Facility for Refugees, Migrants, Forced Displacement and Rural Stability (IFAD)


Switzerland is committed at the highest political level to help countries in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region coping with the refugee crisis. By co-financing two projects funded by IFAD (the International Fund for Agricultural Development) in Jordan and Lebanon, SDC will contribute to create sustainable livelihoods for thousands of Syrian refugees, and will also support host communities to increase their income and food security by improving the quality of their small ruminants and cattle, as well as their value in the market.
 

Land/Region Thema Periode Budget
Naher Osten
Landwirtschaft und Ernährungssicherheit
Migration
Landwirtschaftliche Entwicklung
Zwangsvertreibung (Flüchtlinge, Binnenvertriebene, Menschenhandel)
Landwirtschaftliche Dienstleistungen & Markt
01.12.2017 - 31.12.2023
CHF  5’000’000
Hintergrund

The current global crisis of forced displacement has affected an unprecedented 65 million people worldwide. More than one-third of the displaced (22.2 million) are in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region.

Switzerland has been committed since the onset of the crisis to help countries in the region cope with the influx of large numbers of vulnerable people by building resilience and creating the long-term conditions that will allow Syrians to build a future for themselves and their children in the region, including acquiring the skills and tools to re-build their own country once they are able to return. At the same time, this approach aims to reduce the pressure on host communities and create new opportunities for them.

IFAD is an international financial institution dedicated to end rural poverty and has operations in about 90 countries, nearly half of them being considered as fragile. Confronted to the growing needs of its client countries hosting refugees and displaced people, IFAD is also taking specific measures to ensure that it can make a contribution to rural transformation which does not exclude anyone. A mechanism called “FARMS” (Facility for Refugees, Migrants, Forced Displacement and Rural Stability) will provide additional funding in the form of grants to IFAD client countries in order to support the inclusion of refugees in the rural transformation projects financed by IFAD through concessional loans.

Ziele

The current global crisis of forced displacement has affected an unprecedented 65 million people worldwide. More than one-third of the displaced (22.2 million) are in the Near East and North Africa (NENA) region.

Switzerland has been committed since the onset of the crisis to help countries in the region cope with the influx of large numbers of vulnerable people by building resilience and creating the long-term conditions that will allow Syrians to build a future for themselves and their children in the region, including acquiring the skills and tools to re-build their own country once they are able to return. At the same time, this approach aims to reduce the pressure on host communities and create new opportunities for them.

The overall goal of the two IFAD-funded projects in Jordan and Lebanon is to reduce rural poverty and to help poor communities in coping with the afflux of refugees due to the Syrian crisis. 

In Jordan, the development goal of the project is to contribute to reducing poverty and enhancing national food security by improving the productivity of small ruminants and to assist Syrian refugees and host communities to graduate out of poverty through a package of livelihood support. The project title “Small Ruminants Investment & Graduating Households in Transition Projects” (SIGHT) reflects this dual focus of the project.

In Lebanon, the development goal of the project is to increase the income of smallholder dairy producers and processors, as well as to increase employment opportunities of young Lebanese in communities affected by the Syrian crisis and young Syrian refugees living in these communities. The project title is “Harmonized Actions for Livestock Enhanced Production and Processing” (HALEPP).

Through this contribution to the FARMS mechanism of IFAD, SDC pursues its strategic objective to support IFAD in addressing better the causes of fragility in its operations.

 

Zielgruppen

Host communities in Jordan and Lebanon.

In Jordan, an estimated 7720 small ruminant (sheep and goat) farming households with herds of up to 200 animals, representing nearly a quarter of the households involved in small ruminant farming in the country, will direclty benefit from the project.

In Lebanon, an estimated 2400 smallholder cattle farmers, 1600 small ruminant farmers, as well as 1500 smallholder on-farm processors, mostly women, and 80 small to medium off-farm processors, will directly benefit from the project.

In both countries, an estimated 5000 Syrian refugees will have access to specific trainings and small credits in order to have the possibility to live a decent life with their families, without adding pressure to their host communities and endangering social cohesion. Those skills acquired during the course of the project will also be an asset for Syrian refugees who are able to go back to their country of origin and contribute to its reconstruction. Both projects have a special focus on women and youth.

Mittelfristige Wirkungen

In Jordan, the outcomes are the following:

  • Strengthened public and private sector capacity to enhance productivity of smallholder livestock farmers, increase incomes and build resilience.
  • Strengthened rural poor people’s productive capacities, market access and resilience through an approach which graduates them out of poverty and provides access to financial services.

In Lebanon, the outcomes are the following:

  • Milk production improved in quality and yield,
  • Quality, diversification and sale of dairy products improved for on-farm and off-farm dairy processing.
Resultate

Erwartete Resultate:  

In Jordan:

  • Enhanced productivity in the small ruminant livestock stock without increasing the number of animals.
  • Conditions for more diversified and sustainable use of natural resources created.
  • Grant-based income generating packages available for on-farm and off-farm enterprises.
  • Loans provided for the purchase of small ruminants for breed improvement and on-farm and off-farm micro, small and medium enterprises.
  • The project will directly target 7’720 small ruminant (sheep and goat) farming households, and roughly 2’025 Syrian refugee households.

In Lebanon :

  • Technical knowledge and skills of smallholder farmers are improved.
  • Animal health status of the dairy herd and flock is improved.
  • Technical knowledge and managerial capacities of dairy processors are improved.
  • Improved access to finance.
  • Stakeholder platform for inclusive policy dialogue is supported.
  • This project will directly target about 4’000 smallholder cattle and small ruminant farmers, and 1’500 smallholder on-farm (mostly women) and about 80 medium off-farm processors.


Resultate von früheren Phasen:   For both projects, baselines will be established in the course of the first year of the project.


Verantwortliche Direktion/Bundesamt DEZA
Kreditbereich Entwicklungszusammenarbeit
Projektpartner Vertragspartner
Organisation der Vereinten Nationen (UNO)
  • Internationaler Agrarentwicklungsfonds


Koordination mit anderen Projekten und Akteuren EBRD,EU, FAO, ICARDA, UNHCR
Budget Laufende Phase Schweizer Beitrag CHF    5’000’000 Bereits ausgegebenes Schweizer Budget CHF    5’000’000