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PROJECT INFORMATION DOCUMENT (PID)
CONCEPT STAGE
Report No.: AB3332
Project Name
Region
Sector
Project ID
Borrower(s)
Implementing Agency
Environment Category
Date PID Prepared
Estimated Date of
Appraisal Authorization
Estimated Date of Board
Approval
Community-Driven Development Project
AFRICA
General education sector (30%); General agriculture, fishing and
forestry sector (30%); Other social services (25%); Water supply
(15%)
P090712
GUINEA BISSAU
Ministry of Economy and Regional Integration
[ ] A [X] B [ ] C [ ] FI [ ] TBD (to be determined)
September 21, 2007
July 12, 2008
September 15, 2008
1. Key development issues and rationale for Bank involvement
Poverty is widespread in Guinea-Bissau, but even higher in rural areas. Guinea-Bissau is one of
the poorest countries in the world, with two out of every three people living below the poverty
line (US$2/day), and one out of every five living in extreme poverty. It is estimated that rural
areas – essentially all of the country outside of the capital city of Bissau - are home to some 80
percent of the 764,672 people estimated to be living below the poverty line. Of the key drivers
of poverty highlighted in the 2007 Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), such as the 1998
conflict and ongoing political instability,1 many are specific to the rural areas, including: (i) a
vacuum of local government, and subsequent lack of social services and basic infrastructure
outside of Bissau and (ii) a lack of growth in (and diversity from) key economic sectors (e.g.,
agriculture, livestock and fishing) that support a majority of the population.
More specifically, after independence the presence of local Government in rural areas was
essentially limited to local committees established to expand and support the political party.
This committee system was abolished with the introduction of a multi-party system of
governance in 1994, leaving the Government with few resources, little presence, and weak
legitimacy at the local level. In some parts of the country, non-governmental organizations have
filled the vacuum by assuming the functions of service delivery. There is limited delivery of
social services and basic infrastructure throughout much of the country, as highlighted by the
following: (i) the net school enrollment rate is 53.5 percent for boys and 36.3 percent for girls;
(ii) the adult illiteracy rate is 63.3 percent; (iii) only 38 percent of children suffering from simple
malaria and 29 percent with cases of serious malaria are treated properly; (iv) infant mortality is
122 per 1,000; and (v) 95 percent of people in the country journey an average of 30 minutes for
1
According to the 2006/2007 World Bank Integrated Poverty and Social Assessment, GDP per capita would be an estimated 42
to 43 percent higher today if the 1998-1999 war had not occurred, and an estimated one in three persons in poverty today might
not be if the conflict had not taken place.
access to drinking water. Outside of Bissau, agriculture is the engine of the country’s economy
and the source of 42 percent of the revenue of the poorest quintile of the population. There are
currently few economic opportunities for the rural population outside of the agriculture sector, or
even outside of planting and processing cashews (this crop alone provides work for 82 percent of
the rural workforce).
The result is a growing ‘rural exodus’ to Bissau and to other countries. On average the poverty
rate in Bissau is at 51.6 percent. In addition, the disparity between the capital and the rest of the
country is growing, particularly in terms of access to social services and infrastructure, as well as
economic opportunities. Though the data are not yet conclusive, it seems that Bissau has been
characterized by an influx of unemployed youth, a reduction in employment opportunities and a
decline in average income over the last few years. Meanwhile, the availability of labor in rural
areas seems to be decreasing.
Guinea-Bissau has just completed a PRSP, with strategies to address rural poverty and
emigration. The four pillars of the PRSP are: (i) modernizing the public administration,
strengthening governance and ensuring macroeconomic stability; (ii) fostering economic growth
and job creation; (iii) increasing access to social services and basic infrastructure; and (iv)
improving the living conditions of vulnerable groups2.
The Government is committed to a CDD approach. The Government’s commitment to this
approach is evidenced by the existence of a Social Action Fund 3 in conjunction with a savings
and lending program, as well as specifications in the PRSP for an Economic Promotion Fund.
