Improving nutrition and household food security in Manica Province, Mozambique GCP/MOZ/027/BEL Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation Mission Final Report September 2006 Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL final report Table of Contents 1 Introduction 1 2 Background and Context 1 3 Assessment of Project Objectives and Design 3 3.A Justification 3 3.B Objectives 4 3.C Project Design 5 4 Assessment of Project Implementation, Efficiency and Management 5 4.A Project Budget and Expenditure 6 4.B Activities and Outputs 6 4.B.1 Capacity building at institutional and community level 6 4.B.2 Nutrition Security 7 4.B.3 Natural Resources Management 10 4.B.4 Micro-projects 11 4.B.5 Monitoring system 12 4.C Government Support 13 4.D Project Management 13 4.E Technical and Operational Backstopping 14 5 Assessment of Results and Effectiveness 14 5.A Effects and Impact 14 5.B Sustainability and Environmental Impact of Results 17 5.B.1 Institutional sustainability 17 5.B.2 Economic sustainability 18 5.B.3 Environmental sustainability 18 5.C Gender Equity in Project Implementation and Results 19 5.D Cost-effectiveness 19 5.E Major factors affecting project results 20 6 Conclusions and Recommendations 20 6.A Conclusions 20 6.B Recommendations 20 7 Lessons Learned 23 Annex I: Terms of Reference for the Evaluation 1 Annex II: Projeto de Segurança alimentar e nutricional das familias na Provincia de Manica, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL, Reunião tripartida, 23/06/06 1 Annex III: Formações no âmbito da implementação das actividades de segurança alimentar e nutricional 1 ii Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL final report Abbreviations APO Associate Professional Officer BSF Belgian Survival Fund CAP Community Action Planning CBNRM Community-Based Natural Resources Management CMP Community Micro-Projects CTA Chief Technical Advisor DDA District Department of Agriculture FAOR FAO Representation FNS Food and Nutrition Security FNSMP Food and Nutrition Security Micro-Project GCP Government Cooperative Programme GoM Government of the Republic of Mozambique HQ Headquarters IGMP Income-generation micro-project JFFLS Junior Farmer Field and Life School (Projeto celeiros de vida) LTU Lead Technical Unit MoA Ministry of Agriculture MP Micro-project MTE Mid-Term Evaluation NPPC National Project Personnel Contract NRM Natural Resources Management NTE Not to be Exceeded (date) OVC Orphans and Vulnerable Children PSA Personal Service Agreement PRA Participatory Rural Appraisal ProDoc Project Document SETSAN Secretaria Técnica para a Segurança Alimentaria e Nutricional (Technical Secretariat for Food and Nutrition Security) TA Technical Assistance TCDC Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries TCAP FAO service managing direct relations with donors TCP Technical Co-operation Programme of FAO TEM Tripartite Evaluation Mission TPR Tripartite Review Meeting UNDP United Nations Development Programme USAID United States Agency for International Development WFP World Food Programme (United Nations) iii Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL final report Executive Summary Overall view 1. The Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation (MTE) of the project Improving Nutrition and Household Food Security in Manica Province, Mozambique (GCP/MOZ/027/BEL) took place in the period 12-23 June 2006. The team assembled in Maputo, held meetings with the FAO Representation, the donor and the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). Then it travelled to Chimoio, Manica Province, where it met with the Project team and set off to Macossa and Tambara Districts (five days). Further meetings were held in Chimoio upon return, with the team and project partners. An extended preliminary summary was discussed on the occasion of the project Tripartite Review meeting (TPR) on June 23, in Chimoio and a final draft was circulated to all stakeholders at the end of July. Comments stemming from both occasions were integrated, when pertinent, into the MTE report. 2. The Project Document (ProDoc) for GCP/MOZ/027/BEL was signed in May 2002, in the framework of the Belgian Survival Fund-FAO Programme, with a budget of approximately US$ 4.3 millions and an initial time-span of four years. Presently the Project is planned to be operational until December 2007. Areas for intervention were Chimoio (Manica province capital) urban and peri-urban poor neighbourhoods and Macossa District. Since mid-2005, also Tambara District was included. 