GEF (Grant) Donors/ UNDP (Grant) Others/ Community Share (20% In-kind) PC-I 1st Revision Cost PC-IV Actual Cost (Punjab) Actual Relaeses Actual Utilization Percentage of Funds Utilization over Releases Date of Approval (Orginal) Date of Revison Planned Start Date Planned End Date Actual Start Date Actual End Date PC-I Original Gestation Period PC-I 1st Revision Gestation Period Beneficiareis

Rs. 346.680 Million Rs. 20.540 Million Rs. 191.210 Million Rs. 58.450 Million Rs. 31.450 Million Rs. 45.030 Million Rs. 346.680 Million Rs. 298.707 Million (Till 30.11.2020) Rs. 304.926 Million (Till 30.11.2020) Rs. 298.707 Million (Till 30.11.2020) 98.00% CDWP 04.03.2015 PDWP 12.04.2019 01.07.2015 30.06.2020 01.08.2015 30.06.2021 60 Months 72 Month (July, 2015 to June, 2021) Farmers/ Members of of Community Based Organizations (CBO’s)/ Community Activists, Local Communities especially vulnerable segments

Reasons for 1st Revision PC-I are as under: • • • •

Inclusion of tehsil Lawa (formerly Talagang) in District Chakwal, as an additional tehsil; Increase in Per Unit Cost/ Rates of Programme Interventions/ On-ground Activities based on MRS Rates; Increase in Staff Salaries of Government Contractual Staff; Establishment of Provincial/ Punjab Desertification Control Cell (PDCC);

Page xvi of 101

PROJECT LOCATION The project is being executed in the four (04) districts of Punjab those are mentioned in Table 2. TABLE 2 PROJECT LOCATION Sr. # 1 2

District

Tehsil

• Mankera • Chakwal • Talagang • Lawa Khushab 3 • Noopur Thal Layyah 4 • Chaubara In each of the four districts, the operational activities were executed in a cluster of identified villages in the following rain-fed tehsils: Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (Formerly Talagang) of district Chakwal, Noorpur Thal of district Khushab, Mankera of district Bhakkar and Chaubara of district Layyah. The villages in new tehsils of Noorpur Thal (Khushab) and Chaubara (Layyah) were identified on the basis of experience gained during the initial phase of the project and by using GIS/ RS technology.4 Bhakkar Chakwal

FIGURE 1 SLMP-II LOCATION MAP FOR PUNJAB

PC-I

Page xvii of 101

Page xviii of 101

INTRODUCTION

One of the key outputs of the pilot phase was to design the up-scaling phase of the Project based on the lessons learned and SLM practices tested during the pilot phase for Pakistan. Accordingly, a draft umbrella Project Identification Form (PIF)/concept note was prepared for securing GEF funding for the up-scaling phase of the Project. The draft umbrella PIF was presented in the meeting of the Provincial Coordination Committees (PCC) of SLMP, Punjab held on 14.10.2010 under the chairmanship of Secretary, P&D/Provincial Project Director, and SLMP. Subsequently, the PIF was approved in the 2nd meeting of GEF National Steering Committee held on 03.11.2010. The PIF was endorsed by the GEF National Focal Point for Pakistan on 21.4.2011 and the same was sent to the UNDP for seeking approval of the PIF from the GEF Council. Finally, PIF was approved by the GEF Secretariat in December, 2011 and subsequently by the GEF Council in February 2012. A total of US$14 million has been reflected in the PIF as co-financing share of the four; provinces. This could be in-kind, parallel funding and in-cash grant. The project expects that each province will provide US$ Two Million. The province of Punjab is one of the major administrative units of Pakistan that occupies an area of 20.630 million ha. Although Punjab constitutes only 25% of the total land area of Pakistan, however, it has significance due to highly productive agricultural land formed by the flood plains of five major rivers of the country. The province is getting affected by moderate to severe deforestation, overgrazing, depleted ground water reserves, reduced surface water quantity and quality, erosion, salinity, lowered soil fertility, and the loss of biodiversity. The aforementioned factors are resulting in unsustainable land use practices. Almost 50% of the total land area of Punjab is susceptible to land degradation and desertification. The situation in other provinces does not differ from that being faced by Punjab5. The world's commitment towards Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) became enshrined in various international agreements and decisions throughout the year 2015. The challenge now becomes one of addressing its operation, in order to achieve these new policy goals and targets by the year 2030. The three Rio Conventions (the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)) all play key roles in shaping the international LDN governance and implementation context6. Their different but related foci create a number of challenges and opportunities for advancing LDN. Realizing the gravity of problem, the Government of Pakistan (GoP) took an initiative in 2009 to launch an umbrella project with Global Environment Facility (GEF), UNDP, and GoP funding to combat land degradation and desertification in Pakistan. The implementation of project supported the national commitment towards United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and National Action Programme on Desertification. The project was designed to be implemented in two phases. The pilot 5

PC-I

6 Unpacking the concept of land degradation neutrality and addressing its operation through the Rio Conventions https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030147971630706X

Page 1 of 101

phase of the Project focused on addressing policy, institutional and knowledge barriers through targeted capacity building, implementation of nine pilot projects for testing Sustainable Land Management (SLM) practices, and designing of the up-scaling phase of the Project. This phase of the project has been implemented successfully, including two on-the-ground pilot projects in district of Chakwal and Bhakkar in Punjab. The activities pertaining to land degradation and desertification tested during the pilot phase included establishment of woodlots/shelterbelts for sand dunes stabilization in Thal desert and dry afforestation, rangeland improvement/management, soil and water conservation measures to overcome land degradation in Potohar plateau. The need to promote a sustainable land management (SLM) approach for land degradation neutrality (LDN) is a global challenge, and SLM must rely on local assessments of how rural participants are conducting their work. Therefore, SLMP should promote plantation of the fruit tree species. The results of a research study published in Environmental Science & Policy7 revealed that the productive success is based on the knowledge and ability of the fruit farmers to take advantage of bioclimatic and biophysical conditions for fruit cultivation. It was demonstrated in approximately 90% of the analyzed cases that the producer’s SLM was between regular and excellent. Furthermore, land degradation is found in every region of the world, and according to the IPBES 2018 “Summary for policymakers of the thematic assessment of land degradation and restoration”, it affects the wellbeing of around 3.2 billion people8, leading to food and water insecurity and poverty. Land degradation also leads to increased vulnerability to climate change of affected areas and among affected communities. Moreover, competition for the already strained land and water resources is further intensified by a growing world population that is increasingly urban and affluent, which has led to increased demand for food, especially animal products that often have high ecological footprints. Since the concept of the Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) emerged in global policy discourse, a key point of contention has been the development of market-based instruments to promote the LDN agenda. Much of this discussion has focused on the use of LDN-specific offset mechanisms and private-public partnerships. However, there is also an opportunity to capitalise on the synergies that exist between LDN objectives9 and those of existing market-based instruments that have previously been developed for carbon, biodiversity, bioenergy and in other contexts. LDN objectives could be integrated into such schemes through targeted eligibility rules and certification schemes, supporting methodologies, adaptations to multifunctional indices used in auction-based approaches and the restructuring of mandates, tax breaks and feed-in tariffs for bioenergy and other products. A detailed consultation was held with all provincial stakeholders on 06.06.2013 under the chairmanship of Secretary, P&D that was followed with a meeting of Focus Group on 19.06.2013 chaired by Senior Chief, Regional Planning, P&D Department. The proposals of Focus Group were approved by Provincial Coordination Committee on Desertification on 11.07.2013 that was chaired by Secretary, P&D Department. The

7 8 9

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1462901118308827 https://knowledge.unccd.int/topics/sustainable-land-management-slm https://sci-hub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1462901118312565

Page 2 of 101

provincial component is to be approved by PDWP and included in the Umbrella PC-I to be prepared at the national level for seeking approval from the CDWP/ECNEC. TABLE 3 CAPITAL COST Local Component Pak Rs (In million) Government of Pakistan (PSDP) 105.43 Government of Punjab (ADP) 191.24 Government of Sindh (ADP) 200.4 Government of KP (ADP) 141.809 Government of Balochistan (ADP) 200 Community Share (In-cash/kind) 239.43 Total 1078.309 FIGURE 2 SLMP-II CAPITAL COST

Capital Cost Estimate, Local Component

Community Share (Incash/kind) 22%

Government of Pakistan (PSDP) 10%

Government of Punjab (ADP) 18%

Government of Balochistan (ADP) 18% Government of Sindh (ADP) 19%

Government of KP (ADP) 13%

Page 3 of 101

1.1

PROJECT BACKGROUND

The increase in budgetary support to ameliorate desertification and land degradation through forestry and rangeland interventions is of particular significance since presently these two sectors are not receiving any foreign grant assistance. The province of Punjab can reflect on-going projects related to Sustainable Land Management included in the ADP against the additional ‘parallel co-financing’ of US$1.5 million expected from each province. Besides that, the human resource and logistics support that Planning & Development, Forest and Agriculture Departments will provide to the project during implementation shall form a significant ‘in kind co-financing’. It was envisaged that in addition to the donor funding, provincial governments after completion of the GEF/ UNDP funded SLM programme, will allocate financial resources under their ADPs to combat Land Degradation, Desertification & Droughts (LD³) and to ensure sustainable management of land and natural resources.

1.2

PROJECT DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE

The overall objective of the project is to “ensure sustainable management of land and natural resource management in the arid and semi-arid regions of Pakistan to alleviate environmental degradation and maintain the continuous flow of ecosystem services, while increasing resilience to climate change”. The main objectives of SLMP-II: I. II.

Apply Sustainable Land Management (SLM) practices/ approaches through integrated ecosystem management; Institutionalize SLM systems at provincial, district and local level

Accordingly, the up-scaling phase of the SLMP-II ensured the sustainable management of land and natural resources in the arid and semi-arid regions of Punjab Province so that the ecosystem functionality and critical ecosystem services are enhanced. It will promote: i. ii. iii. iv.

Application of Sustainable Land Management (SLM) methods and technologies through integrated approaches; Mobilize investment to support implementation of SLM practices; Generate community level SLM funds and other means to incentivize rural farmers to adopt SLM practices; Build capacities for provincial and local government functionaries and local communities to advance SLM;

SLMP-II has direct relevance with the Forestry, Agriculture, livestock & dairy development, Soil/ Water Conservation, Climate Change, Environment Protection sectors of the province. SLMP-II supported the already planned programmes and investment outlays pertaining to these sectors in the province.

Page 4 of 101

The forestry sector is destined to increase forest cover by establishing new forest resources on public as well as private lands. The SLMP-II has direct relevance to the sectoral objective of forest management (afforestation and reforestation) by supporting the on-going programmes on land reclamation, water management and rangeland improvement. The Agriculture sector is focusing on agricultural farm management by improving productivity, post-harvest technologies, farm mechanization, introduction of technologies such as drip irrigation, tube wells, and integrated soil fertility management. SLMP-II supported the production technology by providing trainings to farmers in production technologies with specific focus on production of quality seed at local level. The rangeland management and livestock sectors are emphasizing on increasing the productivity of rangelands. An integrated approach on management of water and rangeland resources through community involvement increased the productivity of rangelands and also livestock production that shall improve community livelihoods. The water sector supported programme on construction of Mini Dams, water ponds, check dams, bunds and rehabilitation of irrigation channels to support agriculture, forestry, rangeland management and horticulture. The water conservation techniques introduced by the SLMP-II for raising forests, improving rangelands, agriculture productivity and provision of water for the livestock supported sectoral objectives. The training of local communities in Agriculture and Horticulture provided extension services to farmers.

1.3

SLMP-II OUTCOMES, OUTPUTS/ SUB-OUTPUTS, ON –

GROUND

ACTIVITIES/ PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS The SLMP-II objective was to promote sustainable management of land and natural resources in the arid and semi-arid regions of Pakistan in order to restore degraded ecosystems and their essential services, reduce poverty, and increase resilience to climate change. The Project aimed to achieve its objective through three closely interconnected and mutually reinforcing Outcomes, Out-puts and Sub Outputs as follows:

Page 5 of 101

SLMP-II Outcomes, Outputs/Sub-Outputs, On-ground Activities/ Programme Interventions are in Table 4. TABLE 4 SLMP-II ON-GROUND ACTIVITIES/ PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS Sr. Outcomes/ Outputs/Sub-Outputs Unit Quantity # Outcome - 1: Creation of Enabling Environment to Support SLM Practices Output 1.1: Policies and Institutional Framework 1.1.1

Land Use Policy for Punjab Province

No.

