Impact assessment of five NCA supported IRDPs (2000-2009)

Background:
Norwegian Church Aid has been supporting the national partners to implement projects related to: emergency relief aid and disaster preparedness, food security, safe water supply & sanitation, women development, gender-based violence, HIV/AIDS and climate change. These Integrated rural development projects have been implemented in Amhara, Tigray and Oromia regional states of Ethiopia since 1991; in partnership with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus Development and Social Services Commission (EECMY-DASSC), Ethiopian Orthodox Church/Development and Interchurch AID Commission (EOC-DICAC) and Relief Society of Tigray (REST).

Purpose/ Objective:
The aim of the assessment is to draw lessons from the projects interventions in the past years and include in the future development of projects, of livelihoods & trade program that can address the needs of the target groups.

Methodology:
Three professional (the consultant team) and 15 enumerators involved in data collection using prepared Questionnaire for Household Survey, Checklists for Qualitative Survey and for discussion with project staff and Government staffs.
A validation workshop, with the participation of all NCA and partners’ core and responsible staffs, organized and carried out.

Key Findings:
Natural resources management activities such as construction of hillside terraces, micro-basins, deep trenches, check-dams and bunds, including plantations on closure sites, gullies and bunds have got acceptance of the communities in the target areas.

Communities have developed good knowledge on the benefits of timber and non-timber products that can be taped from closure sites.

Participation of the community members in watershed treatment through cash-for-work increased their income, and thereby their access to food.

The projects contributed to increase in production and productivity of agricultural production and livestock development.

Irrigation has increased participation of women in production and marketing of fruits and vegetables.

Non-farm income generating activities such as petty trade and hand crafts had diversified income sources and create job opportunities for resources poor people such as women and landless youth.

Construction of different types of water supply facilities has contributed to raise safe water supply coverage in the target area.

Health facilities and provision of equipment have, in general, contributed to improve heath of the target people and thereby improve labor productivity.

Cross-cutting activity like awareness raising on gender equality, women participation in productive activities and their role in decision making has improved.

Recommendations:
The importance of watershed approach application to integrate efforts in selected areas and maximize impacts considering, the interrelationships among land use, soil, water and other resources, including the linkages between uplands and downstream areas to provide desired goods and services without adversely affecting soil and water resources. Saving mobilization is important to strengthen resiliency of the households’ and create better financial capital for scale up of successful interventions. Especially, organizing women in saving groups can enhance their financial independence, decision making role, and eventually help them empower. Besides looking for different options of creating better market outlet for products produced, using different improved and appropriate technologies, adjusting the cropping pattern as well as the planting time can help regulate the amount of products supplied to the market, and thereby mitigate price fluctuation. Contract farming -farmers getting into contracts with hotels and restaurants in the towns -should also be promoted. Engaging farmers in non-farm IGAs is recommended if and only if the technological, financial, socio-cultural, market and institutional feasibility of the IGAs is promising. Transparent systems and structures should be in place for follow up and revolving of grants provided to the members of the community in terms of seeds, shoats, beehives, etc.

Comments from Norwegian Church Aid (if any):
The impact assessment document is shared to our partners. The findings of the assessment will be integrated and considered in the up coming project design and implementation by partners.