lift sar 2016 (28nov2016)-final-compressed

LIFTSEMI ANNUAL REPORT

2016

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSWe thank the governments of Australia, Denmark, the European Union, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, NewZealand, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States of America for their kind contributions to improving thelivelihoods and food security of rural poor people in Myanmar. Their support to the Livelihoods and Food Security Trust Fund (LIFT) isgratefully acknowledged. We would also like to thank the Mitsubishi Corporation, as LIFT’s first private sector donor.

DISCLAIMERThis internal document is based on information from projects funded by LIFT in 2016 and supported with financial assistance fromAustralia, Denmark, the European Union, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland,the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the Mitsubishi Corporation. The views expressed herein can in no way be takento reflect the official opinion of the European Union, the governments of Australia, Denmark, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, theNetherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America, or the Mitsubishi Corporation.

This report builds on LIFT’s previous Annual Reports, which can be found at www.lift-fund.org/publications

Photography by LIFT and partners

CBM Central Bank of Myanmar

CBO community-based organisation

CSO civil society organisation

DAR Department of Agricultural Research

DC Donor Consortium

DoA Department of Agriculture

DoF Department of Fisheries

DRD Department for Rural Development

DSW Department of Social Welfare

FB Fund Board

FEG Farmer Experimental Groups

FMO Fund Management Office

FPE Farmer Producer Enterprise

FRD Financial Regulatory Department

FSIN Food Security Information Network

FSWG Food Security Working Group

GAD General Administration Department

GRET Group de Recherches et d’Echanges

Technologiques

IFC International Finance Corporation

INGO international non-governmental organisation

IP implementing partner

LEARN Leveraging Essential Nutrition Actions To Reduce

Malnutrition project

MAFF Management Advice or Family Farms

MAHFP Months of adequate household food provisioning

MCCT Maternal and Child Cash Transfer

MEAL monitoring and evaluation for accountability and

learning

MFI Microfinance Institution

MMA Myanmar Microfinance Association

MMK Myanmar Kyat

MOAI Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation

MOC Ministry of Cooperatives

MoLFRD Ministry of Livestock, Fisheries and Rural

Development

NLD National League for Democracy

NLUP National Land Use Policy

NUDI Nutrition Development Initiative

PGMF Pact Global Microfinance

PGS Participatory Guarantee System

PoVAW Prevention of Violence Against WomenLaw

QSEM Qualitative Social and Economic Monitoring

SCC Savings and Credit Cooperatives

SLRD Settlement and Land Record Department

SPPRG Social Policy & Poverty Research Group

SRG self-reliance groups

SRI system of rice intensification

TVET Technical Vocational Education and Training

UNOPS United Nations Office for Project Services

VDC village development committee

VSLA village savings and loan association

WASH water, sanitation and hygiene

WHH Welthungerhilfe

Abbreviations and Acronyms

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abbreviations and Acronyms

1. Executive Summary 6

2. Results 11 LIFT’s new logical framework LIFT’s baseline results and achievements January – June 2016 Activity monitoring

3. Geographic Areas 23 3.1 Ayeyarwady Delta 26 3.2 Dry Zone 34 3.3 Uplands 40 3.4 Rakhine 47

4. Thematic Areas 57 4.1 Financial inclusion 57 4.2 Private sector engagement 59 4.3 Working with civil society 63 4.4 Migration 66 4.5 Gender 69

5. Policy Engagement 72

6. Fund Management 76 6.1 Governance review 6.2 Allocation of LIFT funds 6.3 Monitoring and evaluation for accountability and learning 6.4 Knowledge management 6.5 Communications 6.6 Finance

7. Annexes 87 7.1 Active projects 7.2 Projects signed and projects closed 7.3 Policy activity summary chart 7.4 Summary of main studies, reports

EXECUTIVESummary

LIFT continues to deliver strong results. At the end of 2015, LIFT had met or exceeded 84 per cent of its targets, including helping 500,000 households (2.1 million people) measurably improve their food security (measured in terms of one month’s additional food availability), and contributing to a reduction in the stunting rates of children under five years from 32 per cent in 2013 to 29 per cent in 2015. These outcomes cannot be updated on six month intervals, as survey data is only collected annually. However, data collected directly from implementing partners indicates that LIFT continues to expand its reach and continues to improve the lives of rural people. Chapter two provides information about LIFT’s progress against its logframe indicators. LIFT’s reach, particularly in financial services, is so extensive that LIFT ‘control’ villages for the household survey have had to be abandoned. Seventy per cent of the control villages that LIFT selected in 2011 are now receiving financial services from LIFT-supported partners. With the ‘contamination’ of control villages, more sensitive evaluation methods are needed to tease out programme effects. With this in mind, rudimentary logistic regression methods were piloted in 2016 based on LIFT’s household study data. The preliminary results indicate that households that received agriculture and livestock training experienced significantly better outcomes than those that did not: i) households that received training in agriculture were 2.1 times more likely

to indicate that their income had increased, compared to those that did not receive training; ii) LIFT households trained in agriculture and livestock were 2.1 and 2.5 times more likely respectively to indicate that their total assets and wealth had increased; and, iii) LIFT households that received training in agriculture were 4.2 times more likely to indicate that their crop yields had increased. More sophisticated analyses, including controlling for several key factors, are planned for late 2016.

LIFT’s new geographic programmes are now in place. LIFT made good progress in the first half of 2016 in awarding, negotiating and signing grants for its new programmes. The table below shows that 12 new grants were signed in the reporting period. Only the Uplands Programme still has grants to sign from the original call for proposals in 2015. As of 30 June 2016, LIFT had a total of 60 ongoing projects that were active in 222 townships and 10 Regions and States. See Chapter three for details on each of LIFT’s geographic programmes: the Delta, Dry Zone, Uplands and Rakhine.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARYLIFT is now reaching 12 per cent of the rural population in Myanmar.

All of these people have access to LIFT-supported financial services. As of 30 June 2016, LIFT supported 42 financial ser-vice providers, who in turn disbursed over USD 300 million worth of loans to nearly 1 million clients, of whom 93 per cent were women, in more than 13,200 villages countrywide. These households include 4.36 million people or 12 per cent of

Myanmar’s rural population.

LIFT’s thematic programmes, which cross-cut all geographic zones, also made good progress. LIFT now has cross-cutting programmes in financial inclusion, nutrition, migration and civil society engagement.

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Table 1: Progress towards establishing LIFT’s new geographic programmes (to 30 June 2016)

Programme Original CfP amount (USD)

Proposals selected

Grants signed in

2015

Grants signed in

2016Value of grants

signed (USD)

Delta 3 16 million 8 5 3 15.7 million

Rakhine 22 million 7 6 1 29.9 million

Dry Zone 21 million 9 5 4 26.6 million

Uplands 42 million 8 0 4 7.8 million

Totals 149 million 32 16 12 80.0 million

The new programmes include significant new investments in conflict-affected areas. An important consideration for the Uplands Programme design has been the inclusion of ‘areas emerging from conflict’ and in particular targeting people with a history of displacement, providing development opportunities to people who have only had access to humanitarian aid. The Fund Management Office has undertaken conflict assessment missions to ensure that projects in these areas have robust conflict management mechanisms in place. LIFT also expanded its activities in conflict-affected areas of Rakhine State. New projects were launched in Rathedaung and Maungdaw, both in northern Rakhine.

LIFT-supported microfinance services now account for more than half of the total number of clients in Myanmar and two-thirds of the total value of the loans outstanding. LIFT-supported microfinance services continue to expand rapidly. The growth over the first six months of 2016 represents a 16 per cent increase in the number of clients and a 44 per cent increase in the total value of loans provided. Of the nearly 1 million clients that LIFT partners have nationwide, 290,000 households have current agricultural loans, equivalent to USD 92 million for the monsoon crop. Also, over the reporting period, there was a 100 per cent increase in the number of LIFT-supported microfinance providers that have reached financial sustainability. This includes nine organisations that are part of the Pact Global Microfinance Fund-implemented Myanmar Access to Rural Credit project, which aims to ensure both the operational and financial sustainability of local microfinance NGOs. This project has been extended two more years to get these organisations to institutional sustainability.

LIFT’s financial inclusion programme continues to evolve from an exclusive focus on microfinance to a model that supports rural financial services in the wider context of structural transformation in Myanmar. In addition to agricultural finance through microfinance providers, LIFT started a new agricultural hire purchase programme in partnership with Yoma Bank in order to enable smallholder farmers to access mechanised farm services from small businesses. The Yoma Bank Partial Risk Guarantee project was officially launched in January 2016. As part of the project, Yoma has reduced the down payment size from 30 per cent to 10 per cent of the value of the machinery, has increased the length of the lease agreement from one year to up to three years, and has eliminated the need for farmers to use their land use certificates as collateral. By the end of June 2016, the total number of lease contracts had reached 1,197, with a value of USD 16.35 million. Tractors are the most popular product financed under the programme, followed by combine harvesters and transport trucks. Close to 40 per cent of the leasing volume has been in the Dry Zone, with 23 per cent in the Delta. Additional research work conducted by Michigan State University shows, at least in the rural townships around Yangon, that the pace of farm mechanisation has accelerated rapidly in the last year and that all farmers, regardless of farm size, are mechanising at more or less the same rate. This indicates that smallholder farmers are taking advantage of the increased access to mechanised services that the Yoma Bank project is enabling. The project plans to pilot with ‘Wave Money’ which is Yoma Bank’s affiliated mobile phone based payment service partnered with Telenor. Wave Money has set up 3,500 Wave shops nationwide. Other services being explored by the project include promoting savings among rural communities and providing financial literacy training.

LIFT introduced major new nutrition interventions to reduce stunting in the under-five age group. In June, LIFT organised a high-profile event in Labutta to launch the Bright Sun nutrition project that features maternal and child cash transfers (MCCTs). The launch included senior officials from the

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National Nutrition Centre, the Department of Social Welfare, local and regional governments, donor representatives and the press. The project in the Delta builds on the successful MCCT pilot in Rakhine, which has already demonstrated a reduction in stunting in children under five years. Also in the reporting period, the FMO became an active member of the UN Network on Nutrition and Food Security. LIFT also published two LEARN reports on the causes of under-nutrition in Myanmar. Finally, the LIFT-funded PATH project received approval from Myanmar’s Food and Drug Authority for its fortified rice kernels as well as for three fortified rice production facilities. Fortified rice is currently distributed in 33 supermarkets and 100 retailers in Yangon and Ayeyarwady Regions as well as seven other townships across the country. PATH also established the government-led Rice Fortification Working Group in March 2016.

LIFT’s migration programme has been established. During the reporting period, LIFT signed a grant agreement with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to work on policies and practices regarding international and internal migration in Myanmar with an emphasis on training state and local officials (72 so far) on labour migration management. This builds on LIFT’s work with International Organisation for Migration (IOM), which focuses on developing knowledge resources to understand the motivations, patterns and dynamics of migration. This work is being done in partnership with the IOM, and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, and Population. A particular policy focus of LIFT’s migration work is the rights of female migrant domestic workers, with the aim of ratifying Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers and the development of effective regulations. Through a call for proposals in early 2016, LIFT explored additional partnerships to implement specific migration-related activities on issues such as awareness, skills development, financial literacy and services, and innovative job matching services. A new partnership with BBC Media Action, starting in October, aims to increase awareness of the opportunities and risks of labour migration and remittances. Further proposals are currently under review as LIFT is seeking new partners to foster safe migration and work towards empowerment of migrant women in urban centres.