3. Since the Project was formulated, GoM gave further impulse to decentralize development planning to district, sub-district and community level, this be carried out through a participatory approach. Further, the concentration of a number of FAO implemented projects in Manica and in the neighbouring Sofala Province led the FAO Representation to launch in the two provinces a Programme Approach, pooling together the resources made available by all projects. Main findings and conclusions 4. The Project wanted to tackle food and nutrition insecurity and alleviate poverty. The policy environment was helpful in taking decentralisation further down to district and community level. Management, including FAO procedures for disbursement of project funds, was weak and negatively affected project implementation. 5. Project results at the time of the MTE were still very mixed: many activities still need support and adjustments, others need to take off immediately, others could be introduced to ensure sustainability of what presently on-going. More in detail: • the NRM component is on the right track and has achieved some positive outcomes; more efforts will be necessary to consolidate the NRM Committees and to ensure that benefits spread in the communities, and that sustainable management of natural resources take place also outside the hunting areas, game ranches and their buffer zones; • the nutrition component lagged behind and it requires more resources and attention; • participatory processes are often flawed and seem to capture mostly the voices and interest of few influential members of interested communities; • only few micro-projects are solid; there is a huge need for capacity building on technical and organizational feasibility, economic sustainability, market analysis, etc. 6. In spite of these negative factors, the Project has proved so far to be flexible and ready iv Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL final report to adapt to changing circumstances, whether external or internal. The Project team has been composed with adequate skills and competences, and the experience gained so far should not be dispersed. Moreover, the Programme Approach adopted by FAO in Manica and Sofala provinces opens up new challenges and opportunities for development of synergies and cost-effective use of resources shared among projects. Main Recommendations To all stakeholders 7. The MTE recommends that a budget neutral extension of the Project life be granted, until June-July 2008, to allow two more complete years to start and consolidate activities at the different levels. 8. The Project has to concentrate efforts on a number of issues, namely participatory methodologies for planning and implementation, and integration of nutrition activities at all levels, including the development of nutrition educational materials. To the Government of Mozambique 9. The MTE recommends that the GoM fully appreciates the extent of direct and indirect costs incurred by communities when they are evicted in one way or another from coutadas and protected areas. Adequate compensatory measures should be offered by the Government and its partners, in terms of social services, support to sustainable development, and the like, to compensate these communities for the economic and environmental services they provide to the country as a whole. 10. The MTE recommends that the spirit of learning opportunity be safeguarded in the implementation of school gardens, also from a curriculum point of view and in terms of teachers’ skills. To FAO 11. The MTE recommends strongly that the newly proposed administrative procedures for project management, be approved and made operational as soon as possible, to allow proper disbursement of Project funds and implementation of activities, as per the 2006 Plan of Work. To the Project, including Budget Holder and Lead Technical Unit 12. The MTE recommends strongly that the present post of nutritionist expert be continued until project NTE date. In addition to this post, the Project should recruit in each district a nutrition facilitator (paid by the project), who under the guidance and supervision of the Project nutritionist, should carry out commonly agreed field work. It would be advisable that women facilitators be recruited for these positions, to facilitate communication with women in beneficiaries’ households. Among the facilitators’ tasks, there would be the full integration of nutrition improvement activities in the Community Action Planning process. 13. The MTE recommends strongly that in-depth refresher trainings take place for Project and partners’ staff, on participatory approaches, methods and tools, social v Mid-term Tripartite Evaluation, GCP/MOZ/027/BEL final report differentiation in rural communities, improved targeting methods for vulnerable beneficiaries, etc. 14. The MTE recommends strongly that the concept and mechanisms for the identification and development of income-generating micro-projects be revised in depth, introducing the principles of business plans, market opportunities, saving and credit, technical and organizational feasibility, etc. A micro-credit/finance