1.1.2

Mainstreaming SLMP in provincial policies, legal No. & regulatory framework & planning

Output 1.2: Capacity Building Programme 1

1.2.1

Capacity building of stakeholders

No.

1.2.2

Capacity building at grassroots level

No.

1,200

1.2.3

In-country Exchange Visit

No.

Output 1.3: Knowledge Management and Outreach Programme 1.3.1

Workshops/ Seminars/ Conferences on SLM

No.

1.3.2

Development and Printing of IEC Material i.e., Leaflet, Brouchers, Factsheets, Knowledge No. Products etc.

1.3.3

Provincial SLM Network & Follow-up Meetings

No.

Field Demonstration Day/ SLMP Demo in NonNo. 04 project District Student from Universities and research 1.3.5 institutions engaged for documentation and No. 03 capacity building Outcome -2: Implementation of SLM Land Use Planning & Decision Support System 1.3.4

Output 2.1: Land Use Plans 2.1.1

Village Land Use Plans

Villages

2.1.2

District Land Use Plans

Districts

Outcome – 3: On-ground Implementation of Climate-resilient SLM Activities/ Programme Interventions; Output 3.1: Community Mobilization 3

3.1.1

Community Organizations

No.

3.2.1

Construction of Water Ponds

No.

130

3.2.2

Establishment of Water Conveyance System

No.

70 Page 6 of 101

3.3.1

Grazing Management Plans

No.

Acre

2,448

Output 3.2: Integrated Soil & Water Management Rangeland Development/ Reseeding Degraded Rangeland Output 3.4: Improving Dry -land/ Desert Ecosystem 3.3.2

3.4.1

Dry-afforestation on Farmland

Acre

750

3.4.2

Establishment of Fruit Nurseries

No.

3.4.3

Agro-forestry through Shelterbelts

Av. KM

174

3.4.4

Raising of Woodlots

Acre

1,097

3.4.5

Establishment of Community Nurseries

No.

Output 3.5: Design Funding Mechanisms for Communities 3.5.1

Sustainable Business Plans

3.5.2

Community based Sustainable Management Funds (SLM Funds)

3.5.3

Public Private Partnership Projects

Land

Page 7 of 101

EVALUATION PURPOSE/ OBJECTIVE AND STRUCTURE

This evaluation was conducted by DG M&E team to provide information about the status of implementation of the SLMP II on-ground activities/ programme interventions to ensure accountability for the expenditures to date and the delivery of outputs. The evaluation assessed progress towards the achievement of the project objectives and outcomes as specified in the SLPM-II (1st Revised PC-I/ PC-IV) documents. Relevance: Relevance is concerned with assessing whether the programme/ project was the right development intervention chosen to address specific need of the people. Whether its objectives were rightly framed in accordance to state’s development plans. Relevance of the programme/ project during evaluation asses usefulness of the objectives in current scenario, and help policy makers decide on continuing similar projects or not. Following scale will be used for the analysis (Fully relevant/Substantially relevant/Moderately relevant/Partially relevant/Not relevant). Efficiency: Efficiency deals with relationship between programme/ project inputs and outputs; a project may be called an efficient intervention, if it uses minimum inputs at least available cost to obtain desired result. The aspect of efficiency will be analyzed in terms of planned objectives of on-ground activities and their outputs. The indicators of on-ground activities which are crucial for achieving the planned results and achieving the expected output will be analyzed. Following scale will be used for the analysis (Substantially efficient/Moderately efficient/Not efficient). Effectiveness: Measuring the effectiveness of the programme/ project refers to how well it fulfilled its objectives, by taking into account the effects of the projects on the beneficiaries. Hence the effectiveness of evaluation is determined by the change in observed outcome and assigning it to the intervention. Following scale will be used for the analysis (Highly effective/Moderately effective/Not effective). Sustainability: A project may fulfill all the above criteria, but if its positive impacts are not longlasting, the project loses its worthiness. Sustainability deals with availability of sufficient resources to maintain project results. It is often the most rigorous evaluation measure as it is concerned with how well a project is environmentally and financially sustainable. The sustainability will be explored through the impacts of on-ground activities to combat of desertification, applying sustainable land management eco-management system and ownership of the community during and after of the SLMP-II. Following scale will be used for the analysis (Highly sustainable/Moderately sustainable/Not sustainable). Impact: Impact is a measure of all significant development intervention, positive or negative expected or unforeseen, on its beneficiaries and other affected parties. For most Page 8 of 101

projects, it gets increasingly difficult to attribute broader effects to specific causes. Following scale will be used for the analysis (Very high/High/Medium/Low/Very low). This evaluation report is structured in sections covering purpose of project evaluation, introduction of the project and its objectives, evaluation methodology, DGM&E assessment and data analysis, observations/recommendations and lessons learnt.

2.1

EVALUATION METHODOLOGY

Evaluation has been carried out analyzing the aspects of relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, sustainability and impact of SLMP-II. The detailed methodology includes document review, field visits and data collection through questionnaire, direct observation and key informant interviews. The team followed a participatory and consultative evaluation approach and kept close contact with the SLMP-II project team, Implementing Partners and government stakeholders. The evaluation methodology mostly relied on qualitative methods. A range of qualitative methods, including document analysis, semi-structured interviews with key informants, and observations were applied to collect data. Semi-structured interviews were guided by the pool of guiding interview questions. The evaluation team considered findings as valid when they were re-affirmed by different stakeholders and became clear through the use of different methods.

TEAM COMPOSITION

In-house meeting was held in the Directorate General Monitoring & Evaluation for and the competent authority assigned the project to Mr. Muhammad Sadiq Munawar (Forest, Agriculture & Livestock Expert) and constituted the following team (Table 5). TABLE 5 TEAM COMPOSITION Sr. No. 1

Team Formation

Distrcit(s)

Tehsil(s)

Hafiz Waheed-ul-Hassan, Direct Project Management

Chakwal

• • •

Chakwal Talagang Lawa

Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

• • •

Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara

Engr. Masood Ahmad, Project Manager Mr. Muhammd Sadiq Munawar, Forest, Agriculture & Livestock Expert Mr. Ihsan Nadir, Report Writing

The site visit plan of the evaluation is attached at (Annex-I). Page 9 of 101

ii.

IDENTIFICATION OF KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS SLMP-II Key Performance was gauged on basis of following Indicators:

TABLE 6 SLMP-II KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS S. No. A 1.

B 9.

Input

Output

On-ground SLM Activities Construction Approx. 56,000 of water ponds gallons of water conserved Water Water utilized Conveyance for land system for development agri/orchids Dry Forest resource Afforestation established on Farmlands Establishment of Fruit Nurseries Agro-Forestry through Shelterbelts Woodlots wind eroded land

Indicator

Targets after Completion of Project

# of water ponds constructed

130 water ponds completed

# of water conveyance systems installed

70 systems established

# of acres of dry afforestation

750 acres of dryafforestation completed

Fruits Plants for community

# of Fruit Nurseries established

10 Nos.

Agriculture & Forest resource on farmlands Forest resource established

# of km of shelterbelts established

Shelterbelts on 174 Av. Km

# of acres of woodlots

Woodlots on 1125 acres

# of Community Nurseries established

30 Nos.

# of acres of rangeland improved

2,448 acres of rangelands improved

Provincial land use policy document prepared

01 Policy prepared

Establishment Plants for of Community community Nurseries Rehabilitation Forage for of degraded livestock Rangeland Institutional support to SLM Land Use Cohesive policy Policy for for land Punjab managers on different land uses

Page 10 of 101

S. No. A 10.

Input

Output

On-ground SLM Activities Mainstreaming SLM prioritized SLM in sectoral policies and plans.

Indicator

(a) # of key sectoral policies (agriculture, water and forests) and regulatory frameworks address desertification issues and SLM principles

Targets after Completion of Project (a) 4 studies conducted to review sectoral policies

(b) Provincial Desertification Control Cell in P& D Dept.

11.

Community Organization

12.

SLM Funds

13.

PPP projects

iii.

LD&D highlighted at local level Financial resource mobilized Private financing for SLM

# of CBOs formed

(b) Desertification Control Unit established in P&D Department CBOs established in 48 villages

# of SLM funds created

10 local level SLM funds created

# of PPP projects implemented

02 PPP projects completed

DATA COLLECTION METHODS AND SOURCE

The data has been collected through a comprehensive desk review of the relevant documents provided by the department, available literature, inspection and assessment of different components of the site/project, meeting with the beneficiaries and results of a beneficiary survey conducted during the visit to gauge the socio-economic potential/impact of the project. The list of documents reviewed in the process is (AnnexII).

Page 11 of 101

A Stratified Random sampling10 technique is used in this project evaluation for data selection. The total number of direct beneficiaries of SLMP-II on-ground activities/programme interventions. The sample size is calculated as under; TABLE 7 SAMPLE SIZE: COMPONENT WISE (NOS./ ACRES/ AV. KM)

SLMP On-ground Activities/ Unit Programme Interventions

Population

Margin Confidence Sample Sample Beneficiary of Error Level Proportion Size (Nos.)

Construction of Water Ponds Nos. Establishment of Water Conveyance Nos. System Dry-afforestation on Farmland Acres

130 70

20% 20%

90% 90%

50% 50%

16 14

750

10%

95%

50%

Establishment of Fruit Nurseries Agro-Forestry Through Shelterbelt

Nos. Av. Km

10 174

20% 10%

90% 95%

50% 50%

7 63

1611

Raising of Woodlots

Acres

1,097

10%

95%

50%

1812

Establishment of Community Nos. Nurseries Rangeland Development/ Reseeding Acres of Degraded Rangeland Community Organization (CBOs) Nos.

20%

90%

50%

2,372

10%

95%

50%

156

20%

90%

50%

456

111

Total

4,681

The primary data was collected during visit of selected farms using component wise detailed questionnaire (Annex-III) to evaluate different aspects of the SLMP-II on-ground Activities/ Programme Interventions.

10 It is a method of sampling in which population is divided into strata. Population, i.e. District wise and year wise and proportion of different strata will be fixed in selected sample. 11 12

Standard unit of three (03) Av. Km = (01) Beneficiary of Shelterbelt Standard unit of five (05) Acres = (01) Beneficiary of Woodlots

Page 12 of 101

TABLE 8 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: COMPONENT / TARGET AREA WISE District

Tehsil

Water Ponds

Water Dry Conveyance Afforestation System on Farm lands

Fruit Nurseries

Agroforestry through Shelterbelts

Woodlots

Community Nurseries

Rangeland Development

CBOs

Sample Size (Nos.)

Bhakkar

Mankera

Chakwal

Talagang

Lawa

Khushab

Nurpur Thal

Layyah

Choubara

111

Total

Page 13 of 101

FIGURE 3 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: COMPONENT/ TARGET AREA WISE

Sample Size Distribution: Component/ Target Area wise Mankera

Chakwal

Talagang CBOS

RANGELAND DEVELOPMENT

COMMUNITY NURSERIES

WATER PONDS

FRUIT NURSERIES

Choubara

AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS

WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM

Nurpur Thal

WOODLOTS

DRY AFFORESTATION ON FARM LANDS

Lawa

Page 14 of 101

FIGURE 4 SAMPLE SIZE DISTRIBUTION: TARGET AREA WISE

Sample Size Distributin: Target Area wise Mankera 12%

Choubara 22%

Chakwal 14%

Nurpur Thal 21%

Talagang 21%

Lawa 10%

Page 15 of 101

TABLE 9 PROJECT DIRECTOR(S) TILL COMPLETION S. No.