In 2015, LIFT identified a need to review and redefine its gender strategy. In the first six months of 2016 a gender review was carried out. The review made recommendations that informed the drafting of a new gender strategy, the purpose of which is to upscale LIFT’s work towards women´s empowerment and gender equality through its programmes. The strategy and action plan are still under review and will be shared and implemented in the second half of 2016. Whilst the strategy is being finalised LIFT continues to build the resilience of women and work towards greater gender equality and women’s empowerment through its programmes, policy work and governance policies. Highlights of LIFT’s work on gender are detailed in section 4.5 of this report.

LIFT’s engagement with Myanmar civil society took a major step forward in the first half of 2016 with the implementation of new initiatives. The new measures have increased the proportion of LIFT funds being granted to Myanmar Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). In the first half of 2016, LIFT signed 14 new contracts, of which eight were directly with Myanmar NGOs. It is expected that 35 per cent of LIFT’s grant funding in 2016 will be managed by Myanmar NGOs with direct grants from LIFT, reversing a decline in LIFT engagements with Myanmar NGOs in 2015. The most innovative of these initiatives is the small grants windows that LIFT is introducing in three of its four geographic zones. Although the grants for these windows have not yet been signed, significant progress in their design was made during the reporting period. In addition, LIFT continued to work on strategic partnerships with a number of national NGOs that share LIFT’s values and objectives. Three strategic partnerships have been signed, with three more under negotiation.

LIFT continues to engage with government policy across all of its programmes and many of its projects, with particular emphasis on policy areas with the most relevance to LIFT’s objectives. Chapter five highlights changes in the policy environment – and LIFT’s engagement – in financial inclusion, land tenure security and nutrition.

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The recent changes in microfinance policy by the Financial Regulation Department (FRD) will assist LIFT’s partners, who provide financial services for 50 per cent of microfinance clients in Myanmar. Despite the high demand for financial services, the existing regulatory framework restricts microfinance providers in a number of key areas, particularly in the ability to access capital to expand their services. To address these issues, the LIFT-supported Myanmar Microfinance Association (MMA) organised a series of policy dialogues with the FRD to draft a Microfinance Policy. FRD subsequently circulated five new directives that lift some of the restrictive regulations, but the new regulations are unlikely to enable MFIs to access new capital, which remains the main constraint to the growth of the sector.

The National Land Use Policy (NLUP) received cabinet endorsement by the previous government in January 2016. While an official policy, it remains unclear how the new NLD-led government is going to bring forward this agenda. LIFT is supporting the development of the NLUP through the Land Core Group, which became one of LIFT’s strategic civil society partners in 2016. LIFT also developed a relationship with Landesa, which has been advising the NLD on land policy for two years. Discussions with Landesa have provided new opportunities for LIFT and the Land Core Group to engage with NLD leaders and the new Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation. As part of this new dialogue, Landesa and the Ayeyarwady Regional Government requested LIFT’s support for allocating available public land to landless households. LIFT has proposed an independent field assessment of the planned pilot sites to ensure the government has sufficient knowledge about current land use and potential conflicting land claims within local communities. The Land Core Group has agreed to lead this assessment. In parallel to the government’s agenda, the Karen National Union (KNU) has released its own land use policy. The KNU is active in land registration in areas under their control, an issue that LIFT will be forced to contend with as it starts new activities later in 2016 in KNU-controlled areas.

In March 2016, after the election of the new NLD-led government, the donors to LIFT agreed to invite the newly-formed Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation to join the Fund Board. The government accepted the invitation and assigned the Department of Planning within the ministry to perform the role of Fund Board member. The first meeting with government representation is planned for September 2016. The government’s participation in the LIFT Fund Board eliminates the primary function of the Senior Consultation Group and alternative mechanisms for getting civil society and private sector input to the Fund Board are being considered.

Despite significant new contributions in recent years from existing donors to LIFT, nearly all of LIFT’s funding has now been allocated. The Fund Board continued to closely monitor the allocation of LIFT funding across its portfolio of geographic and thematic programmes. In both the March and May meetings of the Fund Board, decisions were taken to ensure LIFT has some flexibility to address priorities of the new government in as much as those priorities are in line with LIFT’s strategy and further the achievement of LIFT’s desired outcomes. However, LIFT’s flexibility is limited with only USD 7.3 million that has not been granted or earmarked for a particular activity.

In an effort to raise new contributions, LIFT developed a new policy on restricted financial contributions. At the beginning of the year, the Fund Board explored options for encouraging new donors to join LIFT in order to: i) provide new resources for programming; and, ii) achieve more balance in donor contributions. In March, the Fund Board endorsed the principle of accepting restricted financial contributions under certain conditions. A formal policy on restricted financial contributions was subsequently approved by the Donor Consortium.

In an effort to raise new contributions, LIFT developed a new policy on restricted financial contributions. At the beginning of the year, the Fund Board explored options for encouraging new donors to join LIFT in order to: (i) provide new resources for programming; and, (ii) achieve more balance in donor contributions. In March, the Fund Board endorsed the principle of accepting restricted financial contributions under certain conditions. A formal policy on restricted financial contributions was subsequently approved by the Donor

Consortium.

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The FMO ensured that Value-for-Money (VfM) metrics were used in the appraisal and contracting negotiations in all new grants. For each of the geographic programmes, context-specific metrics were introduced in the call for proposals and grant negotiation processes. For example, the Uplands call for proposal process included specific VfM evaluation criteria for both concept note and full proposal stages, using these calculations to eliminate 13, or 18 per cent, of concept notes from consideration. VfM was re-assessed during the contracting procedures, not only focusing on cutting costs, but making sure budgets were fit for purpose. Four projects actually received budget increases to ensure they were resourced sufficiently to meet MEAL targets. In contrast, specific VfM calculations were not required in the Delta call for proposals, which allowed applicants to demonstrate alternative, innovative approaches to VfM. Metrics and VfM calculation frameworks were then developed during the grant negotiation phase.

The FMO continued to refine the new MEAL framework, undertaking several M&E-related studies, and strengthening the M&E capacities of its implementing partners. The main activities in 2016 were: i) overseeing the implementation of the LIFT household study, which consisted of 4,800 general questionnaires, 1,500 expenditure questionnaires, and the anthropometric measurement of 5,039 children; ii) launching the QSEM 5 and related migration study, as well as overseeing the re-design and implementation of the QSEM 6 study; iii) designing a series of in-depth outcome studies on vulnerability and resilience, income and assets, and nutrition; and, iv) defining the new logframe indicators, including documenting each indicator’s data sources, collection methods, and calculation procedures. In addition to building its own and its partners M&E systems, in early 2016 LIFT helped launch the Myanmar Monitoring and Evaluation Association, a professional association with a membership of 50 people including M&E practitioners from Myanmar NGOs, INGOs, UN organisations, academia, private consulting firms, and government agencies.

LIFT’s knowledge management was significantly strengthened and mainstreamed into the FMO’s M&E and policy work. An external assessment of LIFT’s knowledge management capabilities was commissioned in early 2016 and a Knowledge Development Analyst was recruited in late April. This has helped LIFT refine its approach to knowledge management and resulted in a new knowledge management objective, set of principles, and framework. The FMO also explored, trialled and, in some cases, implemented, tools and systems to support LIFT’s knowledge management objectives. A pilot to analyse project narrative reports in order to capture information on LIFT’s priority policy areas is being developed, an inventory of all LIFT publications by focus area was carried out, and the ‘Knowledge Sharing” section of LIFT’s website was redesigned.

LIFT’s communications continued to provide good visibility to all donors. The FMO further developed its communication abilities with the collation of all publications into a resource library on its website, and a new series of social media campaigns such as #LIFTPeople that highlights how beneficiaries interact with LIFT projects. LIFT also remained active on social media, engaging especially through its Facebook page, the primary social media platform in Myanmar. A ‘What is LIFT’ video was filmed in April 2016 and LIFT programme and publication launches have been covered across Myanmar media outlets including MITV, MRTV, the Myanmar Times and others.

Projected expenditure on LIFT for 2016 is expected to be 23 per cent lower than originally budgeted. This is almost all due to projected under-expenditure in grant payments to partners. The main projected variances are as follows: i) the overall grant size of the Uplands window was reduced by 60 per cent from the initial allocation; ii) in the Dry Zone, Save the Children’s LEGACY project was reduced from USD 8 million to USD 5 million with a lower amount for year 1, and the pump irrigation project was delayed due to wanting to discuss this project with the new government; iii) the size of the PRIME grant is expected to be reduced significantly; and iv) from the initial migration call for proposals only three grants were awarded. A new CfP will be posted in September, but will only result in grants payments in 2017.

The LIFT FMO continued to demonstrate high standards of programme and fiduciary management. The annual audit of the LIFT FMO for the year 2015 was carried out in May 2016. The audit firm provided an overall assessment of the operational and internal control systems that are in place for the management of LIFT funding. The auditors gave a satisfactory rating overall, as well as satisfactory on the various functional areas that were in the scope of the audit, such as project management, finance, procurement, human resources and general administration. LIFT received an unqualified audit opinion on the Financial Statements as of 31 December 2015.

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2. RESULTS

Results

2.1 LIFT’s new logical frameworkIn 2015, in consultation with LIFT staff, IP staff, and additional technical experts, LIFT revised its logical framework to reflect the new strategy. Based on this new strategy and its corresponding theory of change, LIFT’s logframe now consists of four purpose-level outcome statements, each measured by two to four indicators. These purpose-level indicators capture income levels, income diversity, asset ownership, resilience, food security, diet diversity, stunting, and public and private policy and expenditure changes.

The new logframe also has eight programme-level outcome statements, each measured by two to six specific indicators that include both outreach and outcome-type indicators. LIFT captures a wide range of programme-level indicators including use of improved agricultural practices, agricultural productivity, establishment of enterprises, use of financial services, awareness of women and children’s nutritional needs, child diet diversity, exclusive breast feeding, use of improved sanitation facilities and water sources, and policy-oriented events and publications.

Overall, LIFT’s revised logframe consists of 11 purpose-level and 25 programme-level indicators. Twenty-four of these indicators are new, nine are slightly revised but can continue to use data collected under the previous logframe, and three remain the same. To measure indicators more accurately and consistently, all purpose-level indicators will now be measured by the LIFT Household Survey and Household Tracking Survey. The results of the programme-level indicators have two sources: implementing partner (IP) monitoring data and LIFT surveys.

2.2 LIFT’s baseline results and achievements January – June 2016 The data for most outreach indicators is provided by LIFT’s implementing partners every six months. The outreach data listed below is cumulative from 2010 to June 2016.

Most of the outcome indicator data below is derived from the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, which consists of a representative sample of 4,832 households. Of the households surveyed in LIFT villages, 20.8 per cent are female-headed. 1

This report does not include milestones and targets. The current estimates need to be recalculated to better reflect actual funding levels, to account for unpredicted weather-related events, and to take into account newly available baseline data.

