SOIL Report 2008 - ACCESS Development Services

Public Systems: Major central government anddonor-supported programmes for Livelihood Promotioninto common interest groups (CIGs). All CIG members in a village form the general body of a villagedevelopment committee (VDC) and 2,500 VDCs have been formed. VDCs are the critical organisationsto ensure sustainability of CIGs and nearly 60 per cent of executive committee members of VDCs arewomen. VDCs do not undertake functions assigned to gram panchayats. So far 16 producer companiesand 8 MACs have been registered and 60 per cent of them are for agriculture. Geographic federationsare also being contemplated as a federation of VDCs.Community Investment Fund (CIF): Assetisation of the poor households is the major livelihoodstrategy adopted by the project. CIFs are provided as grants to the households on the basis of subprojectsfinalised by them. The gram sabha approves the sub-project proposals of CIGs and the projectsanctions the proposal. Thus CIGs identify the activities which will work in the local context and initiateasset creation activities. As of Dec 2007, 3.25 lakh families have been provided Rs 3,858 million forassetisation. CIGs contribute 10 per cent of total cost of sub-project to the creation of Apna Kosh, avillage fund.Skill training: The project has provided skills training to members of CIGs on agriculture, animal husbandryand small businesses. More than 85 per cent of the trainings have been for animal husbandry.Job related skills training is provided to village youth for placement with industries. MPDPIP has beena pioneer in the state in setting up a private-public partnership for employment of rural youth.Financial services: Direct linkages of CIG members with banks have been facilitated by the PFTs viiand loans mobilised to the tune of Rs 5,800 lakh out of which 85 per cent has been for crop loansthrough Kisan credit cards. CIG members save and borrow from the village fund for working capitaland emergent needs. Livestock insurance is compulsory for the animals purchased.Sectoral inputs: In agriculture the project has provided training to farmers to increase productivityand diversify the crops. In dairy, apart from training, need-based infrastructure for collection such asbulk milk coolers have been provided by the project. Poultry activity has been facilitated by PRADAN.Marketing linkages are forged by the producer companies with the support of PFTs. During the year2006-07, the turnover from various such activities has been Rs 4.84 crores.Outcomes and impactThe sub-projects supported include 240 different types of livelihood activities. Land-based activitiescomprised 46 per cent of sub-projects. These included wells, tube wells, land levelling, agricultureimplements etc., Animal husbandry formed 23 per cent and trading 16 per cent of sub projects. Ex posteconomic analysis conducted in 2006-’07 shows that nearly 88 per cent of the assets are still functional.The mean income increase of the project beneficiaries in various activities has been: agriculture 66 percent, dairy 16 per cent and poultry 19 per cent. Non-farm has not been as successful, with only 4 percent increase in income.(iii) DPIP RajasthanDPIP Rajasthan Phase 1 was implemented in seven districts in the state and was completed in December2007.StrategyInstitution building: AAbout 250,000 poor families have formed 23,500 CIGs of which 25 per centare women CIGs. The common interest binding the groups is the income-generating activity which theyundertake. Nearly 95 NGOs have been involved in CIG mobilisation in 5,800 villages. The RajasthanDairy Cooperative Federation formed CIGs of dairy farmers in 2,200 villages. In the last two years ofthe project, microfinance activities were initiated in a planned manner. Activity-based cluster developmentis in its nascent stage viii .119