Name & Designation

Mr. Iftikhar Ali Sahoo, Secretary P&D Board/ Ex-officio 14.09.2015 Provincial Programme Director (SLMP)

28.07.2019

Mr. Imran Sikandar Baloch, Secretary P&D Board/ Ex-officio 29.07.2019 Provincial Programme Director (SLMP)

To date

From

TABLE 10 STAKEHOLDERS INTERVIEWED Sr. No.

Name

Lahore

1.1

Khalid Sultan

Designation

Ministry/ Department/ Agency

Contact #

Provincial Programme P&D Board Coordinator, SLMP-II Mr. Muhammad Kamran Assistant Chief P&D Board Saeed (SLMP-II)

042-99210005

1.3

Mr. Wajid Nawaz

0313-4696834

2 2.1

Bhakkar Mr. Muhammad Afzal

2.2

Mr. Naeem Khan

2.3

Mr. Ali Raza

2.4

Mr. Nisar Ahmad

3 3.1

3.4

Chakwal Mr. Muhammad Rafique Dogar Mr. Muhammad Ashraf Sumrah Mr. Imtiaz Hussain Siddiqui Mr. Ansar Bashir Khan

3.5 3.6

Mr. Husnain Tariq Butt Mr. Noor Muhammad

1.2

3.2 3.3

Planning (SLMP-II)

Officer P&D Board

Range Forest Officer

0321-4940000

FW&F Department Range Forest Officer FW&F Department Block Officer FW&F Department Field Unit NRSP In-charge

0302-9400097

Director

BARI

0300-7692769

Horticulturist

BARI

0302-6306557

Divisional Forest FW&F Officer Department Range Forest Officer FW&F Department Sub Divisional Officer ABAD Sub Divisional Officer ABAD

0347-6226428 0345-7641089 0307-2223902

0333-5101332 0333-1569603 0321-5275592 0324-5113498 Page 16 of 101

3.7 3.8

Malik Shaukat Hayat Mr. Ahmad Sher

3.9

Mr. Shehzad Gul

3.10 Raja Munir Hussain 3.11 Ms. Mubeen Almas 4 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 5 5.1 5.2 5.3

Khushab Mr. Nasim Iqbal Butt

Sub-Engineer Assistant Director (Soil Conservation) Assistant Director (Soil Conservation) Regional Programme Officer Social Organizer

ABAD Agriculture Department Agriculture Department NRSP

0323-5520795 0333-5528022

NRSP

0302-8582949

Divisional Forest FW&F Officer Department Mr. Umar Farooq Range Forest Officer FW&F Department Mr. Sultan Sikandar Block Officer FW&F Department Mr. Naseer Ahmad Accountant FW&F Department Mr. Muhammad Atteeq Assistant Accountant FW&F Department Mr. Muhammad Anwar Assistant FW&F Sheikh Department Ms. Parveen Akhtar Senior Social NRSP Organizer Mr. Munir Ahmad Social Organizer NRSP Layyah Mr. Nadeem Ashraf Divisional Forest FW&F Waraich Officer Department Mr. Ghulam Murtaza District Coordinator NRSP Sheikh Ms. Iqbal Bano Social Organizer NRSP

0300-6767929 0300-5557388

0300-6184623 0300-4521141 0300-8526448 0301-5698143 0301-1217504 0301-6770964 0307-2224399 0300-9548596 0313-5820996 0301-8580128 0335-6335208

Page 17 of 101

TABLE 11 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS PRESIDENTS STAKEHOLDERS INTERVIEWED Sr. President Name #

CBO

Village

Tehsil

District

CNIC Number

Contact No.

Ghazanfar Abbas

Khew

Mankera

Bhakkar

38101-5257622-5

03465527591

Muhammad Akhtar

Yara Sulha

Mankera

38104-0841621-3

03456803145

Haji Muhammad

Dagar Kotli

Mankera

38104-0813142-3

03457983126

Allam Khan

Bumb

Gohar Wala

Mankera

Sadat Ali

Lakhwal

Lakwal

Chakwal

Muhammad Dilawar

Lakhwal

Muhammad Iqbal

Lakhwal

Taj Muhammad

03025038395 37201-0880527-3

03348561701

Chakwal

37201-1627101-1

03350530454

Lakhwal

Chakwal

37203-5223920-5

03465778051

Dokh Landi

Talagang

37203-6548505-7

03445767403

Muhammad Jala

Aas Dokh Killa

Talagang

37203-7732209-7

03465778051

Kousar Sultan

Goohal

Thoha Khuran Khan Goohal

Talagang

37203-1478590-4

03319600514

Shaukat Ai

Addhi Kot-III

Adhi Kot

Noorpur Thal

Khushab 37201-2132209-7

03014570532

Muhammad Mumtaz

Rahdari

Noorpur Thal

37203-7732123-7

03460602506

Allah Dita

37203-2345678-7

03466584100

Muhammad Yaqoob

Rakh Nawa Jadeed Patti Kheran

37203-6789123-7

03468762436

Kot Rakh Nawa Jadeed Patti Kheran

Kot Choubara Choubara

Chakwal

Layyah

Page 18 of 101

iv.

DATA ANALYSIS

The survey yielded quantitative and qualitative information on various indicators associated with design, inputs, outputs and implementation. Following analysis has been carried out for the analysis; Data Analysis: A scientific and explanatory approach has been used to describe the project interventions and its intended benefits. The physical validation of the sample was the key to validate as well as analyze the output of on-ground activities and programme interventions. The field survey helped to analyze the perception and motivation of the community members to partner in-kind contribution to avail SLMP-II on-ground support for plantation on their unused marginalized land. The statistical analysis helped the evaluation team analyze the SLMP-II on-ground Activates/ Programme Interventions and its desired outputs. The analysis also identified the success or failure factors associated with the project design and implementation.

2.2

DATA LIMITATIONS

The DG M&E Team faced limitations during data collection: •

•

2.3

Because, of scattered and large geographic spread of the Project target areas, it was decided that sample will be calculated on 90% confidence level with 20% margin of error. However, it was ensured that no geographical area as well as operational activity should be missed. Although an Umbrella PC-I was prepared at national level, but scope of our report is Punjab component.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATION

The Evaluation was conducted in-line with the UN Ethical Guidelines for Evaluation. During the Evaluation process, the following ethical considerations had been observed: • • •

2.4

The purpose of the Evaluation was explained to participants. The participation was voluntary and participants had the right to withdraw from it at any part of the Evaluation process. Informed consent of participants was obtained and privacy, confidentiality were maintained.

The DGM&E office has the copyright on all the documents collected and produced as part of this Evaluation report.

Page 19 of 101

DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS

The project was assessed based on the available documents, beneficiary survey, input from SLMP-II team, Implementing Partner (IPs) interviews (Table 11). TABLE 12 EXECUTING AGENCY: ON-GROUND ACTIVITY/ PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS Sr. No.

Activity No. On-ground Activity/ Executing Agency Programme Intervention

A. 1

On-ground SLM Activities/ Programme Interventions 3.2.1 Construction of water ponds Agency for Barani Development (ABAD) 3.2.2

Area

Water Conveyance system for Agency for Barani Area agri/orchids Development (ABAD) Dry-afforestation on Farmlands Forest Wildlife & Fisheries Department, GoP

2 3

3.4.1

3.4.2

Fruit Nurseries for farmers

Forest Wildlife Department, GoP

Fisheries

3.4.3

Fisheries

3.4.4

Fisheries

3.4.5

Agro-Forestry through Forest Wildlife Shelterbelts Department, GoP Woodlots wind eroded land Forest Wildlife Department, GoP Community Nurseries for Forest Wildlife farmers Department, GoP

Fisheries

3.3.2

B 1

Rehabilitation of degraded Forest Wildlife & Fisheries Rangeland Department, GoP 3.3.1 Grazing management plans Forest Wildlife & Fisheries Department, GoP Institutional support to SLMP-II 1.1.1 Land Use Policy for Punjab NCU, Islamabad/ MOCC

1.1.2

Mainstreaming SLM

NCU, Islamabad/ MOCC

3.1.1

Community Organization

1.2.1 & 1.2.2

Capacity building

National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Chakwal

2.1.1 & 2.1.2

Land Use Plans

NCU, Islamabad/ MOCC/ PCU

3.5.2

SLM Funds

NCU, Islamabad/ MOCC/ PCU

3.5.3

PPP projects*

NCU, Islamabad/ MOCC/ PCU

Pictorial evidence of field survey visits is attached in (Annex-IV). Page 20 of 101

3.1

CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS

The uncontrolled grazing has further aggravated the process of soil erosion in the area. The soil erosion was to be checked by constructing low cost lose stone masonry structures to regulate the water runoff which will ultimately be collected in the water pond. The establishment of watering points in the form of water ponds at different locations within around a village was essential tool to regulate grazing within any village. It was also to re-charge underground water in the area. The water ponds were also to be constructed for the storage of rain water which was to be used for the domestic consumption of the local communities and livestock. The local community was to support the activity by contributing 20% of the total cost in the form of labour and finances for the construction of water ponds and lose stone masonry structures. A total of 130 water ponds for livestock, soil and water conservation and for raising agriculture crop/ fruit orchards were to be constructed at selected sites in Tehsil Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (Formerly Talagang). TABLE 13 TARGET: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS

Component

Construction of Water Ponds

District

Chakwal

Target as per PC-I (Nos.)

Tehsil

Target Achieved as per PC-IV (Nos.)

Target Achieved (%)

Chakwal

100.00%

Talagang

100.00%

Lawa

100.00%

0.00%

130

123

94.62%

Work in Process Total

TABLE 14 SAMPLE SIZE: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS District Chakwal

Tehsil Chakwal Talagang Lawa

Total

Sample Size (Nos.) 5 6 5

Beneficiaries (Nos.) 5 6 5

Page 21 of 101

FIGURE 5 SAMPLE SIZE: CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS

Sample Size

31%

38% Chakwal

Talagang

Lawa

Team of DG M&E visited the 16 sites of water pond constructed in district Chakwal (Chakwal, Talagan & Lawa) Detail attached. Following observation were noted during field visits. As per received list from representative of SLMP-II, construction work of 123 water ponds have been completed while work in progress on 7 sites. On the other hand, the data provided by SDO ABAD there is mentioned that Construction of 98 Water ponds have been completed so far by Soil Conservation Department through ABAD and work on 7 ponds are in progress which will be completed by June, 2021. Contradiction in numbers need to be clarified. Moreover, for construction of water pond Rs. 39.69 Million has been released so far and the same amount have been utilized by ABAD. Physical progress is given below; TABLE 15 CONSTRUCTION OF WATER PONDS Component Assigned Targets (by December, 2020) (Nos.) GEF PSDP ADP 17 Water ponds

Completed ABAD (Nos.) Total 98

Assigned Targets (up to June, 2021) GEF PSDP

ADP

Total

98 In progress

07 105

Page 22 of 101

It was briefed that initially construction of 22 (Nos.) water ponds were executed by Forest Department & On Farm Water Management at cost of Rs.640 Million. ABAD was involved in execution of Soil and Water component under SLMP-II Project in September, 2017.

The rates of the subsidy were also revised in the PC-I. Summary is given below; TABLE 16 COST ESTIMATE OF WATER POND Subsidy by ABAD by (September, 2017) & Original Revised (2017-19) (2019-20)

Component

Initial Execution

Subsidy Forest OFWM

Water Pond

Forest Department (2015-2017)

Rs.6,40,000/-

Rs.3,15,000/-

Rs.5,40,000/-

As per Revised (PC-I), the local community was responsible to identify the site for water pond with the support of technical team of the project. The Agency for Barani Areas Development (ABAD) was executing agency of the activity in field with the support of other line department(s). On the question how to select the site of water pond and its implementation procedure, SDO, ABAD briefed that at first stage, technical team of ABAD carried out the survey and feasibility study of the site as per resolution passed by CBO, then survey and feasibility reports are being conveyed to Soil Conservation Department for preparation of rough cost estimate. He explained that Technical section of the ABAD vetted the estimates and drawings of the proposed intervention. Construction work at site was done under overall supervision of ABAD and Soil Conservation Department. On enquiring the compaction mechanism to be adopted for earth filling, it was informed by representative from ABAD that compaction of the earth filling has been done layer wise and each layer compacted by using tractor trolley. It was observed that quality control tests for earth filling (Proctor test, FDT, etc.) were not performed on all visited sites of Water ponds as these ponds have been constructed without adopting the standard mechanism of compaction. Therefore, the quality of the work cannot be ensured without knowing the compaction test results.