1. To obtain the number of households for relevant outcome indicators, most household survey results are extrapolated to the total number of LIFT target households (307, 196) under LIFT’s new programmes. For specific indicators, results are extrapolated to the relevant sub-population. To obtain the number of female-headed households for any one indicator, the appropriate survey statistic is extrapolated to 20.8 per cent of the total number of LIFT target households.

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Purpose-level indicatorsTable 2: Purpose-level indicators: Baseline Results and Achievements

Indicator Achievement/Baseline June 2016 Data Source

TotalDisaggre-

gated by Sex

PURPOSE: To strengthen the resilience and sustainable livelihoods of the rural poor in Myanmar

PO 1: Increased incomes of rural households

PO 1.1: Number of LIFT households with increased income (by sex of HH head) N/A *

M N/A HH survey 2015F N/A

PO 1.2: Percentage of households in LIFT villages below the poverty line (by sex of HH head)

13 per cent **


PO 2: Decreased vulnerabilities of rural households and communities to shocks, stresses and adverse trends

PO 2.1: Number of LIFT households with increased asset ownership score (by sex of HH head) N/A

M N/AHH survey 2015

F N/A

PO 2.2: Number of LIFT households with increased income diversity score (by sex of HH head) N/A

M N/A HH survey 2015

F N/A

PO 2.3: Number of people whose resilience has been improved and ability to cope has increased (by sex) N/A


PO 3: Improved nutrition of women and children.

PO 3.1 Number of LIFT households with an acceptable food diversity score (by sex of HH head)

272,957 hhs

M 216,536 hhs HH survey 2015

F 56,421 hhs

PO 3.2: Number of LIFT households with an increase in food security by at least one month (by sex of HH head)

N/AM N/A

HH survey 2015

F N/A

PO 3.3: Proportion of moderately/ severely stunted children under 5 years of age in LIFT villages (by sex and age group)

28 per cent

M 30 per cent HH survey 2015

F 26 per cent

PO 3.4: Proportion of children under 5 with diarrhoea in the previous 2 weeks (by sex and age group)

20 per cent

M 21 per centHH survey 2015F 18 per cent

PO 4: Improved policies and effective public expenditure for pro-poor development

PO 4.1: Number and type of public sector/rural development policy influenced by LIFT 5 FMO

PO 4.2: Number and type of changes in public sector/rural development budget allocation and spending influenced by LIFT

1 FMO

* For outcome indicators that include “increase”, which need to be measured over time, results are not available (“N/A”) at this time. In LIFT’s new programme areas, the 2015 household survey measures baseline values only.

** Preliminary result, yet to be finalised

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PO 1: Increased incomes of rural households

Purpose indicator 1.1: Number of LIFT households with increased income (by sex of HH head)

Because 2015 was the start of LIFT’s new programmes, it is not yet possible to report on this indicator.

Purpose indicator 1.2: Percentage of households in LIFT villages below the poverty line (by sex of HH head)

Using the poverty line of USD 1.25 per day, as used in previous LIFT household surveys, and accounting for inflation, the proportion of LIFT households living below the poverty line is 13 per cent in both LIFT’s old and new programme areas surveyed in LIFT’s 2015 Household Survey. This is a significant decrease from the 31 per cent measured in LIFT’s 2013 survey. These results are still preliminary and are yet to be finalised. In addition, LIFT is looking at recalculating the 2015 expenditure data to fit the new international poverty line of USD 1.90 per day.

PO 2: Decreased vulnerabilities of rural households and communities to shocks, stresses and adverse trends

Purpose indicator 2.1: Number of LIFT households with increased asset ownership (by sex of HH head)


Purpose indicator 2.2: Number of target households with increased income diversity score (by sex of HH head)

Because 2015 was the start of LIFT’s new programmes, it is not yet possible to report on changes in respondents’ income diversity score. However, a baseline has been established with the 2015 household survey. New LIFT areas had a mean income diversity score of 2.3, and 35.5 per cent of the sample in LIFT villages reported having two or more sources of income. There was little difference in the proportion of male- and female-headed households having two or more sources of income, with 35 per cent and 34 per cent respectively.

Purpose indicator 2.3: Number of people whose resilience has been improved and ability to cope has increased (by sex)

Because 2015 was the start of LIFT’s new programmes, it is not yet possible to report on the change in respondents’ level of resilience and coping ability. In the future this indicator will be measured by calculating the number of individuals in LIFT’s household surveys who show changes in select purpose and programme-level outcomes. In addition, LIFT is conducting an in-depth study on resilience and vulnerability, consisting of a quantitative vulnerability index and corresponding qualitative narratives of change.

PO 3: Improved nutrition of women and children

Purpose indicator 3.1: Number of LIFT households with an acceptable food diversity score

Because this indicator measures a particular threshold, it is possible to report baseline results from the 2015 Household Survey. Following the recommendations of the Food and Nutrition Technical Assistance (FANTA) project, LIFT considers five as an acceptable food diversity score. In the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, 89 per cent of households surveyed within new programme areas had a household food diversity score of five or above. When extrapolated to LIFT new programme areas, nearly 273,000 households are estimated to have an acceptable food diversity score. There was little difference in the proportion of male and female-headed households having an acceptable household food diversity score, with 89 per cent and 88 per cent respectively.

Purpose indicator 3.2: Number of LIFT households with an increase in food security by at least one month (by sex of HH head)


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Purpose indicator 3.3: Proportion of moderately/ severely stunted children under 5 years of age in LIFT villages (by sex and age group)

As measured in the 2015 Household Survey through anthropometric methods, the baseline stunting rate for children under five years of age is 28 per cent. The rate for girls at 26 per cent was considerably lower than for boys at 30 per cent. It is interesting to note that this rate is equal to the findings of the Myanmar Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) 2009-10.

Purpose indicator 3.4: Proportion of children under 5 with diarrhoea in the previous 2 weeks (by sex and age group)

In LIFT’s new programme areas and according to the 2015 Household Survey, 20 per cent of children under five years of age were found to have had diarrhoea in the previous two weeks, with a small difference between boys at 21 per cent and girls at 18 per cent. This overall percentage is considerably higher than the national rate of seven per cent reported in the Myanmar MICS 2009-10. However, this difference could be due to seasonal variations of when the two surveys were administered.

PO 4: Improved policies and effective public expenditure for pro-poor development

Purpose indicator 4.1: Number and type of public sector/rural development policy and programme changes influenced by LIFT

This indicator is tracked by both the FMO and IPs. From January to June 2016, five IPs reported to have influenced five different policies. For maternal and child cash transfers (MCCTs), Save the Children has been a key stakeholder in two high-level working group meetings hosted by the DSW and UNICEF, along with a number of key line ministries and parliamentarians. HelpAge has also contributed through their pilot project in cash transfers, through which the working relationship with the General Administration Department was strengthened. The change in policy is the new government’s programme in Chin state that will provide MCCTs to all pregnant mothers through until their child’s second birthday. It is planned as a donor-funded scheme for the first two years and then will be taken over by the government.

For rice fortification, PATH successfully advocated to the Minister of Health and Sports on the continued need for the National Rice Fortification Alliance (consisting of the Rice Fortification Working Group [RFWG] and the Rice Fortification Focal Team [RFFT]) to successfully introduce fortified rice. The RFWG subsequently endorsed the first draft of the national rice fortification policy document in March 2016. The government also indicated a particular interest in the rice fortification as a tool for tackling malnutrition at the RFWG meeting in June 2016. Development of a draft policy on national rice fortification was conducted in conjunction with the Nutrition Development Initiative (NUDI) and other stakeholder groups. All policy documents have been reviewed and endorsed by the RFWG. Partners also reported affecting policy changes in social protection (HelpAge), land policy (LCG on the NLUP), and beekeeping policy (TAG).

Purpose indicator 4.2: Number and type of changes in public sector/rural development budget allocation and spending influenced by LIFT’s interventions

In the first half of 2016, LIFT influenced one change in public sector budget allocation through the IP HelpAge. Through its work with the DSW, HelpAge influenced the launch of the one-time payment of old age pensions for people over the age of 90. This is not a regular payment yet, but it allowed the government to take stock of the number of people in need and transfer mechanisms. HelpAge continues to work for the launch of this old age pension nationwide.

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Program-level indicatorsTable 3: Programme Outcome 1: Increased sustainable agriculture and farm-based production by smallholder farmers

Pr 1: Increased sustainable agriculture and farm-based production by smallholder farmers

Pr 1.1: Number of LIFT households reached by advisory services (by sex of HH head)*

1 4 3 , 6 1 6 hhs

M 105,563 hhs IP data

June 2016F 38,053 hhs

Pr 1.2: Number of LIFT households who trial and/or adopt improved practices, inputs and technologies (by sex of HH head)

N/AM N/A HH survey

2015F N/A

Pr 1.3: Number of LIFT households with an increase in production – crops only (by sex of HH head) N/A


* Data is reported as a cumulative total

Pr 1.1: Number of LIFT households reached by advisory services

From the start of LIFT’s programmes in 2010, 25 implementing partners report to have reached a cumulative total of over 143,000 households by advisory services, of which 26 per cent were female-headed households. From January to June 2016, five IPs report to have reached over 4,500 households in LIFT’s new programme areas, including Mercy Corps, WHH, IFDC, TAG and Radanar Ayar.

Pr 1.2: Number of LIFT households who trial and/or adopt improved practices, inputs and technologies


Pr 1.3: Number of LIFT households with an increase in production – crops only


Table 4: Programme Outcome 2: Improved market access and market terms for smallholder farmers

Pr 1: Increased sustainable agriculture and farm-based production by smallholder farmers

Pr 2.1: Number of LIFT households who are members of functional producer groups (by sex of HH head)*

4 7 , 8 9 9 hhs

M 35,061 hhs IP data June 2016

F 12,838 hhs

Pr 2.2 Number of LIFT households adopting new marketing practices (by sex of HH head) N/A


Pr 2.3: Number of LIFT households securing higher returns (profit) from agriculture/livestock/fishery activities (by sex of HH head)

N/AM N/A HH survey

2015N/A * Data is reported as a cumulative total

Pr 2.1: Number of LIFT households who are members of functional producer groups (by sex of HH head)

IPs reported that nearly 50,000 households were or had become, members of producer groups since 2010, of which 12,800, or roughly 25 per cent, were female-headed households. By far the most common type of groups are agricultural and livestock producers. The IPs reporting the highest numbers include Mercy Corps (11,000 households), ActionAid (4,500 households), CESVI (3,500 households) and Proximity Design (3,000 households).

