| Grant Profile: |
| Project Title: |
Agricultural Inputs Project |
| PCF/LICUS/SPF: |
SPF |
Status: |
Open |
| File Number: |
| Region: |
AFR |
| Sector: |
Agriculture, fishing, and forestry |
Country: |
Zimbabwe |
| FY approved: |
2009 |
Grant Theme : |
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| Keyword(s): |
Multi-Donor Trust Funds |
Approved Amount: |
$4,900,000.00 |
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Grant Recipient:
GRM International |
Grant Purpose:
At the end of the 2007/2008 cropping season, Zimbabwe had a food deficit of about 1.2 million tons. In 2008, it was estimated that at least 80% of the population lived on less than 2% a day, and 60% on less than $1 a day. Despite the fact that the country has received good rains so far this season, agricultural production is not expected to increase significantly because of severe shortage of inputs. This is why Zimbabwe remains food insecure and will require food imports throughout and beyond 2009.
The project is part of a multi-donor initiative aiming to provide increased humanitarian and development support to Zimbabwe. In particular, this grant will aim to improve food security by supporting the Second Phase of DFID-funded Protracted Relief Programme (PRP2). The objective of the PRP is to reduce extreme poverty in Zimbabwe and to prevent destitution, and protect and promote the livelihoods of the poor and most vulnerable. PRP2 is a five-year multi-donor multi-sector program (2008-2013) that is expected to benefit at least two million people living in rural and urban areas across the country. The first phase of the program has demonstrated that even under conditions of severe vulnerability and poor governance, it is possible to move beyond mere emergency relief and deliver targeted interventions with longer-term development impacts
The World Bank contribution to the program through the State- and Peace-Building Fund will finance only a specific type of activity, to “improve food security and enhance nutrition through increased productivity and income generating activities” – provision of nitrogen-based fertilizer to small-hold farmers to order to promote environmentally friendly farming techniques/inputs and to increase agricultural outputs.
The project is expected to reduce the quantities of fertilizers pumped into Zimbabwe's soil each year that has resulted in long-term decline of soil fertility and overall soil health,
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Grant Activities:
The project will promote a targeted micro-dosing of nitrogen-based fertilizer to reduce the necessary amount if fertilizer by a quarter compared with the currently recommended fertilizer rates. With timely and correct application of nitrogen-based fertilizer, along with other support and techniques provided by other donors within the common framework of the Second Phase of the Protracted Relief Programme (PRP2), it is expected that the crop yield of those target households can increase up to 50% which has been demonstrated in studies in comparable areas of low rainfall, thereby making a significant contribution to strengthening food security for the target population.
The project is expected to reach 100,000 households (or approximately 600,000-800,000 people ) in six Districts in the southern part of the country (Bikita, Chivi, Masvingo, Mberebgwa, Mwenezi and Zaka).
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