To decrease storage losses and maintain quality, more than 160 so called Diffused Light Stores were constructed with a seed storage capacity of about 800 tons, of which more than 60 were established with own funds of farming communities. In collaboration with USAID, the CFC also supported the construction of three innovative “aeroponics” units which sub-
stantially improved the ability of national research stations to produce disease free basic potato seed - a prerequisite for high potato yields. The project has shown that that the approach of integrated potato subsector development can have a significant and immediate impact on poverty alleviation. Some
participating farmers, especially in Ethiopia, have a disposable cash income through potato sales for the first time in their lives. It is apparent that there is a huge unexploited market for both quality seed and ware potatoes. This forms the basis for evidencebased policy advice to extrapolate project lessons to the larger potato sector for future national level sector development.
Hard Fibres CFC/FIGHF/15: Sisal Development: Sisal Fibres Replacing Asbestos in Cement Composites
Submitting ICB Project Executing Agency Countries Directly Benefiting Project Cost Common Fund for Commodities Counterpart Contribution
The project was designed to establish at a pilot level the technical and economic viability of the use of sisal fibre in the production of construction materials for the building industry. The emphasis would be on assessing the potential for the replacement of asbestos fibres thus far frequently used in the building materials industry in Brazil. The project had made
FAO Intergovernmental Group on Hard Fibres Brazilian Micro and Small business Support Service (SEBRAE) Brazil USD 1,362,500 USD 672,500 (Grant) USD 690,000 a cumbersome start and the completion of two key studies (on the “state-ofthe-art” of international developments/ experiences related to the use of sisal in composites, and on the internal market structure/potential in Brazil, outlining provisional competitiveness of the new to develop materials) were delivered after considerable delays. The project was
subjected to an external independent evaluation in 2009. Follow-up by the PEA on CFC’s substantive recommendations for the possible start-up of Phase II have not been addressed to the satisfaction of the Fund. The project was closed in 2012 and the unused funds earmarked for this project have been returned to the Fund’s general project resources.
Herbs and Medical Plants CFC/FISGTF/16: Medicinal Plants and Herbs: Developing Sustainable Supply Chain and Enhancing Rural Livelihoods in Eastern Himalayas Submitting ICB FAO Intergovernmental Sub-Group on Tropical Fruits Project Executing Agency International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) Countries Directly Benefiting Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal Project Cost USD 2,306,689 Common Fund for Commodities USD 1,618,515 (Grant) (of which USD 1 million from the OPEC Fund for International Development - OFID) Counterpart Contributions USD 91,514 Co-financing USD 533,660 The project was designed with the overall goal of improving livelihoods of mountain communities in three countries of eastern Himalayas: Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal. Project activities aimed to increase incomes of medicinal and aromatic plants (MAP) producers by designing local, national and regional interventions through assessment of community needs, information, knowledge and resource base of medicinal herbs sector in the three countries and to strengthen supply chains of herbal commodity, involving collectors, cultivators, and producers to better access national, regional and international markets. At the same time enabling policies, institutions and market infrastructures and private sector investment
have been promoted. Specific components included i) situation analysis and baseline assessments; ii) improved supply chain management to enable a) production enhancement and producer-market linkages and b) processing and marketing through value addition, and iii) policy, legal and administrative reforms and to facilitate policy and institutional support for strengthening the sector. The project has been implemented in Bangladesh by the Development of Biotechnology and Environmental Conservation Centre (DEBTEC) and the Bangladesh Neem Foundation (BNF), in Bhutan by the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) and in Nepal by the Herbs and NTFP Coordination Committee (HNCC) under the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation (MFSC).The support
and ownership of the project by the national governments facilitated the achievement of the project objectives in terms of improving the processing, capacity development and marketing of MAPs as premium price products, successfully linking the producers of medicinal plants to formal markets with positive spillovers on farmers’ income. The project was successful in introducing the concept of supply chain management of MAPs in line with the national Governments long term vision for poverty reduction and sustainable mountain development. Altogether 600 farmer households from 24 community forest users groups were mobilised as direct beneficiaries in Nepal. In Bhutan 290 farmer households were mobilised for the project. The beneficiary >>
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