RURAL DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES AND REACHING THE RURAL POOR

Some Countries have had successful rural development

Successful broad based rural development in China, Thailand, Central Europe, parts of Latin America was initial stimulus to their rapid economic growth

Some Global Success in Food Production, 1959-1997

Broader Successwith Agriculture

Broader Successwith Agriculture

International price of food

decreasing

Caloric intake rising

Percent of undernourished

fallen

Rates of return to research projects high

Success rate of World Bank agricultural projects about 70% (OED)

Agriculture contributed to the success in rural development in China, Thailand, Central Europe, parts of Latin America

The MDGs: 8 goals and 18 targets – all interrelated

The goals are:

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

2. Achieve universal primary education

3. Promote gender equality and empower women

4. Reduce child mortality

5. Improve maternal health

6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases

7. Ensure environmental sustainability

8. Develop a Global Partnership for Development

Prognosis for Poverty, Education and Child Mortality MDGs

Poverty headcount (%

living on less than $1 per day

Primary completion rate

(%)

Under-five child mortality (per

1,000 live births)

RegionMDG target

2015 growth alone

MDG target

2015 growth alone

MDG target

2015 growth alone

East Asia 14 4 100 100 19 26

Europe & Central Asia 1 1 100 100 15 26

Latin America and the Caribbean 8 8 100 97 17 30

Middle East & North Africa 1 1 100 96 25 41

South Asia 22 15 100 100 43 69

Sub-Saharan Africa 24 35 100 60 59 151

Source: Global Economic Prospects, World Bank, 2003; Devarajan, S.,”Growth is not Enough,” World Bank, 2001

AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IS AT THE CONFLUENCE OF THE MDGs, HUNGER, AND SOCIAL PROTECTION

Agriculture is key to: Growth in most low income countries

Household poverty reduction of the rural poor

Food security through farm income growth and in some cases food availability

Safety net for the rural poor (who are often subsistence farmers)

Agriculture Must

Grow Faster in

Most Low

Income

Countries to

Achieve

Millennium

Development

Goals

Agriculture Must

Grow Faster in

Most Low

Income

Countries to

Achieve

Millennium

Development

Goals

Rural poverty and low agricultural growth

persists in most low income countries

3.6 % p.a per capita GDP growth is

needed in low income countries to cut

poverty in half by 2015

24% of low income country GDP is

agricultural; agriculture must grow at

about 3.5% p.a to achieve the overall

growth and poverty reduction objective

Can Agriculture Grow Faster in Low Income Countries?

Water Supply is Less Assured in Rural Areas

Rural Education is Weaker Than Urban

A Major Challenge: Declining Interest by the Bank and by Other Donors

A Major Challenge: Declining Interest by the Bank and by Other Donors

Champions of rural development are weak

Other priorities have been added by governments and donors; developing countries allocate half the public budget to rural areas as they do to urban

Rural development projects often performed poorly in the past

Irrigation, water, forest, fisheries projects are often

controversial

Private returns to investment in agriculture in low income countries is often very low

Consequently, the impact of the Bank’s previous rural development strategy was negligible.

APPROACH TO THE NEW STRATEGY

APPROACH TO THE NEW STRATEGY

Regional rural development strategies

Review of project experience and analysis

Consultations in client countries, in the Bank, with donors and

NGOs

Analysis published in technical documents

Corporate strategy developed through ‘bottom-up’ approach

Detailed implementation plan

A SHIFT IN EMPHASIS

Giving voice to the rural poor

Addressing the entire rural space

Forging alliances of all stakeholders – donors and recipients

Addressing impact of global developments on client countries (trade, subsidies, climate change)

NEW STRATEGIC PRIORITIES

Fostering an enabling policy and institutional environment for broad-based and sustainable economic growth;

Enhancing agricultural productivity and competitiveness;

Encouraging non-farm economic growth; Improving social well-being, gender equity, managing risk,

and reducing vulnerability;

Enhancing sustainable management of natural resources.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

Agricultural trade liberalization, to the levels of tariffs and non-tariff barriers which are established for non-agricultural products.

Reduction of agricultural subsidies, which currently depress world prices and expand world agricultural market share held by developed countries.

Expansion of agricultural and rural development assistance to developing countries to the levels characteristic of the early 1990s.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF DEVELOPED COUNTRIES (CONTINUED)

A focus on Sub-Saharan Africa is required in international assistance for rural development given the particularly difficult food and agricultural situation which exists there.