Pr 2.2: Number of LIFT households adopting new marketing practices (by sex of HH head)


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Pr 2.3: Number of LIFT households securing higher returns (profit) from agriculture/livestock/ fishery activities (by sex of HH head)


Table 5: Programme Outcome 3: Increased and safe employment in non-farm activities for smallholders and landless

Pr 3: Increased and safe employment in non-farm activities for smallholders and landless

Pr 3.1: Number of LIFT households supported in non-agricultural skills development (by sex of HH head)*

22,833 hhs

M 8,702 hhs IP data June 2016

F 14,131 hhs

Pr 3.2: Number of trained people who establish their own enterprises or become employed (by sex) N/A


Pr 3.3: Number of LIFT households with an increase in income from non-agricultural activities (by sex of HH head)

N/AM N/A HH survey

2015N/A * Data is reported as a cumulative total

Pr 3.1: Number of LIFT households supported in non-agricultural skills development (by sex of HH head)

From 2010 to the end of June 2016, 14 implementing partners report training or supporting a total of 22,833 individuals in non-agricultural skills development, where one individual represents one household. Slightly more than 60 per cent of those supported were women. Of this total, nearly 7,500 households were supported from January-June 2016. The support has mostly taken the form of vocational training in areas such as tailoring, hairdressing, mechanics, food processing and, more recently, the introduction and expansion of modern beekeeping and honey production, by such IPs as ActionAid, ADRA, GRET and TAG.

Pr 3.2: Number of trained people who establish their own enterprises or become employed (by sex)


Pr 3.3: Number of LIFT households with an increase in income from non-agricultural activities


Table 6: Programme Outcome 4: Increased access to adequate and affordable financial services by smallholders and landless

Pr 4: Increased access to adequate and affordable financial services by smallholders and landless

Pr 4.1: Number of LIFT MFIs financially self-sustaining 12 MFIs FMO June 2016

Pr 4.3: Number of LIFT households accessing financial services by purpose (by sex of HH head)

991,995 hhs

M 64,001 hhsFMO June 2016F 927,994

hhs

Pr 4.1: Number of LIFT MFIs financially self-sustaining

LIFT continues to support 42 microfinance partners, including nine local microfinance organisations, 24 credit cooperatives, three international microfinance NGOs, and four international microfinance companies. Of these 42 microfinance partners, 12 are now considered to be financially self-sustaining, i.e. covering operational costs by income after adjusting for financial costs and inflation. See Chapter 4.1 on Financial Inclusion for more detail.

Pr 4.3: Number of LIFT households accessing financial services

Since 2011, LIFT’s assistance to households through its microfinance partners, at both the financial and

17

institutional levels, has grown rapidly. By the end of June 2016, MFI partners were providing financial services, primarily in the form of loans, to 991,995 clients, of whom 94 per cent were women. This is an increase of nearly 57,500 clients since the end of 2015.

Table 7: Programme Outcome 5: Improved nutrition, sanitation and hygiene practices

Pr 5: Improved nutrition, sanitation and hygiene practices

Pr 5.1: Number of LIFT households reached with nutritionally sensitive information (by sex of HH head)*

79,091 hhs

M 863 hhs IP data June 2016

F 78,228 hhs

Pr 5.2: Proportion of men and women in LIFT households with awareness of nutritional needs of women and children

N/AM 3.9 per

cent HH survey 2015

F 22.8 per cent

Pr 5.3: Number of children 6-23 months with “acceptable” dietary diversity (by sex)

11,743 children


Pr 5.4: Number of infants (0-5 months of age) who received only breast milk during the previous 24 hours (by sex)

5,559 children


Pr 5.5: Number of LIFT households using an improved sanitation facility (by sex of HH head)

202,503 hhs

M 157,654 hhs HH survey

2015F 44,849 hhs

Pr 5.6: Number of LIFT households using protected water sources (by sex of HH head)

215,523 hhs

M 170,312 hhs HH survey

2015F 45,212 hhs * Data is reported as a cumulative total

Pr 5.1: Number of LIFT households reached with nutritionally-sensitive information (by sex of HH head)

From the start of LIFT’s programmes in 2010, 11 IPs report reaching nearly 80,000 households with nutritionally-sensitive information, mostly through health and nutrition training sessions. It is assumed that one participant represents one household. Nearly 99 per cent of the participants were women. In the past six months, IPs report 947 households received MCCTs and approximately 13,000 households participated in health and nutrition training sessions. The most active IPs in health and nutrition training are IRC in the Tan Lan programme and HelpAge.

Pr 5.2: Proportion of men/women in LIFT households with awareness of nutritional needs of women and children

In the LIFT 2015 household nutrition survey, the fathers and mothers within each household were both asked a series of four questions on the nutritional needs of pregnant women and young children. Answering three of the four questions correctly demonstrates awareness of nutritional needs, based on the Food for Peace nutritional indicator developed by FANTA. In LIFT programme areas, and of the sampled parents of children under five years of age, 4 per cent of fathers and 23 per cent of mothers had correct knowledge of the nutritional needs of women and children. As these are baseline figures, it is important to note the considerable knowledge gap between mothers and fathers.

Pr 5.3: Number of children 6-23 months with ‘acceptable’ dietary diversity (by sex)

In the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, 26 per cent of children aged 6-23 months in LIFT programme areas had acceptable dietary diversity. When extrapolated to the estimated 45,167 children in this age group in LIFT programme areas, nearly 12,000 children, as a baseline, are estimated to have acceptable dietary diversity in LIFT programme areas. Sex disaggregation of these findings is not available at this time.

Pr 5.4: Number of infants (0-5 months of age) who received only breast milk during the previous 24 hours (by sex)

In the LIFT 2015 Household Survey of programme areas, 48 per cent of infants were reported to have been exclusively breastfed in the previous 24 hours. When extrapolated to the estimated 11,581 infants

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in LIFT programme areas, 5,559 infants, as a baseline, are estimated to have been exclusively breast fed in LIFT villages. Sex disaggregation of these findings is not available at this time.

Pr 5.5: Number of LIFT households using an improved sanitation facility (by sex of HH head)

In the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, 70 per cent of households sampled in LIFT programme areas reported usually using an improved sanitation facility. There was a moderate difference between female-headed households at 74 per cent and male-headed households at 69 per cent. When extrapolated to LIFT programme areas, a baseline of 202,503 households are estimated to use an improved sanitation facility.

Pr 5.6: Number of LIFT households using protected water source (by sex of HH head)

In the LIFT 2015 household survey, 74 per cent of households sampled in LIFT programme areas reported that their main source of drinking water during the summer season was a protected water source. There was no difference in the proportions of female and male-headed households. When extrapolated to LIFT programme areas, a baseline of 215,523 households are estimated to use a protected water source.

Table 8: Programme Outcome 6: Safeguarded access to and sustainable use of natural resources for smallholders and landless

Pr 6: Safeguarded access to and sustainable use of natural resources for smallholders and landless

Pr 6.1: Number of LIFT villages where common property resource management is taken up (by type) N/A

Village profiles 2015

Pr 6.2: Number of LIFT households benefitting (directly/indirectly) from protected/managed natural resources (by type)

12,852 hhs HH survey 2015

Pr 6.1: Number of LIFT villages where common property resource management is taken up (by type)

Of the 300 LIFT villages surveyed in the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, 102 or 34 per cent said they had village management systems for community forests, grazing lands, mangroves, wild fisheries, watersheds and/or embankments. Of these 102 villages, 76 said they had received benefits from their managed property resources. However, one village may have more than one resource management system and further investigation is required. Therefore, it is not currently possible to extrapolate these findings to LIFT’s new programme areas.

Pr 6.2: Number of LIFT households benefitting (directly/indirectly) from protected/managed natural resources (by type)

In the LIFT 2015 Household Survey, households were asked if they benefited from any type of managed or protected community resource. Of households in LIFT’s new programme areas, 5.1 per cent reported benefitting from managed or protected forests. When extrapolated to LIFT’s new programme areas, 12,852 households are estimated to be benefitting from managed or protected forests, with a small difference of female-headed households, 4.5 per cent, and male-headed households, 5.2 per cent.

Table 9: Programme Outcome 7: Strengthened local capacity of communities, local government, CSOs and private enterprises to support and promote food and livelihood security

Pr 7: Strengthened local capacity of communities, local government, CSOs and private enterprises to support and promote food and livelihood security

Pr 7.1: Percentage of LIFT funds managed by national entities 35 per cent FMO June

2016

Pr 7.2: Number and type of local groups and insti-tutions supported to promote food and livelihood security*

1,342 local groups FMO/IP June 2016

Pr 7.3: Number and type of supported local groups and institutions actively promoting food and livelihood security

856 local groups FMO/IP June 2016

* Data is reported as a cumulative total

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Pr 7.1: Percentage of funds managed by national entities

From January to June 2016, LIFT signed 14 new contracts, of which eight were directly with national NGOs. Of the other five contracts signed in the first half of 2016 none included any national sub-IPs.

The 2016 projected budget to be managed by all national entities is nearly USD 22 million which is 35 per cent of LIFT’s 2016 projected programme expenditure of around USD 65 million. This is a substantial increase from the 14 per cent in 2015, and is expected to increase considerably as more contracts are signed with national entities in the second half of 2016.

Pr 7.2: Number and type of local groups and institutions supported to promote food and livelihood security

Since the start of LIFT, 14 IPs report supporting 1,343 local groups and institutions to promote food and livelihood security. These include a wide variety of groups such as village organisations, producer and marketing groups, mother-to-mother support groups, and savings and loans groups. The IPs supporting the largest number of local groups include IPs in the Tat Lan programme (431 groups), Save the Children in the Bright SUN programme (262 groups) and ActionAid-SEDN (120 groups).

Pr 7.3: Number and type of supported local groups and institutions actively promoting food and livelihood security

As of the end of June 2016, 12 IPs report that they are currently supporting 856 local groups and institutions, all of which are actively promoting food and livelihoods security. The IPs reporting the highest number of active local groups include Save the Children under Bright SUN with 262 groups, PATH with 122 groups, and Mercy Corps with 98 groups.

Table 10: Programme Outcome 8: Generation of policy-relevant evidence regarding pro-poor development

Pr 8: Generation of policy-relevant evidence regarding pro-poor development

Pr 8.1: Number of LIFT-supported policy oriented events organised 43 events FMO/IP

June 2016

Pr 8.2: Number of LIFT policy-oriented publications published and disseminated to stakeholders 30 publications FMO/IP

June 2016

Pr 8.1: Number of LIFT-supported policy-oriented events organised

From January to June 2016, 11 IPs organised and conducted a total of 43 policy-oriented events.

At the national level, ILO organised four migration-related policy oriented events, including trainings on laws and policies governing overseas migration for government officials and CSOs, and meetings with project stakeholders and Members of Parliament (MP) on Labour Migration Management. UNESCAP organised a policy dialogue in Nay Pyi Taw that two regional ministers of agriculture, the Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Agriculture, Livestocks and Irrigation (MoALI), and two MPs participated in. PATH helped organise three policy-oriented events, including their fortified rice launch in March in Yangon.

Under the Learning and Innovation programme the Food Working Group (FWG)conducted three events: i) Improving fishery governance ‘Experiences of Delta’ knowledge sharing event, ii) Smallholder Inclusive Growth Model, Module l, and iii) Smallholder Inclusive Growth Model, Module 2. Under the Strengthening Civil Society programme, the Gender Equality Network (GEN) organised policy oriented events, including a Prevention and Protection of Violence Against Women Law (PoVAW Law) Drafting Core Group Meeting, and a meeting with Amyotha Hluttaw Women and Children Rights Committee in Nay Pyi Taw in May.