Page 23 of 101

3.2

WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM FOR AGRICULTURE/ ORCHIDS

Besides the efficacy of water ponds for conserving water for livestock, recharging aquifer, reducing water runoff, etc. they also have limited potential for irrigating adjoining land for raising fruit orchard or one seasonal agriculture crop. The water ponds to be constructed during the project period were to be connected with a series of pipes and connectors to improve the efficiency of water supply for preferably establishing low delta fruit plants or agriculture crop. The requisite water conveyance systems will be established on water ponds to be constructed under the project in Tehsil Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (Formerly Talagang) and/ or any potential site based on the feasibility study/ report. A total of 70 number water conveyance systems were to be established to raise agriculture crop/ orchard on uncultivated land. The Agency for Barani Areas Development (ABAD) was engaged to execute the activity with the support of other line department(s). TABLE 17 TARGET: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM Target as per PC-I (Nos.)

Component

District

Tehsil

Water Conveyance System

Chakwal Chakwal Talagang Lawa Work in Process

13 34 19 4 70

Target Target Achieved as per Achieved PC-IV (Nos.) (%) 13 100.00% 34 100.00% 19 100.00% 0 0.00% 66 94.29%

TABLE 18 SAMPLE SIZE: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM District

Tehsil Chakwal

Chakwal

Talagang Lawa

Total

Sample Size Beneficiaries (Nos.) (Nos.) 3 3 6 6 5

Page 24 of 101

FIGURE 6 SAMPLE SIZE: WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM

Sample Size

21% 36%

43%

Chakwal

Talagang

Lawa

Team of DG M&E visited the 14 sites of establishment of water conveyance system situated in District Chakwal. As per approved PC-I, 80% of the total cost has been given as subsidy to the farmers for the said intervention. Moreover, as per information/data provided by ABAD, Rs. 21.03 Million has been released so far and the same amount have been utilized. TABLE 19 COST ESTIMATE OF WATER CONVEYANCE SYSTEM Subsidy by ABAD Subsidy by (September, 2017) Forest & OFWM Original Revised (2017-19) (2019-20)

Component

Initial Execution

Water Conveyance System

On-Farm Water Management Rs.4,56,656/(2015-2017)

Rs.2,98,000/- Rs.4,50,000/-

The decision to raise agriculture crop or fruit orchard will be taken on the basis of quantum of water available for the intervention and feasibility of site. The local community was to support the activity by contributing 20% of the total cost as in-kind contribution. As per received data from representative of SLMP-II and ABAD, work on 66 sites of establishment of water conveyance system has been completed while on 4 sites, work in progress.

Page 25 of 101

3.3

DRY-AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS

Vegetative cover improvement through rain water harvesting techniques was quite useful in stabilizing fragile slopes during the initial phase of the project. The fuel wood, fodder and wood obtained from the unproductive land were an additional source of income for the farmers. The activity was replicated in this phase with the addition that besides the tree species, fruit trees were also to be planted. The main tree species to be planted were Acacia modesta (Phulai), Acacia nilotica (Kikar), A. albida, Meliaaza dirachta (Bakain), Albizzi alebback (Siris), Zizyphus numilarea (Ber), etc., based on soil condition. The locally adopted fruit plants like olive, loqat, etc may also be planted, if feasible. The rain water harvesting techniques to be demonstrated for establishing vegetative cover was included; semicircular micro-catchments and contour bunds. The project was to support the earthwork for Afforestation purposes; however, protection and maintenance of plants was the responsibility of the community. The local community had to support the activity by contributing 20% of the total cost as in-kind contribution. The Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Department executed the activity in field with the support of CO’s or other line department(s). A minimum limit of 10 acres of contiguous unit of land was fixed to partially support this activity. It would be practically impossible to support decentralized smaller units of land. A total area of 750 acres (303 ha) was to be planted. TABLE 20 TARGET: DRY – AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS

Component District

Target as per PC-I (Acres)

Tehsil

Target Achieved as per PCIV (Acres)

Target Achieved (%)

Bhakkar

Dry-Afforestation

Mankera Chakwal Chakwal Talagang Lawa Khushab Nurpur Thal Layyah Choubara Work in Process

64 530 156

100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

0 750

100.00%

A minimum limit of 10 acres of contiguous unit of land was fixed to partially support this activity. It would be practically impossible to support decentralized smaller units of land. A total area of 750 acres (303 ha) was to be planted. TABLE 21 SAMPLE SIZE: DRY – AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS District Chakwal

Chakwal

Sample Size (Acres.) 30

Actual Size (Acres) 45

Talagang Lawa

30 26

100 74

Beneficiaries (Nos.) 1 1 1

219

Tehsil

Total

Page 26 of 101

FIGURE 7 SAMPLE SIZE: DRY-AFFORESTATION ON FARMLANDS

Sample Size

Lawa 33%

Chakwal 34%

Talagang 33% Chakwal

Talagang

Lawa

Dry afforestation site in UC Mangen, Village Lakhwal, district Chakwal was visited by the team of DG ME. Intervention was introduced on the land of Muhammad Sadiq, Ahmed Khan and Naeem Akhtar. They have combined land of 45 acres. Second site for dry afforestation was visited in Village Bhilomar, Tehsil Talagan. Interventions was introduced on 100 acres of combined land of 5 Farmers. Another site for verification of dry afforestation was visited in Village Mangwal. In this village intervention was developed in 74 acres of land of Mr. Muhammad Amir.

Page 27 of 101

3.4

FRUIT NURSERIES FOR FARMERS

A major demand of farmers in the Potohar tract was to provide fruit plants at decentralized locations. The main beneficiaries were farmers with smaller land holdings. Accordingly, to support the farmers with small land holdings assorted fruit plants will be raised in farmer nurseries. A nursery farmer was to be selected by the COs. The farmer was to raise and maintain the plants with the support of staff of Barani Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Chakwal. The farmer was provided land and make water available for the nursery. CBOs were responsible for disposal of fruit plants and maintenance of nursery record. BARI and NRSP mobilized CBOs for orchard development and BARI also helped in capacity building of fruit plant growers through training of the farmers. The project provided raising cost of the plants up to a maximum of 80% of the total cost whereas remaining 20% cost was to be borne by the CBO’s/ CO’s. The nursery farmer was to distribute 80% of the planting stock among the small farmers at the raising cost. The amount recovered by the nursery farmer was to be deposited into the CBO’s/ CO’s account to raise new plants in community nurseries on need basis in future. The remaining 20% of the planting stock were to be utilized by the nursery farmer in lieu of services provided towards provision of land, water and maintenance of plants. Technical team of the project/ BARI was to provide on the job guidance to the nursery farmer in raising 10 nurseries to produce upto 100,000 plants (upto 10,000 plants per nursery) in tehsil Chakwal, Talagang and Lawa (Formerly Talagang) of district Chakwal. Hence, the number of plants may vary according to different fruit plant species and approved schedule of rates. Indigenous fruit plants of Pothowar region i.e. Pomegranate, Fig, Falsa and Sweet Orange (Mitha) may be included along with the fruit plants already mentioned in the list. Efforts where be made to develop protocols for certification of fruit nurseries and possibility of validation of protocols were to be explored depending upon cost implications. TABLE 22 TARGET: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES

Component

District

Establishment of Fruit Nurseries on Farmlands

Chakwal

Tehsil

Target As per PC-I (Nos.)

Target Achieved as per PCIV (Nos.)

Target Achieved (%)

Chakwal

100.00%

Talagang

6 10

100.00% 100.00%

The fruit nurseries were to be raised under the supervision of Barani Agriculture Research Institute (BARI), Chakwal with the support of CO’s or other line department(s). BARI Chakwal provided technical facilities for capacity building and basic infrastructure of fruit plant nurseries to be developed under the command of CO’s. Nurseries have been established by BARI in the villages or faraway from main town due to which there was no sale of fruit plants or ornamental flowers at their places. Moreover, these nurseries found at initial stage for commercial point of view. Page 28 of 101

TABLE 23 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES District Chakwal

Tehsil Chakwal Talagang

Sample Size (Nos.) 2 5

Beneficiaries (Nos.) 2 5

Total

FIGURE 8 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF FRUIT NURSERIES

Sample Size 29% 71%

Chakwal

Talagang

Mr. Muhammad Farhan Gull was running a small size of nursery which he initially established with the help of BARI under SLMP-II in his village Chak Malook and recently shifted on Behkri Road, Chakwal for commercial sales of fruit plants as well as ornamental flowers. He was earning 10,000 to 12000 per month. He added due to corona pandemic, the business has suffered a lot but hoped that the sale of plants will increase in future. He stated that he also attended trainings and workshop regarding establishment of Fruit Nurseries which were held in BARI. Khalil Ur Rehamn was running a nursery in Mulhal Mughlan which was established under CBO, Narveen. He also shifted the nursery on main road for commercial sale of fruit plants as well as ornamental plants. He informed that he is not getting enough income from this business due to lockdown for corona pandemic. Bilal Asfar was running his nursery in Jhatla. It was observed that he has developed his own grapes orchard from nursery at commercial level and he is earning 4 to 5 lacs every year. Representative from BARI briefed that he has revolutionized his business with the support of BARI under SLMP-II. He added that many other farmers of the area inspired by him and follow him to grow the business of grapes. The need to promote a sustainable land management (SLM) approach for Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN) is a global challenge, and SLMP must rely on local assessments of how rural participants are conducting their work. Therefore, SLMP should promote plantation of the fruit tree species. The results of a research study published in Environmental Science & Policy13 revealed that the productive success is based on the knowledge and ability of the fruit farmers to take advantage of bioclimatic and biophysical conditions for fruit cultivation. It was demonstrated in approximately 90% of the analyzed cases that the producer’s SLM was between regular and excellent. 13

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1462901118308827

Page 29 of 101

3.5

AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS

Establishment of shelterbelts along the boundaries of crop fields help to reduce injuries to the tender seedlings from sand blasting and hot desiccating winds. On about 174 Avenue Kilometer in tehsil Nurpur Thal of district Khushab, tehsil Mankera of district Bhakkar and tehsil Chaubara of district Layyah agro-forestry practice through shelterbelts was established. TABLE 24 TARGET: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS Component AgroForestry through Shelterbelts

District

Target As per PC-I (Av. Km)

Tehsil

Bhakkar

Mankera Nurpur Khushab Thal Layyah Choubara Work in Process Total

Target Achieved (Av. Km)

Target Achieved (%)

100.00%

61 68 22 174

61 68 0 152

100.00% 100.00% 0.00% 87.36%

To evaluate Sample size of 63 Av. Km (Table 5), 16 Beneficiaries (Table 6) were interviewed as follows: TABLE 25 SAMPLE SIZE: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS District Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

Tehsil Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara Total

Sample Size (Av. Km) 9 26 28 63

Beneficiaries (Nos.) 2 6 8 16

FIGURE 9 SAMPLE SIZE: AGRO-FORESTRY THROUGH SHELTERBELTS

Sample Size 12% 50% 38%

Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Page 30 of 101

TABLE 26 SPECIES PLANTED

Species as per PC-I

Species in Actual

Plantation (%)

Tamarix xaphylla Acacia tortilis A. albida Prosopis juliflora Zizyphus numularia Albizzia lebbek Eucalyptus

Tamarix xaphylla

Eucalyptus

100%

Effort were made to grow at least three rows of trees across-the-wind on 30’ wide belt with rows of trees 10’ apart, grown in pits. On the basis of analysis of field data collection, it was found that among other species mentioned in PC-I, Eucalyptus and Tamarix xaphylla were planted. TABLE 27 PETER ENGINE WITH ALL ACCESSORIES District

