The United Nations (UN) International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), an organization working to alleviate rural poverty in developing nations, has pledged to provide USD 100 million to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia for the Rural Financial Intermediation Programme Phase II (RUFIP II). Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia to Italy Mulugeta Alemseged and IFAD President Kanayo F Nwanze met recently to sign the agreement, which includes a USD 50 million grant and a USD 50 million loan [1].
When it was launched in 2001, the three objectives of RUFIP were to extend services to 1.5 million rural households, develop a community banking system through rural savings and credit cooperatives (RUSACCOs) and advance connections between the formal banking sector and rural financial institutions [2]. The program now reaches 3.3 million rural households, of which almost 50 percent are headed by women surviving on under USD 2 per day [1].
According to IFAD, RUFIP II aims to facilitate access to financial services for 6.9 million rural households by 2019, via partnerships with a national network of microfinance institutions (MFIs), strengthening the community banking system and advancing RUSACCOs [1][3].
About IFAD
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), an agency of the United Nations, was established in 1977 as an outcome of the 1974 World Food Conference. IFAD is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries by focusing on country-specific solutions. In 2010, IFAD invested a total of USD 2.5 billion.
By Charlotte Newman, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] IFAD Press Release: “US$100 Million IFAD Loan and Grant to Ethiopia to Improve Financial Services in Rural Areas” http://www.ifad.org/media/press/2011/92.htm
[2] IFAD: “Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia: Rural Financial Intermediation Programme” http://www.ifad.org/evaluation/public_html/eksyst/doc/prj/region/pf/ethiopia/rfip.htm
[3] IFAD: “Rural Financial Intermediation Programme- Phase II” http://operations.ifad.org/web/ifad/operations/country/project/tags/ethiopia/1521/project%20overview
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