Pr 8.2: Number of LIFT policy-oriented publications published and disseminated to stakeholders

From January to June 2016, LIFT and IPs published and disseminated 30 policy-oriented publications to stakeholders. IP highlights include: four publications from GEN including a Commission on Status of Women pamphlet for gender-based violence in IDP camps in Myanmar, a POVAW law brief and a full report on CEDAW. HelpAge published several policy briefs on social protection and MSWRR and released their advocacy strategy outline. The World Food Programme published 19 bulletins, Oxfam released an advocacy strategy, and ILO published their Briefing Paper on Complaints Mechanisms for migration.

A detailed list of LIFT-commissioned publications can be found in Annex 4.

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2.3 Activity monitoringTable 11: Activity monitoring 2010-June 2016

Descriptions

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Planned overall targets (without double counting of beneficiaries)

Total number of direct beneficiary HHs 153,808 69,421 149,299 138,977 116,922 193,668 44,515 866,610

No. of female - headed HHs - 3,691 16,940 19,733 14,637 42,511 2,579 100,091

No. of HHs with disabled persons - 1,064 2,354 3,111 1,508 1,580 457 10,074

Agricultural production (crops)

No. of HHs supported in agricultural production 43,454 15,701 42,854 52,310 20,659 14,887 2,112 191,977

No. of HHs benefiting from market information and linkages - 3,324 21,523 3,177 10,691 4,064 38 42,817

Livestock production

No. HHs supported in livestock production 7,931 1,813 6,653 3,958 1,447 1,174 148 23,124

Fishery production

No. HHs supported in wild capture fishery 4,799 - 3,177 1,956 1,654 3,948 212 15,746

Other IGA (not agril/livestock/fishery)

No. HHs supported in other IGA 11,635 3,700 2,620 6,157 2,636 752 604 28,104

Revolving funds

No. HHs supported through revolving funds - 2,112 17,211 8,021 4,133 877 516 32,870

Training

No. participants trained in total 21,491 36,342 69,557 84,270 80,520 26,046 20,840 339,066

No. trained - agriculture related (including livestock and aquaculture) 10,443 8,530 41,231 32,367 37,171 9,348 4,526 143,616

No. trained - other IGAs (not agri/livestock/fish) 6,293 1,143 1,759 2,719 1,572 1,860 7,487 22,833

No. trained - wild capture fishery related - - 195 121 283 2,504 1,727 4,830

No. agricultural/livesock/fishery extension workers trained 3,801 56 1,422 6,921 3,018 2,143 58 17,419

No. trained in environmental protection/conservation/rehabilitation 954 1,580 6,477 7,223 6,976 271 44 23,525

No. trained in skills to strengthen CBO management - 25,033 18,473 34,919 31,500 9,920 6,998 126,843

Cash for work (CfW)

No. person - days of CfW provided - 374,469 671,116 588,506 301,957 209,650 7,900 2,153,598

No. person - days of CfW provided for women - 164,191 246,821 269,937 120,281 125,730 4,352 931,312

Total number of HHs supported through CfW 33,493 31,410 43,227 38,488 74,598 20,103 599 241,918

Community Based Organisations (CBOs)

No. CBOs established or strengthened 1,682 1,785 2,924 2,998 1,644 640 2,627 14,300

Nutrition

No. of participants in MCCT (Mother and Child Cash Transfer) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 947 947

No. of participants trained in nutrition train-ings/workshops (Community) N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 13,249 13,249

Migration

No. of participants trained in migration aware-ness trainings/workshops N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 350 350

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Descriptions

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Water

No. of beneficiary HHs for drinking water N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 969 969

Sanitation

No. of HHs with improved latrine N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 300 300

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3.GEOGRAPHIC AREAS

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3. Geographical programmesChapter three details the activities and progress across LIFT’s four programmes defined geographically by agro-ecological zone. LIFT partners are implementing interventions across sectors, and with a strengthened focus on sustainability, building resilience, and improving nutrition, in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Rakhine State, the Uplands (inclusive of Chin, Kachin, Kayin and Shan States) and the central Dry Zone (Magwe, Mandalay and Sagaing Regions).

This chapter reports on both existing interventions from the Learning and Innovation Window and new projects from zone-specific calls for proposals. Most of these projects were launched in the second half of 2015 and the beginning of 2016. Over the first half of 2016 a total of 63 projects were active in 118 townships and 13 of the 16 Regions and States. Projects funded under the financial inclusion, migration and vocational training windows are also reported on.

Charts detailing important updates on each zone’s projects are available in Annex 1. Sector programmes, including financial inclusion, private sector engagement, working civil society and the migration programme, which all work across zones, are detailed in Chapter 4.

Geographic Areas

Each agro-ecological zone has its own approach and focal areas (represented by their zonal Theory of Change), all contributing to broader LIFT outcomes and LIFT strategy. Nutrition activities are represented in three of the four geographic programmes, while collaboration with government and private sector has increased and are now an integral part of activities in all zones.

“

“

25

3.1 AYEYARWADY DELTA

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Projects for Delta 3 were contracted between December 2015 and April 2016. Programme launch events have helped implementing partners identify how interventions will contribute to LIFT-level outcomes and create learning and knowledge products that contribute to the new regional government’s development efforts. Delta 3 will contribute to the revised LIFT strategy and to high-level outputs on increasing incomes, improving resilience and nutrition, and work on pro-poor policy influence.

The Delta Programme

The context for development in the Ayeyarwady Delta

The Ayeyarwady River Delta is a major rice producing region, accounting for 26 per cent of national rice production.2 The region has recovered much of its agricultural potential following the damage from Cyclone Nargis in 2008, but significant work remains to reduce poverty, particularly among the landless. The Delta region has a high poverty rate (26 per cent3 ), high levels of malnutrition (stunting prevalence is 26 per cent4 and wasting prevalence is 9.4 per cent)5, and 66 per cent of the population are landless6.

Despite a continued lack of sustainable, regular, local employment, changes are occurring that demonstrate economic opportunities in a number of productive sectors. Parts of the agricultural sector (milling and inputs suppliers especially), have seen increased investment, and development of small and medium enterprises has expanded.

However, with a majority of households landless and relying on small-scale fishing7 or agricultural labour, migration as a livelihoods coping strategy has increased significantly since 2011. Approximately 25 per cent of households in Ayeyarwady Region have been affected by this migration boom, with landless households more likely to have a migrant family member than landowners8.

What LIFT is trying to achieve

The Delta 3 programme, LIFT’s third phase of activities in the region, defines four prioritised components, framed by the programme-level theory of change. These are:

1. Strengthening the smallholder farmer position in the rice value chain (‘stepping up’)2 Myanmar Rice Sector Development Strategy, May 2015 3 LIFT HHs survey 20134 Preliminary findings LIFT HH survey 20155 Undernutrition in Myanmar, Critical review, LEARN March 20166 Preliminary findings of LIFT HH survey 2015. 7 44.6 per cent of surveyed HHs in LIFT target area reported decreases in profit from fish/prawns/crabs/shellfish according to preliminary findings of LIFT 2015 HH survey8 A country on the move: Domestic Migration in Two Regions of Myanmar, 2016 WBG

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2. Improving access to new economic opportunities: off-farm income generation, vocational training, and support for migration (‘stepping out’)3. Addressing vulnerabilities: social protection measures, improved nutrition, reduced indebtedness, climate change adaptation (‘hanging in’)4. Providing support to pro-poor policies and stakeholder coordination

LIFT intervention areas

The rice value chain

The Delta programme has a strong focus on the rice sector and has prioritised outputs around seeds, advisory services, post-harvest management, farmers’ organisations and rural finance. The programme assists farmers, especially smallholders with less than 10 acres (non-irrigated or 5 acres irrigated), to increase profitability. Farmers are mostly rice-based and face rising labour costs and difficulties in accessing on-time labour, especially between the monsoon and winter seasons9. This presents a challenge to achieving improved rice quality and value. Rice value chain efforts assist approximately 12,000 smallholder farmers directly across the three LIFT target townships, with a budget allocation of approximately USD 4.6 million over three years.

Seed

The availability of high-quality paddy seed is well below farmers’ requirements and less than 10 per cent of farmers use certified seeds10. In order to rapidly increase the volume available, it is imperative to revive and extend seed networks and to improve seed certification and marketing systems in a way that is inclusive of government seed farms, farmer groups, and private seed companies11. In Delta 3, LIFT’s partners will build on their previous efforts to develop an improved and sustainable seed market.

During Delta 2, Radanar Ayar and GRET took initial steps to improve the seed market. The former worked to improve registered seed production by farmers in close collaboration with Department of Agriculture (DoA) and Department of Agriculture Research (DAR). The latter led the organisation of seed-growers into Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) for quality assurance. Both were limited by sustainability, this challenge was due to the lack of market and limited business orientation from both seed producers and buyers12.

During the monsoon and summer season 2015/2016, 35 seed growers supported by WHH/GRET produced 3,288 baskets (75 tons) of certified seeds of six different varieties. The seeds were laboratory tested, with 32 growers receiving certification for the PGS. All unqualified seed was sold within local villages as good-quality seed. The certified seed was sold at township level, with 15 per cent higher prices than uncertified. There are now 58 PGS seed growers across the LIFT partner-supported network.

The last seed production recorded had an average gross margin of 505,000MMK/acre and a net profit of 423,000 MMK/acre versus average values of monsoon paddy production gross margins of 245,000MMK/acre. High quality seed production provides twice the gross margin as monsoon paddy and 2.7 times summer paddy. However, seed production and PGS certification require stronger technical skills and an increased workload that not all farmers can manage.

Table 12: PGS seed margins

Seed type Yield/ acre

Price/ bsk

Income/ ac

Total Cost

RACC (gross margin)

Total CostRAVC (Net Profit)

B/C ratio

Average PGS 56 11,471 654,353 148,454 505,899 230,940 423,413 4.8

9 68 per cent of farming HH used employed labour during 2014 monsoon cropping season, LIFT 2015 HH survey 10 Myanmar: Analysis of farm production economics, February 2016. World Bank Group11 Myanmar Rice Sector Development Strategy 12 Pathways for developing the Seed Sector of Myanmar: Scoping Study, Centre of Development Innovation, Wageningen, January 2015

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In April 2016 Radanar Ayar began scaling up its previous intervention working with 54 seed growers. Their seed production efforts focus on both Certified and Registered Seeds in close collaboration with DoA and DAR. On the supply side, for the 2016 monsoon season the programme has begun to produce registered seeds on 4 acres for an estimated production of 200 baskets (estimated production of 50 baskets/acre). This can then be multiplied to reach 10,000 baskets of certified seeds13. On the demand side, the project has coordinated a meeting between agri-business company Shwe Zarchi Agro-CO and the cooperative Ayeyar Aung Dagun Co-op. The meeting led to a contract farming agreement, with Shwe Zarchi committing to procuring 3,000 baskets of certified seeds.