Tehsil

Yes

Bhakkar

Mankera

Khushab

Nurpur Thal

Layyah

Choubara

Total 16

FIGURE 10 PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES

Peter Engine with Accessories Yes

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Bhakkar

Khushab

Layyah

Page 31 of 101

Peter engines along with accessories were provided for raising of shelterbelts on private farms through community organizations. During field visit, community members who were received peter engines with all accessories were interviewed. TABLE 28 SATISFACTION LEVEL Neutral

Satisfactory

Not Satisfactory

District

Tehsil

Bhakkar

Mankera

Khushab

Nurpur Thal

Layyah

Choubara

Total

The digging of water bore and clearance of land was the responsibility of the farmer. Whereas, raising of shelterbelt on farm lands was the responsibility of the Forest Department by adopting its departmental procedures. As the component was executed jointly by the Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Department with the support of CO’s and other line department(s) so satisfaction level of the community was evaluated. FIGURE 11 SATISFACTION LEVEL

Satisfaction Level of Beneficaries Satisfactory 5

Neutral

Not Satisfactory

4 4

3 3

2 2 1

1 0

Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Bhakkar

Khushab

Layyah

Page 32 of 101

3.6

WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS

The woodlots established on the leeward side of the dune; in case the land was not productive to grow agriculture crop. The woodlots were established using locally improvised irrigation system commonly known as ‘Tiba Planting Technique’. Based on the site condition and availability of water over an area of 1,097 acres (444 ha) the woodlots were established in tehsil Nurpur Thal of district Khushab, tehsil Mankera of district Bhakkar and tehsil Chaubara of district Layyah. TABLE 29 TARGET: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS Target As per PC-I (Acres)

Component

District

Tehsil

AgroForestry through Shelterbelts

Bhakkar

Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara Total

Khushab Layyah

Target Achieved (Acres)

Target Achieved (%)

265

155

58.49%

571 261 1097

571 261 987

100.00% 100.00% 89.97%

To evaluate Sample size of 89 Acres, 18 Beneficiaries were interviewed as follows: TABLE 30 SAMPLE SIZE: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS District Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

Tehsil Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara

Sample Size (Acres) 20 45 24

Beneficiaries (Nos.) 4 9 5

Total FIGURE 12 SAMPLE SIZE: WOODLOTS WIND ERODED LANDS

Sample Size 22%

28%

50% Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Page 33 of 101

As per PC-I, with a minimum of 450 trees/ shrubs per acre based on the site condition Woodlots were to be established on sand dunes by planting tall and fast-growing plant species like Tamarix aphylla, Acacia tortilis, A. albida, Prosopis juliflora, Zizyphus numularia, Albizzia lebbek and Eucalyptus Sp. (for marginal land) along with other indigenous species. TABLE 31 SPECIES PLANTED Species as per PC-I Tamarix xaphylla Acacia tortilis A. albida Prosopis juliflora Zizyphus numularia Albizzia lebbek Eucalyptus

Species in Actual Tamarix xaphylla

Plantation (%) 04%

Eucalyptus

96%

On the basis of analysis of field data collection, it was found that among other species mentioned in PC-I, Eucalyptus and Tamarix xaphylla were planted. As per PC-I, one (01) water bore and peter engine were to be provided to cover planted area of five (05) acres. Peter and/ or Solar operated engines along with accessories were to be used for raising of shelterbelts on private farms. TABLE 32 WOODLOTS – PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES District Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

Tehsil Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara

Yes

Total

No 4 9 5 18

0 0 0 0

Only Peter engines along with accessories were provided for establishing of woodlots on private farms through community organizations. During field visit, community members who received peter engines with all accessories were interviewed (Table 22, Figure 9).

Page 34 of 101

FIGURE 13 WOODLOTS – PETER ENGINE WITH ACCESSORIES

Peter Engine with Accessories Yes

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Bhakkar

Khushab

Layyah

The digging of water bore & clearance of land shall be the responsibility of the concerned Farmer. As the component was executed jointly by the Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Department with the support of CO’s and other line department(s) so satisfaction level of the community was evaluated.

Page 35 of 101

TABLE 33 SATISFACTION LEVEL District Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

Tehsil Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara Total

Satisfactory

Neutral 2 5 3 10

Not Satisfactory 1 2 1 4

1 2 1 4

FIGURE 14 SATISFACTION LEVEL

Satisfation level of Beneficaries Mankera

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

6 5

5 4

3 2

0 Satisfactory

Neutral

Not Satisfactory

Page 36 of 101

3.7

COMMUNITY NURSERIES FOR FARMERS

A major observation made during the pilot phase was that farmers with smaller land holdings did not have opportunity for becoming tree/ fruit planters. Accordingly, community nurseries shall be established at project sites in next phase of the project. A total of one million assorted plants of different types including indigenous species i.e., Frash, Ber, Acacia albida, Siris, etc. were to be raised in 30 nurseries (22,250 plants per nursery) in tehsil Nurpur Thal of district Khushab, tehsil Mankera of district Bhakkar and tehsil Chaubara of district Layyah. TABLE 34 TARGET: ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY NURSERIES

Component

Community Nurseries

District

Tehsil

Bhakkar

Mankera Nurpur Thal Choubara

Khushab Layyah Total

Target as per PC-I Nos.)

Target Target Achieved as Achieved per PC-IV (%) (Nos.) 6 5 83.33%

15 9 30

14 8 27

93.33% 88.89% 90.00%

A nursery farmer was to be selected by the CO through resolutions. The project was to provide raising cost of the plants upto a maximum of 80% of the total cost whereas remaining 20% cost to be borne by the CO as in-kind contribution. No record of cost sharing was provided to evaluation by department and CO. TABLE 35 SAMPLE SIZE: ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY NURSERIES District Bhakkar Khushab Layyah

Tehsil Sample Size (Nos.) Beneficiaries (Nos.) Mankera 1 1 Nurpur Thal 6 6 Choubara 5 5 12 12 Total

CBO was to maintain a nursery register for disposal of the nursery plants. During file survey visit it was observed that no nursery register was maintained by CBO. 20% share of the sale amount was to be deposited in the account of Nursery grower/ farmer and remaining 80% in CBO account for its utilization on task mutually decided by the CBO. During filed survey visit it was observed that no such instructions were followed. Fruit plants may also be raised in the nursery to attain better returns from the nursery.

Page 37 of 101

3.8

REHABILITATION OF DEGRADED RANGELANDS

The rehabilitation of rangeland area had to be accomplished through soil working and reseeding with palatable grasses. The management of rangeland had to be improved through controlled grazing. Range rehabilitation, including soil working and range reseeding had to be done on a total of 2,448 acres (990 ha) of farmlands/ state land in all tehsils of the project in district Bhakkar, Chakwal and Layyah. TABLE 36 TARGET: REHABILITATION OF DEGRADED RANGELANDS Component

Rangeland Development

District

Tehsil

Bhakkar

Mankera Chakwal Lawa Nurpur Thal Choubara

Chakwal Khushab Layyah

Target As per PC-I (Acres) 746.00 150.00 772.00 76.00 704.00 2,448.00

Target Achieved as per PC-IV (Acres) 746.00 150.00 772.00 14.00 704.00 2,386.00

Target Achieved (%) 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 18.42% 100.00% 97.47%

Objectives of the practice were rehabilitation of degraded rangelands through participatory approach; devise a better management plan for the area and better management of rangeland through involvement of all stakeholders. The main natural grass species to be reseeded were include Dhaman, Gorgha, etc. Besides that, leguminous plants were also to be broadcasted. The project had partially to support the earth work for reseeding, however, collection of seed, broadcasting and control over utilization was responsibility of the community. The local community had to support the activity by contributing 20% of the total cost as inkind contribution. During review of the document it was noted that Rs. 33.565 Million were utilize over the project period for rangeland development on state lands. But during the field visit, participation of CBO was not observed and implementing partner also did not provide the relevant documents. As demarcations was not done so it was difficult for DG M&E Evaluation Team to identify the reseeded area of rangelands at project target sites. During site visit GPS coordinates record was also not made available by department representatives. Research study14 results show that satellite-derived land productivity indicators are successful at detecting the impacts of SLM practices on primary productivity, positioning them as essential elements of the monitoring and assessment tools needed to track land condition to assure the achievement of a land degradation neutral world. The activity had to be executed by the Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Department with the support of CO or other line department(s) but active was fully executed on state lands. 14

Conservation Approaches and Technologies sustainable land management database https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1462901118306543

Page 38 of 101

3.9

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS (CBOS)

The project had to follow a community-based approach. All project activities from planning to execution and aftercare had to be managed with the active support of the local communities. But during field visits it was observed that coordination among community organizations, implementing partners and SLPM-II was partially satisfactory. A setup for social organization of the community was established at grassroots level. SLMP-II established or revived 48 COs in accordance with the requirement. But during field visits it was observed that revival of a community organization was causing mistrust among community members. During interviews, conflict of interest was also observed, because many of the beneficiaries were either family member or blood relative of the president. TABLE 37 TARGET: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

Component

District

Bhakkar

Community Organizations

Chakwal

Tehsil

Target As per PC-I Nos.)

Target Target Achieved as Achieved per PC-IV (%) (Nos.)

Mankera

10.00

100.000%

Chakwal

7.00

100.000%

11.00

100.000%

10.00

100.00%

10.00

100.00%

48.00

100.00%

Talagang Nurpur Khushab Thal Layyah Total

Choubara

TABLE 38 SAMPLE SIZE: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS Sample Size (Nos.) District 3 Bhakkar 3 Chakwal 3 Talagang 2 Khushab 2 Layyah Total 13

All communications between the Implementing Partners (IP’s) and Community had to be done through CBO resolutions and documented in CBOs meeting minutes (Karwai Page 39 of 101

Register). A Terms of Partnership (ToP) was finalized and signed between the IP’s and the CBO. TABLE 39 CBOS - EDUCATION LEVEL OF PRESIDENT Middle

District

Matric

Intermediate

Bhakkar

Chakwal

Bachelors 1

Khushab

Layyah Total

FIGURE 15 CBOS – EDUCATION LEVEL

EDUCATION OF CBO PRESIDENT Middle

Matric

Intermediate

Bachelors

1 1

2 1 1 2

2 1

BHA K K A R

CHA K WA L

K HU SHA B

LA Y Y A H

Page 40 of 101

The aspect of gender mainstreaming in promoting SLM should had to be considered. Wherever, possible around 20% female participation in implementation of the pilot intervention had to be ensured but on the basis of field visits and data analysis it was found 15%. TABLE 40 CBOS – RESOLUTIONS PRESENTED BY WOMEN Resolutions presented in CBO

District Bhakkar Chakwal Khushab Layyah Total

Resolutions presented by Women members of CBO

41 87 46 34 208

5 13 9 5 32

FIGURE 16 CBOS – RESOLUTIONS PRESENTED BY WOMEN

Resolutions Presented By Women 100 87

90 80 70 60 50 40

30 20 10

13 5

0 Bhakkar

Chakwal

Resolutions presented in CBO

Khushab

Layyah

Resolutions presented by Women members

A setup for social organization of the community was established at grassroots level. SLMP-II established or revived 48 COs in accordance with the requirement. SLMP-II engaged National Rural Support Programme (NRSP) to do Social Organization since the organization of local communities had to significantly increase to a considerable level. Page 41 of 101

The existence of COs even after completion of the project had to be ensured for sustenance of the SLM activities in the future. TABLE 41 CBOS – COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SATISFACTION LEVEL Satisfactory

District Bhakkar Chakwal Khushab Layyah Total

Not Satisfactory 2 4 1 1

1 1 1 1

FIGURE 17 CBOS – SLMP-II TEAM AND IMPLEMENTING PARTNER’S (IPS) SUPPORT

SLMP-II Team suport to CBOs Satisfactory

Not Satisfactory

2.5 2

1.5 1

0.5 0 Mankera

Chakwal

Talagang

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

During field visits it was observed that revival of a community organization was causing mistrust among community members. During interviews, conflict of interest was also observed, because many of the beneficiaries were either family member or blood relative of the president.