Building on these initiatives, the Government hosted a workshop among stakeholders on July 16,
2007 to consider possibilities for a proposed CDD project. The results are summarized in Annex
I, and the concept agreed upon by the participants was endorsed by the Minister of Economy, as
recorded in the Aide Memoire of the July Identification Mission of the World Bank.
The proposed project builds upon previous World Bank-financed CDD activities in GuineaBissau. The proposed project will build upon an initiative already piloted by the Government,
with the support of the World Bank, in the Coastal and Biodiversity Management Project
(CBMP). This project includes a CDD-component that targets communities living in and around
five parks and protected areas. To date, the project has completed a detailed CDD
implementation manual and a pilot phase, which resulted in the implementation of seven
successful micro-projects benefiting some 16 to 18 communities and over 8,000 people. The
results from the CBMP revealed a strong and well-articulated demand in many rural areas for
social service delivery and basic infrastructure through a CDD approach, and significant capacity
among communities and traditional institutions to take charge of their own development agenda.
This pilot phase of the CBMP is now being replicated throughout the project sites, contributing
directly to the concept and design of the proposed project.
2
Vulnerable groups are defined by the PRSP as people who have no means to solve their daily basic needs due to lack of income or resources, or
people who are confronted with specific situations that endanger their lives and/or physical integrity. These groups are identified not just by their
limited resources for subsistence, but also by the geographical areas in which they reside, because most of them live in rural areas and outlying
urban areas.
3 Preliminary review of the social funds suggests this may not be an appropriate vehicle for the CDD project, but this requires further
investigation.
Other donors and local NGOs support a CDD approach in Guinea-Bissau, and the World Bank
is providing financing to implement it. In addition to the CBMP, the United Nations
Development Program will invest some US$3 million in two of the eight administrative regions
outside of Bissau to deliver social services and basic infrastructure through a CDD approach, and
many local NGOs throughout the country have been supporting CDD approaches. There is a
growing convergence among major donors and local NGOs as to the desirability of a nation-wide
CDD approach. To date, what has been lacking is a significant injection of financial resources to
implement the results of participatory planning in rural communities throughout the country.
2. Proposed objective(s)
The proposed project development objective is to finance a hundred small socio-economic
projects identified and implemented by rural communities in three regions of Guinea-Bissau
through a transparent and participatory approach. To achieve this objective the project would
seek to:
 finance community-identified priority investments, such as basic social and small
economic infrastructures;
 build the capacity of communities (and involve local institutions) to effectively identify,
plan and implement their development priorities; and,
 build project management capacity in order to coordinate, plan, monitor, program and
supervise a wide range of community driven activities.
3. Preliminary description
Due to a small IDA allocation of US$ 5 million, which will eventually be complemented by a
PHRD technical assistance-cofinancing grant, it is proposed that the project will intervene
primarily in rural areas in three regions (out of eight) with the highest percentage of people living
with less than two dollars per day: Oio, Bafata and Quinara/Tombali. The project is proposed as
a multi-sector investment loan. Taking into account lessons learned in other World Bank CDD
investments in the region (such as Senegal), this project is proposed as the first phase of a longterm and multi-phased commitment that will be necessary in order to sustain the impact of
project activities and to build the capacity of local Government and institutions.
The project will be based on the following key design principles: (i) it will address the priority
concerns of rural communities by helping them to select among identified small socio-economic
projects, ensuring that the communities play an effective role in local development activities, and
providing funding directly to them from a national Special Account; (ii) it will work through
local institutions and stakeholders such as NGOs, CBOs and local committees4 which will be
responsible to disseminate information, thus creating awareness and interest about the project
among rural communities; (iii) it will seek to strengthen the capacities of local institutions (i.e.,
local representatives of central Government, line Ministries and local/traditional-governing
committees) to work along side rural communities in providing technical support, quality
assurance and monitoring and evaluation of project-financed activities; (iv) it will establish
4
Local committees include institutions as Tabancas, Regulados and Committee of Section (Seccao)
institutional arrangements to oversee project activities that take into account the multi-sector
nature of the project; (v) it will seek close collaboration with other initiatives targeting rural
communities and supporting CDD approaches in order to reduce duplication, to learn about best
practices and increase impact; and (vi) it will use impact monitoring and poverty level
mapping/measuring as essential features of its implementation.
