Contacts
In Washington: Rachel McColgan-Arnold
(202) 458-5299
rmccolgan@worldbank.org
In Antananarivo : Erick Rabemananoro
(261) 20-22-56000
erabemananoro@worldbank.org
WASHINGTON, November 6, 2008 - The World Bank Group Board today approved a grant to the Republic of Madagascar in the amount of US$5.9 million from the Global Environment Facility (GEF). This amount is aimed at complementing the IDA-financed APL 1 Irrigation and Watershed Management Project that was approved in November 2006
The goal of the project is to sustainably increase agricultural productivity in four high potential watershed areas and their associated irrigation schemes: Lac Alaotra (Sahamaloto), Marovoay, Andapa and Itasy. “During cyclone seasons, Madagascar suffers heavy destruction of its transport and irrigation infrastructure due to river siltation and continuing degradation of its watersheds. The rivers are becoming unbalanced and changing course, breaking the infrastructure that lie in their path. We view this project as essential to help stabilize the watersheds and diminish this recurring downstream problem in the targeted areas,” explained Sofia Bettencourt, Acting Country Manager of the World Bank Madagascar Country Office.
The GEF-funded project will focus on two of the three technical components financed under the earlier IDA operation. The first, development of commercial agriculture, aimed to improve access to markets and supported the development of commercial agriculture value chains, respecting principles of sustainable land management and providing demand-based support to private investment. The second component focused on watershed development, aimed at sustainably managing watersheds including irrigated agriculture, preserving the natural heritage, benefiting from the production potential of the natural resources and contributing to improved living conditions and incomes of the rural population.
“Increasing irrigated rice production and productivity in the long-run could hardly be achieved without the sustainable development of the surrounding watersheds. We have to stop land degradation which is one of the most serious and widespread problems for agricultural development in Madagascar. This GEF grant will provide critical resources to meet that goal across the four project areas,” underlined Ziva Razafintsalama, Task Team Leader of this project within the World Bank Madagascar Country Office.
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) is a global partnership among 178 countries, international institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the private sector to address global environmental issues while supporting national sustainable development initiatives. GEF provides grants for projects related to the following six focal areas: biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, the ozone layer, and persistent organic pollutants.
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To learn more about this project
www.worldbank.org/madagascar
www.gefweb.org
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