Page 42 of 101

TABLE 42 CBOS – REFLECTION FROM THE FIELD Neutral

Satisfactory

Not Satisfactory

District

Tehsil

Bhakkar

Mankera

Chakwal

Talagang

Khushab

Lawa Nurpur Thal

Layyah

Choubara

Total FIGURE 18 REFLECTION FROM THE FIELD

Reflection from the Field Satisfactory

Neutral

Not Satisfactory

25 21 20 15 10 5

18 13 9

7 2

4 1

Talagang

Lawa

0 Mankera

Chakwal

Nurpur Thal

Choubara

Above mentioned analysis is reflection from the field and shows response of beneficiaries as satisfactory (87 Nos.), neutral (08 Nos.) and not satisfactory (16 Nos.). Evidence of empirical studies15 show that when it is necessary to promote sustainable land management practices and to stimulate smallholder farmers to adopt such practices in isolation or combination, specific strategies should be designed to improve awareness, build positive attitudes, reduce risk aversion, strengthen formal organizations, and empower endogenous groups (or informal institutions).

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/9/2963

Page 43 of 101

3.10 TIME ANALYSIS Planned gestation period in original PC-I was sixty (60) months. But, in first revision it was increased to 72 months, not making change in total cost. TABLE 43 TIME ANALYSIS Sr. No. 1

Planned Gestation Planned Gestation Period Planned Gestation Period (Original) (1st Revision) Period (Actual) Nos. Nos. Nos. (Months) 60 72 72

FIGURE 19 TIME ANALYSIS

Time Analysis 74 72

70 68 66 64 62 60

58 56 54

Planned Gestation Period Planned Gestation Period Planned Gestation Period (Original) Nos. (1st Revision) Nos. (Actual) Nos.

Page 44 of 101

3.11 PROJECT COST ANALYSIS SLMP-II, Cost analysis that described the status of PC-I Phasing, Allocation, Releases and Utilizations is as follows; TABLE 44 PC-1 PHASING, ALLOCATION, RELEASES AND UTILIZATION PC-I Phasing Year 201516 201617 201718 201819 201920 202021 Total

Allocation

Releases

Expenditure

(Rs. in Million)

Total

FE/ Grant

Total

FE/ Grant

Total

FE/ Grant

Total

FE/ Grant

4.080

3.772

4.080

3.772

4.080

3.772

4.080

3.772

52.837

5.329

52.837

5.329

52.837

5.329

52.837

5.329

91.051

25.956

91.051

25.956

91.051

25.956

91.051

25.956

70.616

19.584

61.830

15.976

61.830

15.976

61.830

15.976

128.095

35.258

63.676

5.714

63.676

5.714

63.676

5.714

73.206

33.153

31.452

0.709

25.233

0.709

346.679

89.900

346.700 89.900

304.930 57.460

298.710 57.460

Page 45 of 101

FIGURE 20 PC-I PHASING, ALLOCATION, RELEASES AND UTILIZATION PC-I PHASING, ALLOCATION, RELEASES AND UTILIZATION Allocation

Releases

Expenditure

63.676

61.83

25.233

4.08

31.452

52.837

61.83

70.616

73.206

91.051

128.095

PC-I Phasing

2015-16

2016-17

2017-18

2018-19

2019-20

2020-21

Page 46 of 101

SLMP-II, Item wise Cost Analysis that described the status of PC-I Estimates and Actual Expenditures as follows; TABLE 45 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE S.

Items

No.

(As per PC-I)

Actual Expenditure

PC-I Estimates

(Till 30.11.2020)

Total

Local

FEC

Total

Local

FEC

26.23

16.379

9.849

18.272

11.32

6.952

5.347

0.12

5.227

0.822

Staff Pay Allowances

Assets/ Costs

Operational Costs

12.42

3.217

9.205

9.543

2.362

7.182

Creation Enabling Environment

13.77

6.996

Land Use Planning & Decision Support System

5.525

0.8

On-ground Activities

283.4

237.06

46.33

262.27

227.57

34.7

346.7

256.78

89.9

241.25

57.46

Capital

Total:

SLM

298.71

Page 47 of 101

FIGURE 21 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE

Item wise PC-I Estoimat and Actual Expenditure 283.39 262.274

300 250 200 150 100 50

26.228 18.272

0 Staff Pay & Allowances

5.347 0.822

12.422 9.543

13.767 6.996

Assets/ Capital Costs

Operational Costs

Creation of Enabling Environment

PC-I Estimates Total

5.525

0.8

Land Use On-ground SLM Planning & Activities Decision Support System

Actual Expenditure (Till 30.11.2020) Total

FIGURE 22 ITEM WISE PC-I ESTIMATE AND ACTUAL EXPENDITURE 7%

Staff Pay & Allowances

4% 4%

Assets/ Capital Costs

Operational Costs

Creation of Enabling Environment

82%

Land Use Planning & Decision Support System On-ground SLM Activities

Page 48 of 101

DG M&E ASSESSMENT OF SLMP ON-GROUND ACTIVITIES/

PROGRAMME INTERVENTIONS DG M&E Assessment of SLMP-II On-ground activities/ programme interventions is as under in Table 46.

Page 49 of 101

TABLE 46 DG M&E ASSESSMENT Physical Targets

Unit

Policies and Institutional Framework Land use policy for Punjab Province Nos. Mainstreaming SLMP in provincial polices, legal Nos. & regulatory framework & planning Capacity Building Programme

Quantity

01 04

Assessment of On-ground Activites and Programme Interventions Achievement Quality 01 -

Draft Policy Not Achieved

Satisfactory Capacity building of stakeholders

Nos.

30 Satisfactory

Capacity building at grassroots level

Nos.

In-country Exchange Visit Nos. Knowledge Managemtn and Outreach Programme Workshops/ Seminars/ Conferences on SLM Nos. Development and Printing of IEC Material i.e., Leaflet, Brouchers, Factsheets, Knowledge Nos. Products etc. Provincial SLM Network & Follow-up Meetings Nos. Field Demonstration Day/ SLMP Demo in NonNos. project District Student from Universities and research institutions engaged for documentation and Nos. capacity building Land Use Plans Village Land Use Plans Villages

1,200

Remarks

Interviewed Beneficiaries during Field visits Interviewed Beneficiaries during Field visits No Data Provided 05 Not Achieved 06 Not Achieved

03 Not Achieved 03 Not Achieved 02 Not Achieved

18 Not Achieved Page 50 of 101

District Land Use Plans Community Mobilization

Districts

01 Not Achieved

48 Community Organizations

No.

Construction of Water Ponds

No.

130

Establishment of Water Conveyance System

No.

Satisfacory

Interviewed Beneficiaries during Field visits

Satisfacory

07 Work In Process

Satisfacory

04 Work In Process

Satisfactory

Completed, it more appealing and attractive for livestock

750

Satisfactory

10 152 987 27

Satisfactory Satisfactory Satisfactory Satisfactory

Completed, it fulfills the purpose -do22 Work In Process 110 Work In Process 03 Work In Process

Integrated Soil & Water Management 123 66

Restoring Rangeland Productivity Rangeland Development/ Degraded Rangeland

Reseeding

Acre

2,448

Dry-afforestation on Farmland

Acre

750

Establishment of Fruit Nurseries Agro-forestry through Shelterbelts Raising of Woodlots Establishment of Community Nurseries Design Funding Mechanism for Communities Sustainable Business Plans Community based Sustainable Land Management Funds (SLM Funds) Public Private Partnership Projects

No. Av. Km Acre No.

2,372

Improving Dry-land/ Desert EcoSystem

10 174 1,097 30

No.

Not Achieved Not Achieved

Not Achieved

Page 51 of 101

PROJECT SITE/ GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

The observations of DG M&E, response of the department to the observations and comments are as under: Sr. Observations Reply/ Comments by SLMP # General Observations Capacity Building Programme 1. As per PC-I Capacity Building ▪ BARI was engaged as lead Programme was responsibility Implementing Partners of BARI Chakwal, AZRI (IP’s) for the activity of Bhakkar, PFRI Faisalabad, Capacity Building as well ABAD but on the basis of as other on-ground review of documents and data activities based on its analysis of field survey expertise while the interviews it was observed that technical resource persons only BARI Chakwal conducted from relevant line all capacity building departments i.e., FW&F programmes. Department, Department, Livestock & should justify the reason to Dairy Development select only one agency. Department, Agriculture Department, ABAD, and AZRI were also engaged for the said trainings. ▪ In addition, the PFRI – Faisalabad was not engaged in the Capacity Building activities due to its non-existence in the target project districts. Community Mobilization 2. As per PC-I, a Terms of ▪ NRSP has kept/ Partnership (ToP) was documented detailed finalized, but during information about each documents review, it was CBO member including observed that NRSP had not CNIC, Contact details/ kept record of Computerized numbers, education, National Identity Card (CNIC) gender, age etc., and the of community members, their same information/ data contact details/ numbers along was also provided to PCU. with ToP documents. (Ref. Pic This information is # 22, Annex-IV). available with following project documents: i. CBO Membership Form – this form is essential part of Karwai Register as

Comments by the Evaluator

NOTED

Observations stands valid as it is only about Terms of Partnership (ToP) document (Ref. Pic # 22, Annex-IV).

Page 52 of 101

▪

As per PC-I all ▪ communications between the Implementing Partner (IPs) and community was to be done through CBO resolutions and documented in CBOs meeting minutes (Karwai Register) which were not recorded/ maintained in the register.

▪

available with all CBOs; ii. PCU reporting format (Annex-I) List of CBOs under SLMP II; iii. Training Registration/ Attendance Sheets; iv. PRAP Reports; All the required information properly filled, on prescribed format developed in consultation with PCU, in TOPs and no empty space(s) have been observed in that document. In future, the observation would be complied with in all the relevant documents. All communications between the IP’s and community has been done through CBO resolutions and documented in CBOs meeting minutes (Karwai Register) and the same can be verified from the achievement of physical targets with the involvement of CBO’s. As concerned with the observation regarding proceedings of the meeting(s) were not recorded/ maintained in the register; the quality of recording of meeting minutes, karwai register, resolutions varies and depends upon literacy level of CBO members which has also been indicated in the report, as well. In actual CBOs maintained their record/ resolutions and Karwai

Observation stands valid as it is about documentation of minutes of meeting in Karwai Register and role of PCU is to ensure implementation as per PC-I.

Page 53 of 101

Registers according to their best ability and capacity. The important point is that all interventions which are identified, assessed and completed with CBO consultation/ engagement are recorded in the Karwai Register. ▪ Although SLMP-II project duration was for 5 years but NRSP’s engagement with CBOs under SLMP-II was for 6 months only. Full time engagement of social mobilization team throughout the project period can further enhance CBOs capacity and quality. The register was taken by NRSP team for photocopy as required by PCU to share with the DGM&E team during field visit and the same has been handed over to CBO.

During field visit of Dagar Kotli CBO, District Bhakkar, No Krawai Register was available with CBO. When asked from CBO about Karwai Register, it reported that NRSP team had taken it over with them. Integrated Soil & Water Management 5. It was observed that concrete All interventions are work was done for executed by farmers construction of spill way of themselves under the ponds but no test was technical supervision of performed to check the ABAD Engineering cell and compressive strength and no contractor is involved in quality of concrete works. it. For performance of quality test, extra funding would be required which has no provision in the approved scope. However, the existence/ stability after record heavy rainfall in the locality, is the evidence of their appropriate quality.

Observation stands valid, PCU should share photocopy of Karwai Register with the DG M&E Team.

Proper testing mechanism needs to be devised for such kind of civil works and relevant tests which have described in the Civil Engineering Codes (AASHTO, ASTM etc.) are only the standard parameters to determine the quality of structures. Moreover, for required funding, Page 54 of 101

At site visited in balkasar, chakwal, it was observed that guide wall of spill way has been constructed only left side while on right side it was not constructed. (Ref. Pic # 13, Annex-IV).