The LIFT-commissioned Seed Study in the Delta will be carried out during the last quarter of 2016 and will provide quantitative estimates of seed demand and supply in the region. It will also provide recommendations for LIFT investment to improve seed sector performance in the Delta through an integrated and sustainable approach. This study is both a key programmatic tool but also a broader knowledge and policy engagement mechanism that will be used to drive engagement with other actors in the agricultural development sector and with regional government.

Extension services

Extension services under Delta 2 focused on rice production and were NGO-provided direct services, not designed to be sustainable beyond project duration. For Delta 3, LIFT has moved towards focusing on i) safe and economic use of inputs (fertilisers and pesticides) ii) quality and post-harvest management of crops and iii) a more sustainable approach that works through private and public advisory services.

In recent years WHH and GRET have applied various agricultural farmer-led extension methodologies to the Delta region. These have included Farmer Field Schools, Farmer Experimental Groups (FEGs), and the establishment of learning centres. Based on these previous projects, a joint WHH/GRET farmer-led extension approach has been fine-tuned for Delta 3. In the first half of 2016, agricultural extension services reached a total of 1,022 farmers across 63 villages in Bogale Township through demonstration plots and learning centers. The first phase focused on soil fertility management and crop diversification.

At the same time, Mercy Corps is exploring possibilities to involve the private sector in extension services by working with agribusiness companies to pilot innovative public private partnerships. The project has established a partnership with Myanmar Awba utilising company extension services to deliver a more appropriate and effective training package. The recipients of the training will be selected farmer groups and will have a dedicated Awba extension worker whose services are not tied to Awba sales or promotions, but to performance targets based on farmers’ harvest outputs and quality. During this reporting period, a total of 374 farmers accessed private sector extension and agriculture services.

Farmer organisations

Farmers’ groups, associations, and cooperatives have a number of advantages as partners in rural development. Over time, they can develop into interest groups that lobby on behalf of their members, influencing relevant policy decisions at multiple levels. They also provide a wide range of services to their members, and can facilitate provision of services to an even broader audience14. The WHH/GRET and Mercy Corps projects are all working with farmers groups formed during previous interventions and aim to use lessons to establish new groups in Delta 315.

WHH/GRET supports 70 producer organisations (POs) to deliver services along all points of the paddy value chain (upstream and downstream) for smallholder farmers. These POs are helping smallholder farmers develop long term access to quality and affordable inputs and machinery, appropriate knowledge and technologies, improved post harvest facilities, stronger bargaining power, and profitable market opportunities. During the reporting period, 23 old and 6 new POs provided services to 2,029 members along the paddy value chain. These services included collective purchase of inputs on credit, paddy purchase storage and selling, and paddy storage and saving through revolving funds.

13 It is assumed that for each basket of registered seeds, average of 50 baskets of certified seeds can be produced. 14 LIFT Study on Extension and advisory Services (EAS), May 2015 15 LIFT 2015 HHs survey data for the Delta recorded 89,9 per cent of farmers belonging to a Farmer Organisation and 3.9 per cent of household with a mem-ber of a producer group that is financially active, 7.7 per cent of HH belonging from a livestock producer group and zero per cent from an aquaculture groups in the Delta.

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Mercy Corps further supports 100 Farmers Producer Enterprises (FEPs) that operate as sustainable market actors, delivering services to their members and generating growth for member enterprises. For an FEP to develop into a strong market-oriented actor envisaged by the project, it proved essential to clearly define its role and ensure its members understood both its structure and its goals. Materials and information were compiled and FPE operational guidelines have been completed that describe the various FPE member services. There are nine categories of services that will be recommended to FPEs as possible, but it is not envisioned that all FPEs will offer all services within the project timeframe.

A total of 312 members have received services from FPEs over the reporting period. Four millers and three traders signed contracts for 656 baskets of certified seed on credit and paddy sales to 15 FPEs for the monsoon season 2016. A requirement of the contract farming approach is that FPEs have adequate facilities to store their paddy after harvest until they are able sell when prices are high: currently there are 27 FPEs storing paddy, or who can store paddy following the 2016 monsoon harvest. The total current paddy storage level of these FPEs is 13,700 baskets corresponding to approximately 287 metric tons.

During the reporting period, three FPEs were registered as cooperatives with the Ministry of Cooperatives (MOC). All three have already received MOC financing (MMK 8,190,000, MMK 5,418,000, and MMK 4,680,000, respectively). The project is positioned to assist nine additional FPEs to register with the MOC in the coming months.

Improving access to new off-farm economic opportunities

This component targets landless and poor households, supporting improved access to new opportunities either with better local employment or through migration.

Several Delta IPs contribute to this programme component with diversified interventions targeting directly 9,500 landless households in the three LIFT target townships with a budget allocation of approximately USD 7.5 million.

Migration & training

A Mercy Corps/Swisscontact project supports the rural landless to develop occupations with commercial potential locally, and access better paid employment opportunities in Yangon. It focuses on supporting occupational skills that are verifiable and meaningful, resulting in real employment and occupational outcomes. Five priority occupations were identified as most appropriate, and curricula and training plans for each were developed by Swisscontact. The five occupations are: mechanical, carpentry, masonry, garment manufacturing, and hospitality.

Most of the trainings will start in the second half of 2016. Mechanics, carpentry and masonry training will be conducted in Labutta with locally recruited trainers who will participate in training-of-trainers courses. In an effort to facilitate linkages between trainees and local market actors, the project team is working with Myaungmya-based farm equipment companies to develop two possible initiatives. One involves connecting the dealers with graduates of project mechanics courses. The equipment dealers already have mechanics located in villages and the newly trained mechanics would provide a human resource allowing the companies to expand. A second possible initiative involves developing a role for Agent Mechanics that can facilitate farm equipment hire purchase models to FPEs.

The Garment and Hospitality trainings are provided by the SwissContact partners Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association and the Hotel Training Initiative. The courses include an initial module on business and life skills in Labutta followed by technical trainings in Yangon. 49 female participants have already received Myanmar Garment Manufacturing Association (MGMA) training at their centre in Yangon. MGMA made efforts to place all participants into employment following the course, but 20 of the graduates preferred to immediately return home to Labutta. For the remaining 29 who received job offers, only 6 accepted them and the others decided to to find garment factory jobs on their own. At the time of reporting project staff are following up to learn the reasons behind this unexpected result.

The IOM project Migration as Livelihood Diversification Strategy in the Delta (MILDAS), is intended to serve as a pilot to test ways that LIFT can address migration in meaningful and relevant ways. MILDAS

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will implement various activities encouraging people in Delta townships to position migration in the context of strategic livelihood planning. It will work to help migrants realize the best-case scenarios while providing necessary attention to the negative potential consequences of migration. In addition to direct support to target townships, the project also proposes to support LIFT stakeholders more broadly in an effort to deepen understanding on the nexus of migration and development.

In the first half of 2016 MILDAS introduced project partners and stakeholders to the project and identified local partners for safety/benefits-from-migration training. A consultation workshop was organised with the broad participation of the local CSOs, LIFT IPs, religious organisation and township Labour Exchange Offices (LEOs).

Local off-farm livelihoods

The WHH/GRET project targets village/township based livelihood activities focusing on making the best use of households’ limited resources and empowering beneficiaries with sustainable livelihoods improvements. Landless and vulnerable households are assisted with transfer of technical knowledge, business management and vocational training, advisory services, and facilitated access to credit. During the reporting period, the consortium made a field assessment of small off-farm businesses supported by previous projects to identify lessons and best practices. Twenty-one ‘small business types’ were identified based on specific criteria such as capital, capacity, effort, income, risk, manageability, and seasonality.

Management Advice for Family Farmers (MAFF) advisory services help users find their own solutions and facilitate decision-making to both improve existing activities and to develop new ones. Currently there are 24 advisory staff, 46 MAFF facilitators, and 219 MAFF members across 83 villages.

In 2009, WHH-supported villages set up revolving funds from the money used to pay the project back for inputs. These Village Revolving Funds (VRFs) count among previous projects’ most successful and sustainable results and are presently in 50 villages. In 2016, a total of 1,719 persons (582 farmers and 1,137 landless) benefitted from loans. Farmers used these loans to purchase farm inputs (72 per cent) and to hire/repair machinery (14 per cent), while for the landless, most loans were spent on animal husbandry (58 per cent), followed by trading activities (17 per cent) and fishery equipment (12 per cent).

Financial inclusion

LIFT funds two microfinance partners, the IFC and UNCDF through Delta 3. The latter, through its Microlead project, is working to promote savings-led financial services in rural areas. It has partnered with Association of Asian Confederation of Credit Unions (ACCU) to promote financial access among poor households through a cooperative approach. The project has taken advantage of local saving practices, ‘su jay’, among rural communities and organised them into Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SCC). By June 2016, the project had formed 32 SCCs with accumulated savings of USD 280,469 from 12,897 members (51 per cent women) in Ayeyarwady and Bago Region. From the savings, the SCCs had a loan portfolio of USD 324,970 to 57 per cent of members. Forty-one per cent of total members are from the Delta, with the remaining participants from Bago Region.

IFC’s East Asia and Pacific Advisory Services is implementing the Myanmar Microfinance Development Programme focusing on sector-level support and institutional level support. The project has supported capacity building for microfinance staff working at PGMF, Proximity Finance, Vision Fund, and Fullerton to improve procedures, firm-level policies, practices and standards. In Delta region, these four MFIs have disbursed USD 73.16 million in loans to 275,234 households from 25 townships. Of the recipients, 70 per cent utilised their loans for agricultural activities and 91 per cent of direct beneficiaries are female.

Aquaculture

Fish farming (aquaculture) is important to Myanmar’s food security at a national level and the sector is rapidly developing. Fish is the leading source of animal protein and a lead provider of micronutrients, important especially for child development. It is also important in household food budgets nearly as much is spent on fish (14 per cent of food expenditure) as on rice (19 per cent of food expenditure)16 .

LIFT approved funding for a WorldFish project to develop small-scale aquaculture in the Delta and the

16 Aquaculture in transition: value chain transformation, fish and food security in Myanmar, Michigan State University (MSU), the Centre for Economic and Social Development (CESD) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)- FEED THE FUTURE USAID,

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Dry Zone under the Learning and Innovation Window. In 2016, seven aquaculture systems have been selected for testing under different salinities in the Delta and under various water availabilities in the Dry Zone. In the search for ways to engage smallholders, WorldFish is developing a new avenue for fish farming: irrigation channels. Known in Myanmar language as ‘chan myaung’, these channels crisscross the Ayeyarwady Delta, mainly to provide irrigation water.

A total of 540 aquaculture farmers from 71 villages have been selected, organised into 30 groups, and provided with the necessary equipment to start Small Scale Aquaculture activities with the support of WorldFish’s partners, NAG, GRET, and PACT. To provide the required seed fish, the project established a breeding programme for climbing perch (anabus testudineus) at a Department of Fisheries-owned hatchery in February 2016, the first time these have been grown in Myanmar. In July 2016, catfish and snakehead seed fish will also begin being produced. Over 500,000 climbing perch eggs have been produced and are being distributed to channel owners and pond farmers starting in early June. During the reporting period, a total of 188 farmers from 28 villages in Delta were able to stock their ponds with fish.