The project would include three components:
1. Financing of community development priorities. This component will support an investment
fund for a wide range of projects, including: (i) small community infrastructure (e.g., wells,
latrines, rural roads, etc); (ii) economic infrastructure to support productive investments (e.g.,
livestock development, fish processing, or palm oil production, dikes to support community-wide
agriculture, adding value to farm produce and trading); (iii) community-based health activities
(e.g., distributing impregnated bed-nets and training community volunteers to combat malaria,
distributing modern contraceptives and condoms, funding for patient referral to the first level
health care facility – particularly for high risk pregnancies, organizing a nutrition surveillance
system); (iv) pre- and primary education (construction of one, two-classroom schools, provision
of learning material); and (v) investments to assist CBOs to develop income generating activities
(which might include training and information on markets and facilitating links to the private
sector) as well as supplemental financing of activities that focus on sustainable farming systems.
Activities will be identified and selected directly by communities, using guidelines and criteria
designed to ensure sustainability overtime and maximize impact on the beneficiary-community.
In relevant cases, the project will seek community co-financing both in the initial investment
phase (e.g., in-kind participation to construction costs) and in the running of new basic social
investment (e.g., payment of community teacher and health personnel). While the menu of
investments that communities can select is open, it will be refined further during project
preparation, particularly in consideration of the sustainability of projects and recurrent costs.
2. Capacity building of communities and involvement of local institutions. This component will
strengthen the capacity of communities, so that, they will become the key actors of their own
development and be able to identify, plan and manage projects in a transparent and participatory
manner. The capacity building of communities will be conducted by intermediaries, such as
existing NGOs, CBOs and/or facilitators, recruited through a competitive process and then
trained to work with the communities in rural areas. Intermediaries’ mandate will be to train,
support and work directly with communities until they are able to successfully apply to the
investment fund for community-driven projects. Intermediaries will continue their support
during the implementation and monitoring and evaluation phases. It is also expected that the
project will support the involvement of local institutions in community-led development
activities, financing capacity building activities, such as training, workshops and technical
assistance.
3. Strengthening capacity for project management. This component will comprise two subcomponents: (a) Project coordination. The coordination mechanism will include two levels of
interventions. First, at the central level, the project will be under the overall supervision of an
inter-departmental steering committee, including civil society and donor representatives under
the leadership of the Ministry of Economy and Regional Integration. This steering committee
will be responsible for adopting work plans and budgets as well as reviewing annual progress
report, audit reports and project specific supervision report. Second, the project will finance the
establishment of small project coordination unit (PCU) located in the Bissau. This PCU will be
staffed with essential contractual staff and will be responsible for project fiduciary management,
operational and strategic management and overall monitoring and evaluation of project activities.
(b) Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E). The project will also support the development and
implementation of a M&E system. Project M&E responsibilities will be shared between the PCU
and the small project offices in the regions. In addition, the project will support periodic impact
assessments, beneficiary assessments and poverty measuring. Finally, the World Bank and
Government will organize bi-annual supervision missions with the participation of interested
donors.
4. Safeguard policies that might apply
The proposed regional project would likely be considered a category B with regard to potential
environmental and social impacts. However, as these impacts cannot be clearly defined at this
stage, the proposed project would be recommended to proceed with a broad environmental and
social assessment and then the development of an environmental and social management
framework (per standard CDD models).
Applicable Safeguard Policies
Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01)
Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04)
Forests (OP/BP 4.36)
Pest Management (OP 4.09)
Cultural Property (OPN 11.03)
Indigenous Peoples (OP/BP 4.12)
Involuntary Resettlement (O/BP 4.12)
Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37)
Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50)
Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60)
Yes
No
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
5. Tentative financing
Source:
BORROWER/RECIPIENT
International Development Association (IDA)
($m.)
Total
6. Contact point
Contact: Michael Drabble
Title: Senior Education Specialist
Tel: (202) 458-1134
Fax: (202) 473-8216
Email: [email protected]
TBD
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