At CBO Mangwal (Farmer; Mureed Abbas), it was observed that the water pond has been constructed along the length of the pond which is around 230’ while the width of the pond was around 130’ due to which cost of the site has been increased as reported by the famer as well. Site seems less feasible for construction of water pond.

Muhammad Jhangir, farmer in UC Balkasar, Chakwal, it was observed that site slopes

Every possible effort is made to make the structure economical and most beneficial. On the right side there exists a hilly/ rocky terrain (patch). Therefore, there is no need to build the guide wall on this side. Secondly, the flow of water is less likely to hit that side and the payment has been made only for the prevalent work at site which was verified from by the DGM&E team during the field visit. Observation is correct but the beneficiary farmer has the land at 230 ft X-section while the small X-section relates to another farmer who neither the beneficiary of the CBO nor he intends to join the CBO. Although he was approached/ consulted about the intervention and asked to collaborate in the activity as it would benefit to him as well but he was least interested to do it. Due to the reason, the pond was constructed on the site with best possible solutions to cater the demand of the farmers. During construction and subsequent inspection slopes were properly maintained.

it’s the responsibility of executing Agency (ABAD soil Conservation Department or any other) to make part of its estimation or while preparing the PC-I/PC-II. The guide walls are prepared to guide the flood flow. Every economical effort should be made to avoid the destruction or any other loss rather than assumption.

The observation stands valid and the question still exist that if the site is not feasible for construction of pond then there was no need to be built the pond. It is quite possible that the other site nearby its locality may be more feasible and economical to cater the demand of the other farmer.

NOTED

Page 55 of 101

(specially on outer side of pond) were not properly maintained during the construction of pond.

It was noticed during visit site accessibility was not taken care for selection of site. Movement of material and machinery is very tough at those sites. Specially sites situated in Lawa far away from main link road.

Unfortunately, during recent erratic rain fall, narrow rills are developed at site that needs to be rectified. Instruction, have been conveyed to the farmer as the sole responsibly of Repair & maintenance lies upon him after completion as per the modalities of PC-I.

Sites are selected on the basis of natural topography i.e., sites for water pockets/ storages are usually found in hills/ ridges and not in the plain lands. At least it’s a credit for project and ABAD who executed the works in the extreme harsh areas and the impact/ usage of the interventions has already been verified by the DGM&E team in Lawa where the inhabitants also uses the same water from the pond for drinking purpose as uses the livestock and pets. The water is also being used for irrigation purpose for raising of crops/ fodders/ orchards. 10. At most of the sites, display The Sign Boards were boards for established installed on each site of the intervention were not found. activity and on 80% sites visited by DGM&E team, the same has also been verified during the visit and these Boards were installed by the farmers at their own expenses. Due to the social issues of the society, most of the boards were misplaced/ stolen. However, in future, the installation of fixed Sign Boards at proper/ secure site would be ensured.

Noted, however modern techniques are required to be used for identification of sites for ponds or any other structures.

NOTED

Page 56 of 101

11. At the site of water pond constructed in Lawa, (Farmer; Mr. Hassan Ali), Chakwal, it was observed that the spill way has been constructed at very low level of pond. Representative from Soil Conservation Department explained that to raise the level of spill way cost of the spill way would be increased and the department could not go beyond specified cost limit. (Ref. Pic # 14, Annex-IV). 12. During field visit it was observed that Peter Engine installed by farmer (Liaqat Ali, Chakwal) without proper cover from weather/rain, due to which said engine found in deterioration condition. Moreover, the criteria were not mentioned to purchase the specified brand of engine along its capacity. Selection of brand for peter engine and its capacity in HP was completely left on the choices of farmers. From picture in (Ref. Pic # 15, Annex-IV) it may be accessed that peter engine may be purchased second hand from market due to its pathetic look. The record for the site was asked but not provided to verify. 13. At all visited sites it was observed that PVC Pipes to be used for lift irrigation laid directly on the surface of the earth without buried into the earth. (Ref. Pic # 16, AnnexIV). 14. It was observed that 3’’ dia of pipe has been installed with peter engine and for delivery pipe 4’’ dia has been used.

Spillway was designed on NOTED the basis of highest flood level and the average rain fall data available, for safe passage of extra water beyond the storage. Keeping in view, the site physiography height of embankment and spillway was designed with in the budget constraint.

In feasibility report capacity Noted, but record of the engine is mentioned need to be verified. after calculating the elevation head. However, since it’s a non-schedule item and to avoid any violation of PPRA rules no brand is notified by the department. Moreover, farmers are encouraged to get the best from the market as it will be in their own interest. The activity record would be provided to DGM&E team.

As depicted in the picture the NOTED pipe length put deep in to the pond, is not buried so that if the water level raises or goes down it can be easily shifted inwards to the pond. In order to manage the NOTED dynamic pressure and to avoid the development of water hammering at the joint Page 57 of 101

near the fields, the gradient of pressure was compromised by increasing the size of the pipe. The intervention is efficiently serving the purpose. Restoring Rangeland Productivity 15. During the field visit, there was no evidence available to prove participation of CBOs in reseeding on rangeland was not observed at CBO Khew, tehsil Mankera District Bhakkar and implementing partner also did not provide the relevant documents. 16. As demarcations was not done so it was difficult to identify the reseeded area of rangelands at project target sites especially at Khew, District Bhakkar.

It is submitted that the reseeding was carried out on state land at the request of the CBOs after getting resolution passed by the concerned CBOs. However, the requisite record would be provided to DGM&E team for verification. As reseeding was done four years before, so it was difficult to identify demarcation of patti arears.

PCU should provide evidence to DG M&E Team.

17. There was no evidence Community was involved in available in Karwai Register collection of reseeding and related to collection of seeds broadcasting but could not and broadcasting. document minutes of meeting in Karwai Register due to low literacy levels of communities.

PCU should provide the evidence of community involvement in reseeding and broadcasting.

18. It was observed that Register ▪ maintained by the CBO for SLMP-II have also other project/ intervention related information/data.

The efforts of CBOs and team of SLMP-II are not denied only highlighted that the other project interventions were also recorded by CBO in that register. The office of DG M&E still on the point of view that record need to be

The CBO’s were linked with all the relevant line departments/ organizations and this is the positive change in behavior and impact of the project that the CBOs are connected with different departments and using the platform established under SLMP as well as conducting

PCU should share coordinates of the area and pictorial evidence of before, during and after the activity with DG M&E team.

Page 58 of 101

▪

documentation of other maintained interventions/ activities. separately. Initiation, completion and documentation of development interventions other than SLMP –II is a positive thing instead of any “objectionable thing” SLMP –II itself imparted training and enhanced CBOs capacity in Public Private Partnership. As per TOP signed by CBOs, it would be encouraging for the CBOs to do other projects/ interventions for the development of their community and members as CBOs are a Platform of Volunteer community members.

Improving Dry-land/ Desert Ecosystem 19. It was observed during field Agreed, earlier this matter NOTED visits of woodlots that overall, was also discussed in PSC 96% Eucalyptus and meeting of SLMP-II and it 04%Tamarix xaphylla were was decided to discourage planted (Table 28). Whereas it plantation of eucalyptus and was mention in PC-I to plant only to promote the indigenous species like Acacia intercropping of indigenous tortilis, A. albida, Prosopis species as mentioned in PC-I. juliflora, Zizyphus numularia But communities and and Albizzia lebbek. farmers prefer Eucalyptus due to its fast-growing nature and high economic returns in shortest possible time. 20. During field visits it was observed that the community was demanding fruit species for plantation.

As per approved PC-I there NOTED was no provision of fruit species but during implementation CBOs were demanding for fruit species. However, the observations would be considered during Page 59 of 101

21. It was observed during field visits of woodlots that peter engine provided under SLPMII were not available at site.

22. Information boards, mentioning the project/ scheme, year, cost, name of the beneficiary, location was not present at sites in Bhakkar and Layyah. Programme Design 23. In-kind contribution of the community for on-ground activities was mentioned but during field visits it was observed that no mechanism was designed to record in Karwai Register and official documents.

preparation of another initiative. All the peter Engines along with accessories are available with the concerned beneficiaries however peter engine provided to the woodlots raised during 201617 and 2017-18 are shifted by the concerned beneficiaries as per their needs. No works were executed in FY 2019-20 due to pandemic COVID-19, hence, the display boards would be available/ installed for the works, being executed during CFY 2020-21.

The in-kind contribution of the community for onground activities was mentioned in the PC-I and properly recorded in all financial documents. All the activities have been executed at a ratio of 80:20, as per approved modalities, and from work planning to allocation viz-a-viz releases/ utilization of funds, both the donor share and community share has been recorded. Only 80% donor share were released to the IP’s to achieve the target of programme interventions and the specific cost of CO share has been provided/ utilized, as inkind contribution, by the concerned beneficiary. AGREED 24. During review of documents (PC-I), it was noted that district The observation would be wise percentage of specie to be complied with, in future. planted was missing.

Noted, PCU should provide certificate mentioning the name of beneficiaries and peter engine.

NOTED

Noted, record of community share should be provided to DG M&E Team.

NOTED

Page 60 of 101

5.1

RELEVANCY

The evaluation intends to analyse the project’s anticipated potential and contribution towards the intended goals. SLMP-II, was designed for Creation of Enabling Environment to Support SLM Practices, Implementation of SLM Land Use Planning & Decision Support System and On-ground Implementation of Climate-resilient SLM Activities/ Programme Interventions. All these on-ground activities and programme interventions have relevancy with sectoral growth strategies of Ministry of Climate Change, Government of Pakistan, Planning & Development Board, GoP, FW&F Department GoP and Punjab Agricultural Department. Therefore, the project was fully relevant with the development priorities of the government.

5.2

EFFICIENCY

During the implementation of SLMP-II, it fully achieved the target against different outputs i.e. 48 community organizations, capacity building of 1,200 (100%) farmers at grass root level on applying sustainable land management practices, woodlots plantation on 987 (89.97%)Acres, agroforestry through shelter belts on 152 Av. Km (87.35%), construction of 123 water ponds (94.61%) and 48 community organizations (100%), 66 water conveyance systems (94.2%). The SLMP-II completed on-ground activities but could not complete some activities of outcome 1, Creation of Enabling Environment to Support SLM Practices and outcome 2, SLM Land Use Planning & Decision Support System over the period of time (Table 4). Considering all these analyses and site observations, it is moderately efficient.

5.3

EFFECTIVENESS

On-ground activities of the SLMP-II were the major and completed in time. But activities of outcome 2 and 3 (Table 4) are in process (Table 40) because UNDP did not contribute their shared in budget. Considering incomplete activities and unspent portion of PC-I estimate, SLMP-II is moderately effective.

5.4

SUSTAINABILITY

SLMP-II implemented community-based approach. All on-ground activities from planning to execution and aftercare had to be managed with the active support of the local communities. It was envisaged that in addition to the donor funding, provincial governments after completion of the GEF/ UNDP funded SLM programme, will allocate financial resources under their ADPs to combat Land Degradation, Desertification & Droughts (LD³) and to ensure sustainable management of land and natural resources. Onground activities such as woodlots, construction of water ponds are directly benefiting the community members and improving socio-economic and environmental indicators. Therefore, programme interventions for sustainable land management should promote plantation of the fruit species and indigenous trees. Considering outcomes of on-ground interventions, SLMP-II was fully sustainable. Page 61 of 101

5.5

IMPACT

The need to promote a sustainable land management (SLM) approach for land degradation neutrality (LDN) is a global challenge, and SLMP-II must rely on local assessments of how rural participants are conducting their work. All on-ground activities from planning to execution and aftercare had to be managed with the active support of the local communities. During field survey visits, interviews of stakeholders and analysis of data shows SLMP-II could not complete outcome 2, 3. Reseeding was done on state land without involvement of community organizations. Considering SLMP-II as fully relevant, moderately efficient, moderately effective and fully sustainable it has medium impact.