Better coordinate aid flows to developing countries.

Support to the transfer of scientific findings of relevance to developing country agriculture.

Expanded investment in rural infrastructure, rural health, education, energy, telecommunications, in conjunction with local communities and the private sector.

Promotion of producer organizations and trade associations, so that rural people have more responsibility and more say in rural based activities.

Improvement of governance, and decentralization of some government functions to local government authorities, local community groups, and the private sector.

Where necessary, improved land administration and land reform.

Equity, especially in terms of gender.

UNDERLYING FACTORS OF SUCCESS FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

WHAT’S NEW IN AGRICULTURE?

From staples to high value crops

From narrow agricultural focus to broader policy context – including global impacts

From focus on crop yields to market demands and incomes

From primary production to entire food chain

From agriculture to rural space

From thinking of farms as homogeneous to heterogeneity

From public to public-private partnerships, including community driven development

From avoidance of issues to head on approach (biotechnology, forestry, water)

RECOGNITION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF RURAL NON-FARM ECONOMY AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR

Improve investment climate for private investment in rural areas, promote labor mobility

Provide agricultural, financial, infrastructural, market and social services in part through the private sector, using market solutions

Promote producer organizations, trade associations, business chambers, and public-private cooperation

DEVELOPING RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND SOCIAL ASSETS, AND MANAGING RISKS ARE ESSENTIAL

Improve access to infrastructure and social services

Improve access to nutrition and health

Increase access to and improving the quality of rural education

Address HIV/AIDS in rural programs

Provide assistance in managing household food security

Provide new risk management instruments

Build the capacity of the public and private sectors and civil society to manage their own services

A CONTINUED COMMITMENT TO ENHANCING SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Environment, forestry and water strategies in the Bank give overall guidelines in approaching rural natural resource management

Elements will include:

Reducing land degradation

Improving water management

Sustainable production of forest products while protecting the environment

OVERALL IMPLEMENTATION THRUSTS

Raise the profile of rural development in national policy

Scale up innovative and successful investments, while exploring new approaches and innovation

Improve the quality and impact of donor operations

Implement global priorities (e.g. reduce deforestation, water pollution, over-fishing, loss of bio-diversity, soil erosion, adapt to climate change, bring agricultural science to poor countries)

Enhance partnerships between governments, civil society, NGOs, and donor organizations for rural development, including a global forum for rural development

Countries for focus for national rural development strategy preparation – first cohort

AFR EAP ECA MNA LCR SAR

 FY03MadagascarNigeriaCameroonEthiopiaAngolaLesothoFY04TanzaniaTogo Burkina Faso D.R. of Congo 

 

FY03Vietnam Philippines Papua New Guinea FY04Indonesia

 

FY03RussiaTurkeyUzbekistanUkraine

 

FY03Yemen Djibouti FY04Egypt

 

FY03NicaraguaBrazilColombiaMexico FY04Honduras PeruPanamaBolivia

FY03-FY04AfghanistanBangladesh Sri LankaPakistanIndia, and: Uttar Pradesh MaharashtraAndhra PradeshKarnataka

Bank Operations in Rural Space – Potential Areas for Scaling-Up and Innovation

Objective Theme

Policy and Institutions

agricultural policy reform (ASL, PRSC, SAC)

development of rural strategies

institutional reform and capacity building

participatory planning

Agricultural Productivity and Competitiveness

land reform and administration

research and extension

information technology – marketing and knowledge

irrigation and drainage

support for producer organizations/user groups

food safety and agribusiness

rural finance – including micro finance

Bank Operations in Rural Space – Potential Areas for Scaling-Up and Innovation (cont.)

Objective Theme

Non Farm Rural Economy

rural non-farm economy including business developmentprivate sector role in service provision

infrastructure, including small towns

Strengthening Social Services and Reducing Risk and Vulnerability

health and education: specific rural issues

community driven development/district programs

social inclusion, including women and girls

commodity, climate, and disaster risk management

emergency reconstruction

Sustainable Natural Resource Management

soil fertility

watershed development

community natural resource management

community forestry

fisheries

Unable to give proper voice to the rural poor at national level

Desired multi-sectoral collaboration does not materialize within donor agencies and governments

Instruments available to donors not conducive to rural focus, learning, and innovation

Industrial country tariffs and subsidies continue to hinder developing country access to markets

RISKS