Addressing vulnerabilities

The Delta 3 programme is ensuring that partners invest time to understand vulnerabilities across their project and in target villages—and demonstrate how each project reduces those vulnerabilities.

Nutrition

The Delta 3 programme works to address the immediate causes of stunting, including inadequate food intake and disease at the individual level17, as well as some of the underlying drivers such as awareness of the associated risks, knowledge of prevention methods, and resource allocation to improve dietary practices especially during key life stages18. Work to address nutrition vulnerability targets approximately 25,000 direct beneficiaries in the three LIFT target townships with a budget allocation of approximately USD 4 million. The main components of the nutrition plan include MCCT for pregnant and lactating mothers with children below two years, nutrition awareness campaigns, and Social Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) activities focusing on the 1000-days window of opportunity. Fathers, grandparents, village leaders, and health staff will also be targeted with nutrition-related information and activities19.

The Save the Children project in Labutta Township works with government health systems and a 3MDG-funded project across 200 villages. It will deliver maternal cash transfers and behaviour change activities to an estimated 10,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women and their children under age two. The project also tests the feasibility of delivering services sustainably through Ministry of Health structures.

In 2016, the design of SBCC component has been finalised with inputs from Ministry of Health (MOH)and 3MDG. Two hundred and ninty-two SBCC sessions were conducted on Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF), ante natal care and post natal care, and WASH health seeking behaviours, with 1,568 targeted mothers. The MCCT model has been modified with establishment of MCCT-Focal Groups to replace Village Health Committees. These 3-4 member Focal Groups are often composed of people already engaged with health sector such as Community Health Workers (CHW), Auxilliary Midwives (AMWs), and village authorities. Fifty five per cent of MCCT-Focal Group members are female. The MCCTs in January-June 2016 reached 1,104 new pregnant or lactating women with 3-4 months of payments.

Other implementing partners’ nutrition interventions include WHH’s project to reach approximately 10,000 households in 118 villages in Bogale Township with awareness campaigns on appropriate nutrition practices. They will directly target 900 households in 45 villages with interventions based on lessons from a previous EU-funded project piloting Link Agriculture Natural Resource Management and Nutrition (LANN) methodology in the Delta20. These activities have begun in 27 villages with the participation of 1,425 people to date.

The WorldFish-led consortium aquaculture project also includes a nutrition behaviour change communication component and has an explicit objective of increasing dietary diversity. Training manuals have been developed with LEARN support and visits to target villages have been conducted to 17 The diets of infants 6 to 11 months of age in the Delta Zone are extremely poor. In fact, almost no children in this age group have an adequately diverse diet (IDDS 2.5) and prevalence of diarrhea is 15 per cent (Under nutrition in Myanmar, LEARN, March 2016).18 Prevalence of Exclusive Breast-Feeding of Children Under Six Months of Age 41 per cent, with only 20 per cent of children between 6 and 24 months with minimum acceptable diet (MAD) and 17.5 per cent of mothers with acceptable dietary diversity score. Preliminary findings of 2015 LIFT HH survey. 19 10.1 per cent of men and women have awareness on of the Nutritional Needs of Women and Children. Preliminary findings of LIFT 2015 HHs survey. 20 LANN is a community-based innovative approach to improve the nutritional status of vulnerable communities by linking agriculture, natural resource man-agement and nutrition in remote areas where there is limited access to public health services.

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better understand cultural attitudes on nutrition knowledge; access to nutrition education; potential of fish culture to contribute to nutrition; women’s perception and experience feeding fish to their children.

World Vision’s project will equip health providers to engage communities through education, demonstrations, growth monitoring, and promotion of good nutrition for children under five. During the first half of 2016, the project conducted training on IYCF for 37 village health workers, and to 470 women with children under five years.

Social protection

Several partners in the Delta propose social protection mechanisms through saving and revolving funds. In 2016, WHH’s project introduced two different savings models within VRFs:

• SocialSavingbuildsupavillageemergencyhealthfundwhereloansaredisbursedwithoutinterest for short term health emergencies. These savings enter to the health fund and will not be paid out to the members. Fourteen villages started these funds.• SpecialSavingisanoptionforvillagerstosavemoneythroughtemporarycontributionstotheVRF. They receive interest on their contributions, with the rules defined individually by the VDCs. Eighteen villages started these funds.

World Vision Myanmar promotes Village Saving and Loans Associations (VSLAs) based on its 15-year experience supporting over 180 groups in five townships. VSLAs are widely appreciated by community members and act as social protection mechanisms by increasing households’ resilience through access to emergency money from the ‘social funds’ and use of small loans for education and health expenditures. By June 2016, 15 new VSLAs had been formed with a total of 218 members (77 per cent women).

In Delta 3, Mercy Corps, WHH and GRET have been collaborating on resilience as a crosscutting theme. The first stage of this collaboration was to conduct the Strategic Resilience Assessment (STRESS), led by Mercy Corps and carried out during November-January in three IP target townships. The purpose of this assessment was to evaluate the potential for households and communities in the Delta region to learn, cope, adapt, and transform in the face of shocks and stresses, and ultimately achieve improved well-being outcomes.

The organisations are applying STRESS findings as the basis for their approach to resilience. They are also working to develop a Recurrent Monitoring Tool for use during periods between baseline and end line surveys to track an illustrative number of communities and thus better understand how Delta 3 interventions may be changing the way households and communities learn, cope, and adapt.

Value for money in Delta 3

Delta 3 projects were assessed by the following VfM considerations:

• TheircontributiontoDelta3ProgrammeframeworkanditsHLOs• Relevantexpertiseoftheapplicants• Previousexperienceinthetargetareaandpossibilitiestoscaleupsuccessfulpreviousresults• Qualityofdesignandscope• Whereavailable,valueformoneyfindingsfrompreviousprojectevaluationswerealsoconsidered

The Delta 3 call for proposals did not require IPs to make specific VfM calculations, or to demonstrate alternative approaches. Before contracting, changes were negotiated to ensure work plan, ToC and measurement frameworks and budget were aligned to allow value for money assessment; and that sufficient budget was allocated to M&E project component.

VfM calculations and consideration will be made annually by comparing reported expenditure with work effort, progress, outreaches and achieved benefits. VfM consideration will also be provided on a semi-annual basis from information and data analysis provided by IPs’ reports. The newly developed narrative report template provides sufficient space for VfM considerations and the new M&E monitoring track sheet will enable outreach calculations.

Field monitoring visits will supervise and assess implementation progress and identify issues that do not align with VfM principles.

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LOOKING AHEAD &

SUSTAINABILITY

Delta

LIFT’s Delta Programme is working towards increased coordination and knowledge sharing with regional government, private sector, and CSOs as part of LIFT’s overall sustainability effort. Coordination with regional and township governments has been established through the different project launches and Delta team events and the new regional government has requested LIFT support for its pilot initiative on land redistribution/allocation. This has opened up an opportunity for dialogue, collaboration and endorsement of LIFT Delta programme from relevant government departments and local MPs.

Coordination among the different Delta IPs is facilitated by LIFT’s Programme Coordinator based in Bogale township. Cross-learning initiatives have been organised between IPs to exchange technical approaches and methodologies (for example the local NGO LEAD visited WHH and WVM project to learn from their successful experiences with VSLAs).

More systematic learning events will be organised through the Community of Practice (CoP) events starting from September and structured around the main thematic learning questions for the Delta Programme: the first thematic CoPs for 2016 will be focus on the rice value chain and nutrition.

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3.2 DRY ZONE

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The Dry Zone Programme began operations at the end of 2015 and six of seven component projects are now being implemented. The programme’s overall objective is to achieve sustainable results that help farmers, businesses, and government departments to continue working with, and for, communities with increased levels of experience and knowledge.

The Dry Zone Programme

The context for development in the Dry Zone

Low birth weight and stunting of children has repeatedly been identified as a severe nutritional challenge across the Dry Zone. In the Dry Zone 31.2 per cent of children are stunted and 36.6 per cent have low birth weight21. The availability of nutritional food for mothers and children and the provision of knowledge to overcome cultural and societal nutrition taboos have been identified as the key areas of need. Mothers lack knowledge about good nutrition during pregnancy and how to feed babies and small children following birth. The LIFT Household Survey found that in the Dry Zone more than 90 per cent of respondents wash their hands before and after eating, but only 43.9 per cent wash their hands before feeding a baby.

Interconnected with nutritional issues are water and education in hygiene and sanitation. Only 58 per cent of Dry Zone households have access to improved water sources22 and only 3 per cent have access to safe piped water23. Zero per cent open defecation is the overall goal of the WASH component over the programme lifecycle, down from the 13.8 per cent measured in the 2015 Household Survey.

In the agricultural sector, LIFT has found that farmers and livestock holders have no access to quality advisory services at the village level, no access to seed markets for high value crops relevant to the Dry Zone, and no easy access to machine rental services that allow them to respond quickly to weather challenges presented by the Dry Zone climate. The percentage of farmers using fertilisers is higher than the percentage of farmers using improved seeds or plant protection products24, and fertiliser use is heavily skewed towards urea. Farmers are only using 26 per cent of the Department of Agricultural Research (DAR) recommended levels of potassium and 27 per cent of phosphorus.25

21 A Nutrition and Food Security Assessment of the Dry Zone of Myanmar in June and July 2013, Save the Children, WFP and MALI, 2014. The 22 snapshots mentioned below have also identified stunting at alarming high levels of over 30 per cent in both regions 23 Magwe Region, A snapshot of child wellbeing, UNICEF 2014. Mandalay Region, A snapshot of child wellbeing, UNICEF 2014 24 UNICEF/WHO Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation (JMP), 2014 25 LIFT/WB study on farm economics and IFDC own studies

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Access to finance for paddy production has improved in recent years26, but for other crops the amounts available from existing government financial institutions (MMK 20,000 per acre for beans and pulses) is still much too little to meet farmers’ needs. Livestock farmers lack knowledge of good livestock management practice and face constraints related to the livestock trade (the system of slaughter licenses, for example, requires farmers sell only to the licence holders, rather than allowing a broker system), while veterinary services at the village level are limited by restrictive rules on community animal health workers.

Communities have existing social protection schemes that are small scale (e.g. funeral funds) and work on demand from the poorest households. However, these systems are neither robust nor flexible enough to effectively reduce vulnerabilities in the community. There is no system of regular cash transfers for elderly people or other vulnerable groups, and pregnant women (or those with young children) receive no financial support to assist with their additional nutrition and health care needs.

The 2016 LIFT-funded World Bank migration study ‘A Country on the Move – Domestic Migration in Two Regions of Myanmar’ highlighted the Dry Zone’s labour migration trend. The Magway region has experienced high levels of migration in recent years, especially since the economic transition began in 2011 and one in five households in Magway has a family member migrating for work. Migrants from the Dry Zone tend to be young, male, and have migrated to access improved income streams.