Page 62 of 101

CONCLUSIONS

SLM plays a pivotal role in this process, as it represents a holistic approach to preserving the vital functions and services provided by land in a long-term, sustainable productive capacity, by integrating biophysical, socio-cultural and economic needs and values. On the basis of documents review, field survey visits for data collection and analysis SLMP-II has been fully relevant, moderately efficient, moderately effective, fully sustainable and has medium impact. On-ground activities such as woodlots, construction of water ponds is directly benefiting the community members and improving socioeconomic and environmental indicators. Therefore, programme interventions for sustainable land management should promote plantation of the fruit species and indigenous trees. Lack of institutional support impacted implementation of on-ground activities in target areas. All on-ground activities and programme interventions have relevancy with sectoral growth strategies of Ministry of Climate Change, Government of Pakistan, P&D Board GoP, FW&F Department GoP and Punjab Agricultural Department. Therefore, on the basis of above findings, SLMP-II has been successful.

Page 63 of 101

RECOMMENDATIONS

The recommendations of DG M&E, response of the department to the recommendations and comments are as under: Sr. Recommendations # RECOMMENDATIONS Capacity Building Programme 1. It is recommended to develop a pool of Trainers with relevant knowledge, skills and abilities for capacity building on SLM activities of target communities. Community Mobilization 2. It is recommended to design and develop Integrated Management System (IMS) for online data base of community organizations (CBOs), particulars (CNIC/ Contact Details) of members and direct beneficiaries. 3. As Karwai Register is the source document, it is recommended to digitize and maintain record copy of all communications among CBOs, IPs and PCU, SLMP-II at concerned offices.

Reply/ Comments by SLMP

Comments by the Evaluator

AGREED No Comments The recommendation would be complied with.

AGREED No Comments The recommendation would be considered for designing an initiative/ project, in future.

As per population and area of the region, more CBO are required to form if similar type of interventions is required to introduce. 1 CBO for 1000 persons or any other appropriate formula may be devised to form the CBO.

AGREED Separate Registers are No Comments required to maintain the The recommendation would record of the SLMP-II and be considered for designing an initiative/ project, in resolutions passed by CBOs future.

Page 64 of 101

Integrated Soil & Water Management AGREED 6. For selection of site for No Comments construction of pond, However, our sites are accessibility to the site for developed on the basis of movement of material and natural topography/ land machinery is necessary to pockets which can be into water make the intervention transformed storages. successful. AGREED 7. For quality work, standard No Comments extra funding tests/mechanism for However would be required and the compaction of earth is cost of the subsidy / required to be adopted. intervention needs to be enhanced. 8.

10.

11.

In potohar region lot of potential exist in the area for construction of mini dams/ponds. Lift irrigation/rain water harvesting and installation of dug well is also useful for the terrain of pothoar. These types of interventions have been impacted directly on the livelihood as well as on environment. Other sort of interventions such as wind energy, solar energy, land levelling may also be helpful to raise and uplift the life of the locals. During implementation of onground activities related to micro-level infrastructure/ civil works where steal/ concrete is used, executing agency should monitor progress i.e. compression strength and quality test over the completion of work. Repair and maintenance of the water pounds is necessary to avoid damage of built structures during flood & rainy season.

AGREED No Comments The recommendation would be considered for designing an initiative/ project, in future.

AGREED No Comments The recommendation would be considered for designing an initiative/ project, in future. AGREED No Comments

AGREED No Comments Technical guidance from time to time are provided to all the farmers of potohar region especially before the monsoon season to take the Page 65 of 101

necessary precautionary measures for sustainability of the interventions. Restoring Rangeland Productivity 12. It is recommended to strengthen the role of PCU, SLMP-II in implementation of on-ground activities and build the capacity of community organizations (CBOs) members.

AGREED No Comments The same strategy has already been used in the implementation of this project. However, to overcome the bottlenecks, an effective and efficient system would be established and strengthened. Improving Dry-land/ Desert Ecosystem 13. Nurseries should be farmed Nurseries were raised as per No Comments in city/populated area to demand of CBOs and attract the customers. suitable site was selected for easy transportation and carriage of plants from nursery site of planting as looks for the community members and other farmers benefitting from nurseries.

14.

To enhance biodiversity and combat desertification, it is recommended to promote the plantation of indigenous species and fruit species.

15.

It is recommended to follow the instructions as

Fruit plant nurseries were established in cities and adjoining large villages to provide supporting business environment of nurseries plant which will be helpful for achieving the goals of the project. It requires motivation of No Comments community and general public for promotion of indigenous species also some economic benefits should be given for planting of indigenous species. Promotion of indigenous species of fruit plants i-e Bare, Falsa, Peelu etc. may be added in fruit plant nurseries to provide maximum biodiversity. The modalities were No Comments changed/ revised based on Page 66 of 101

mentioned in PC-I regarding the solar operating pumps and engines for shelter belts, woodlots.

Programme Design 16. For sustainability of onground activities, best practices should be implemented to record and report their twenty percent (20%) In-kind contribution. 17. For community ownership and sustainability of the programme interventions, it is recommended to promote community stakeholder’s consultation and participation in design of programme interventions through community need assessment.

the technical on-ground realities/ conditions. However, the recommendation would be considered for designing an initiative/ project, in future. AGREED

No Comments

AGREED No Comments This recommendation is highly appreciated because community participation and consultation at an initial level will improve the project design, enhance the ownership and sustainability of the programme interventions.

Page 67 of 101

ANNEX – I Site Visit Plan Sr. No. 1

Date

01.02.2021 To 04.02.2021 08.02.2021 To 12.02.2021 08.02.2021 To 11.02.2021

Team Formation

Distrcit(s) Tehsil(s)

Mr. Muhammd Sadiq Munawar, Bhakkar Forest, Agriculture & Livestock Expert Mr. Ihsan Nadir, Hafiz Waheed-ul-Hassan, Direct Project Management

Chakwal

Engr. Masood Ahmad, Project Manager Mr. Muhammd Sadiq Munawar, Khushab Forest, Agriculture & Livestock Expert Layyah Mr. Ihsan Nadir,

•

Mankera

• • •

Chakwal Talagang Lawa

•

Nurpur Thal

•

Choubara

Page 68 of 101

ANNEX – II List of Documents Reviewed i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix. x.

SLMP PC-I (both Original & Revised) SLMP PC-IV DGM&E Evaluation Guidelines Correspondence by and among SLMP-II Team at PCU, Implementing Partners (IPs) and National Coordination Unit. Terms of Partnership (ToP) Data provided by the staff of IPs, during and after evaluation visit. Information given by the local communities. Reliable Internet Resources. Research Articles (References) Technically Sanctioned Estimates of the Project.

Page 69 of 101

ANNEX – III

Questionnaire for Beneficiaries Activity 3.1.1 (Community Based Organizations - CBOs) CBO President Name President

UC #

CNIC

Village

Mobile No.

Tehsil

Name of CBO

District

Q.1. What is your education? a) Q.2.

How did you come to know about SLM Activities/ Programme Interventions? a) Radio

b) TV

d) Social Media

f) Word of mouth

c) Newspaper

Q.3. What is Sustainable Land Management (SLM) Programme?

Q.4.

Have your CBO been registered with Social Welfare Department? a) Yes

Q.5.

How was the response and support of the CBO? a) Satisfactory

Q.6.

b) No

b) Not Satisfactory

How was the response and support of SLMP Team and government’s

departments? a) Satisfactory

b) Not Satisfactory

Signature of the President of CBO:

Date:

Signature of Evaluator: Signature of the Department’s Representative: Page 70 of 101

Page 71 of 101

ANNEX – IV

1. Interview of CBOs at Bhakkar

3. Interview at Site of Beneficiaries

5. Woodlots at Khushab

2. Shelter Belts at Bhakkar

4. Woodlots at Khushab

6. Interview with DFO Khushab

Page 72 of 101

7. .Interview of CBOs at Adhikot Khushab

9. Woodlots at Adhikot Khushab

11. Reseeding Areas at Layyah

8. New Woodlots Khushab

plantation

10. Woodlots at Rangpur Bhour

12. Beneficiaries signboard at site

Page 73 of 101

13. Spillway constructed without guid wall at right side

15. Peter engine condition

deterioration

17. Establishment of fruit nursery

14. Construction of Spillway at low level

16. Unburied PVC Pipes for visited sites in talagang

18. Dry-afforestation of farmland

Page 74 of 101

19. Interview of CBOs President at Layyah

20. Woodlots plantation at Layyah

21. GIS Imaginary

Page 75 of 101

22. Terms of Partnership

Page 76 of 101

ANNEX – V Project Post(s) Sr. No.

1 2 3

4 5 6 7

9 10 11

Designation

Ex-Officio Provincial Programme Director (PPD)/ Secretary P&D Chief (SLM) (BS-19) Provincial Programme Coordinator (UNDP Assist Position) Assistant Chief (SLM) (BS-18) Monitoring Officer (BS-17) Planning Officer (BS17) Planning Officer (Monitoring) (BS-17) Accounts & Finance Assistant (BS-16) Office Assistant/ Computer Operator (BS-14) Driver (BS-04) Naib Qasid (BS-01) Total

No. of Posts No. of (as per PC-I) Filed Posts in Project

No. of Vacant Posts in Project

1 2 12

1 1 5

1 7

Remarks

To Be Decided In ECM

Page 77 of 101

ANNEX – VI Recurring Costs after completion of the Project As per PC-I

Sr. No.

Components

Remarks

Total (Rs. in Million)

Staff Pay & Allowances

9.600

Operational Overhead Charges

2.940

Total:

12.540

To be decided in ECM

Break-up of Staff Pay & Allowances A) Detail Staff Cost for Punjab Desertification Control Cell (PDCC) Sr. No.

No. No. of of Months Posts

Designation

Chief (SLM) (BS-19)

Assistant (BS-18)

Monitoring (BS-17)

Officer

Planning (BS-17)

Officer

Unit Rate

Total (Rs. in Million)

195,000

2.340

150,000

1.800

110,000

1.320

75,000

1.800

Accounts & Finance Assistant (BS-16)

75,000

0.900

Office Assistant/ Computer Operator (BS-14)

55,000

0.660

Driver (BS-04)

25,000

0.300

Naib Qasid (BS-01)

20,000

0.480

Chief

(SLM)

A) Total Staff Salaries

9.60

Page 78 of 101

B) Detail Operational Cost for Punjab Desertification Control Cell

(PDCC) Sr. No.

Particulars

No. of Months

Qty

Unit Rate

Total (Rs. in Million)

Duty Travel/ TA DA

70,000

0.840

POL & Maintenance of Vehicle

75,000

0.900

Utilities, communication postal/ audio visual etc.

25,000

0.300

Consumable supplies

25,000

0.300

Meeting/ Seminar/ Workshop/ R&M of office

30,000

0.360

Misc. Exp

20,000

0.240

B) Total Operational Cost

2.940

Grand Total (A+B)

12.540

Page 79 of 101

REFERENCES 1. Knowledge generation using satellite earth observations to support sustainable development goals (SDG): A use case on Land degradation https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0303243419311869 2. Cloud services with big data provide a solution for monitoring and tracking sustainable development goals https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666683920300109 3. Synergies between Land Degradation Neutrality goals and existing market based instruments https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S146290111831 2565 4. Soil as a Basis to Create Enabling Conditions for Transitions Towards Sustainable Land Management as a Key to Achieve the SDGs by 2030 https://scihub.se/https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/23/6792 5. Capacity building to advance the United Nations sustainable development goals: an overview of tools and approaches related to sustainable land management https://scihub.se/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10549811.2017.1359097 6. Unpacking the concept of land degradation neutrality and addressing its operation through the Rio Conventions https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030147971630706X 7. Prioritizing land for investments based on short- and long-term land potential and degradation risk: A strategic approach https://scihub.se/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S146290111831 0566 8. Assessing the culture of fruit farmers with an artificial neutral network: An approximation of sustainable land management https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1462901118308827

Page 80 of 101

Source16

https://knowledge.unccd.int/topics/sustainable-land-management-slm

Page 81 of 101

Page 82 of 101

4th Floor, 65- Trade Centre Block, Ayub Chowk, Johar Town, Lahore 042-99233177-91, info@dgmepunjab.gov.pk Downloaded from www.dgmepunjab.gov.pk

Page 83 of 101