Designed for sustainability

The Dry Zone Programme began operations at the end of 2015 and six of seven component projects are now being implemented. The programme’s overall objective is to achieve sustainable results that help farmers, businesses, and government departments to continue working with and for communities with increased levels of experience and knowledge. The programme’s three main areas for intervention are:

1. working to increase agricultural and livestock production 2. improving social cohesion within communities3. reducing stunting through improved nutrition of pregnant women and children up to two years of age

The Dry Zone Programme has been designed with a focus on sustainability. LIFT has identified government services, the private sector, and local CSOs as the three main drivers of sustainability and will ensure its work supports and enables them. Contrary to projects and programmes delivered from the outside, these institutions are run and managed locally in independent organisational structures as ongoing services or interventions with no time limit. As a result, they are targeted as the key stakeholders for the Dry Zone Programme and each implementing partner has set out who they will engage with and how to build sustainable capacity.

What LIFT is working to achieve

In order to achieve sustainable change in LIFT’s three intervention areas (determined based on the challenges above), LIFT will work through government, through the private sector, and through civil society. Following the 2015 election, there is a particular need to work closely with government, and LIFT requires its implementing partners to maintain and continue existing relationships LIFT has established, and to develop strong working partnerships with township and regional authorities.

Working with government

LIFT’s cooperation with the Government in the Dry Zone occurs at two levels. At the Union level, LIFT works to influence policies on nutrition, livestock trade, veterinary rules and regulations, and social protection through projects with HelpAge, the FAO and Save the Children. HelpAge has a senior technical advisor supporting the DSW in all questions concerning aging and social protection in general. Together they have piloted a MCCT project in two townships, testing the working relationship of the DSW and GAD to deliver cash transfers. The FAO is engaging with the Livestock and Veterinary Department to reduce the negative impact of the restrictive slaughter license system and some veterinary rules (e.g. only trained veterinary staff can provide injections, preventing village para-vets from vaccinating livestock).

The second level of interaction with government is local, where LIFT cooperates with authorities to select villages, plan, and implement activities. LIFT partners are consistently working to enable township authorities to deliver the services that communities are entitled to and expect. All projects have capacity building interventions for government staff. For example, IFDC connects agricultural extension 26 Myanmar Fertiliser Policy Evaluation, IFDC for USAID, 2014

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workers with the private sector to establish demonstration plots and uses them for extension activities. Government staff gain skills and experience relevant for the Dry Zone communities and will, therefore, be able to provide better services once the LIFT project ends.

Working with the private sector

LIFT partners (IFDC, FAO, YOMA Bank) are engaging across a range of businesses to sensitise them about the livelihood and food security situation facing rural communities. These partners work to motivate businesses to deliver relevant services they may not already be providing. For example, IFDC is engaging with small local agricultural input suppliers to make them more financially and operationally viable. They provide management training and technical support to improve the quality of the advice input suppliers can provide to farmers. The project also has matching grants for local businesses to engage in agricultural mechanisation and improve the ability of smallholders to rent machinery. The key success criteria for the sustainability of the project is the collaboration of input dealers and government extension workers in providing quality advisory services to farmers.

Working with civil society

LIFT partners engage with Dry Zone CSOs in thematic areas not supported by government or private sector. UN-Habitat and HelpAge work with water user groups and social protection groups and Save the Children is helping establish women’s groups to support the nutrition BCC activities. Terre des Hommes has helped farmers organise beyond the village to more effectively market their harvest. Once formed, these local groups provide essential services to their communities and without them investments would be lost, knowledge transfers would fade, and remote villages’ lack of market access would not be overcome. LIFT partners also encourage all community members to participate in new or existing local organisations as a way to increase community cohesion and support vulnerable families’ engagement in community development activities.

ActionAid/SEDN’s work is a good example of incorporating all key stakeholders from the initial design stage, helping them assume accountability for the sustainability of the project. They are working with women producer groups who participate in a referral system for better access to government services (e.g. health, education, ID cards). The relevant departments at the local level have taken responsibility to maintain the referral system. They also support the marketing efforts of the women’s groups. The key linkage is the Craft Producer Network (CPN), made up of representatives from the women’s groups, several government departments and private sector representatives from tour guides, travel agencies and hotels. Together they are working to assume responsibility for ensuring that production and sales will continue beyond the project period.

The visible result of SEDN’s work will be a private sector business providing sustainable support for women’s groups through the sale of handicraft products in the Bagan area. The multi-stakeholder CPN will own the business and manage production and sales for women’s groups across Pakokku and Myaing Townships


In preparing the Dry Zone programme LIFT’s FMO undertook intensive consultations in all six townships and introduced its projects with a programme launch event in Pakokku in March 2016. The intensified coordination with local authorities as well as with Regional and Union-level authorities has resulted in quicker recognition of the projects and increased support. Township departments have been closely involved in village selection to avoid overlap with other government or donor programmes. Most IPs work primarily with their technical line departments but increasingly include the GAD as well, given its pivotal role in local governance.

Agriculture and Livestock Intervention

LIFT partners are training 50 local input retailers and encouraging them to use government extension services to improve their technical agricultural knowledge. As a result, these business owners have an increased interest and motivation to both improve their businesses and expand the services they offer to farmers. IFDC is also trying to include the banking sector in their work as a way to encourage retailers to utilise formal banking services for their current and future financing needs.

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In the past, retailers responded to farmers’ demand for advisory services by sending trained private sector extension staff usually employed by producers of fertiliser and plant protection products. This system emerged due to lack of funding available to government extension workers to make field visits, and a lack of motivation to collaborate with the private sector. In addition, farmers did not perceive the advice from government extension workers as useful.

After training sessions for farmers, extension officers, and retailers all groups have begun to collaborate, initially by setting up demonstration plots in villages. The participants have begun to understand that retailers working with government extension workers is of benefit to all parties: retailers have increased business, farmer receive higher quality advice, and extension officers are able to work directly with villagers to demonstrate new approaches in crop cultivation.

Financial inclusion

In early 2016, PGMF LIFT-funded Myanmar Access to Financial Inclusion (MAFIN) project established new branches in Myingyan, Mahlaing, and Natogyi townships. PGMF was already in Pakokku, Yaesagyo, and Taungtha.

Over the reporting period, MAFIN disbursed USD 15.9 million (33 per cent for agriculture) to 52,469 clients (99 per cent women) in 930 villages through a group guaranteed repayment model. In response to potential competition from new private microfinance companies, the project introduced an equipment loan for rural entrepreneurs. By June, MAFIN had disbursed USD 269,686 in equipment loans to 111 clients with loan size ranging from MMK 900,000 (~USD 783) to MMK 5 million (~USD 4,348). Twenty per cent cash down payment was required with a flexible 24-month repayment schedule.

LIFT also supports PGMF’s Myanmar Access to Rural Credit (MARC) program, a partnership between PGMF and nine national microfinance organisations to provide financial services in rural areas. Five of the nine work in the Dry Zone, and together they disbursed USD 3.6 million to 26,927 clients (95 per cent women) in 290 villages over the first six months of 2016. Of the clients, 11,597 (accounting for 59 per cent of the loans) used the money for agricultural work. The project provides agricultural loans across the three growing seasons, monsoon, summer, and winter and prioritises non-paddy crops.

Proximity Finance is LIFT’s main agricultural finance partner in five Dry Zone townships. Up to June 2016 it disbursed USD 6.6 million to 8,272 farmers, many of whom are smallholders. Proximity also offers ‘On the Move’ loans in Magwe region. This migration financing option is a pilot programme that offers up to MMK200,000 per household. The pilot supported 347 households for the costs of migration, with disbursement totaling USD 58,974.

Finally, GRET is continuing to implement its local financial service project in 84 villages across Monywa, Yinmabin, and Budalin townships. As of June 2016, 91 Village and Credit Scheme (VCS) had been created, out-performing the targeted 78 VCS, and provided USD607,283 to 6932 rural households.

Nutrition and WASH interventions

LodeStar’s approach to MCCT in Myaung Township, Sagaing Region is unorthodox, but highly effective. Instead of external project staff working as village facilitators, the project engaged villagers from a previous project in a neighbouring township. The previous project had established social protection groups and successfully improved social cohesion in the target villages. Drawing on these experiences in their own villages and supported with training in nutrition and management of community groups, these village volunteers have introduced new social protection groups to the current project villages. These women’s groups receive monthly MCCT grants and distribute them to the eligible women. The women support each other and informally monitor that the MCCT is used for pregnant mothers or their children. The monitoring is done in collaboration with a township coordination committee.

The nutrition project implemented by Save the Children pilots several new approaches to delivering cash transfers to pregnant women and women with children. One approach is to use micro-finance operators to disburse the grants at no additional costs because they already visit their lender groups every two weeks. The second approach puts the responsibility for disbursement in the hands of the township-level health department staff. The advantage of this approach is that DoH staff already register pregnant women for enrolment in MCCT activities and have information that eases the cash transfer process.

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Social protection interventions

Township government provided the list of villages for interventions, identifying the villages most in need of specific interventions while avoiding overlap with projects outside the LIFT Programme. As a result, the initially envisaged overlap of villages receiving LIFT social protection activities and LIFT WASH activities will be impossible due to existing same-sector, non-LIFT, activities. The listed villages have water supply and hygiene problems and sufficient number of older people and people with disabilities. Eighty per cent of the villages where HelpAge (social protection) and UN-Habitat (WASH) work in 2016 are covered by both organisations, but the overlap will be reduced due to the differing requirements from each project for a village to be included. The Myanmar Professional Social Worker Association (MPSWA) implementing nutrition BCC activities will completely overlap with UN-Habitat villages.

HelpAge and UN-Habitat have agreed to work with the same village development committees to avoid additional burdens for the communities. Each organisation will establish one additional committee to secure maintenance for water and sanitation installations and sustain achievements in behavioural changes within the hygiene and nutrition sectors.

The key lesson learned from the Dry Zone Programme’s first six months is that the close coordination with government before the programme started has paid off. The relationships with township and regional government is excellent and is being maintained by all the project partners. The private sector engagement in the Dry Zone has been very successful, with IFDC and Yoma Bank introducing major opportunities for businesses to engage with the farming sector. It will, however, take time for the IFDC project to convince input suppliers and farmers that government extension services can provide relevant and high quality support.

Value for money in Dry ZoneThe VfM principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness were applied in assessing selected projects. Before contracting, small changes were negotiated to ensure the work plan, budget, and measurement frameworks are aligned to allow value for money assessment. Most projects create non-financial benefits that cannot be monetised. Some, like IFDC, FAO and Golden Plain work on agriculture and livestock investments that can be evaluated monetarily. VfM calculations are made annually by comparing reported expenditure with work effort, progress, and achieved benefits.

Field monitoring visits provide continuous oversight over the implementation progress and identify issues and trends that do not align with VfM principles. The LIFT team adds value to project implementation through guidance on best practices, networking with other projects, CSOs and government, and by providing the flexibility to allow changes in project setup and approach as required by changes in the environment or based on project learning.

LOOKING AHEAD &

SUSTAINABILITYDry Zone

LIFT’s Dry Zone Programme is working towards several priorities for the remainder of 2016, with a general focus on increased coordination.

While coordination with government has been established and is working well, coordination between Dry Zone projects has just begun. HelpAge and UN-Habitat have established a close collaboration, and, in a positive sign, other partners are increasingly interested in contributing to broader coordination and knowledge exchange. For example, FAO will pick up the idea of CoP for livestock and actively help to organise a second event this year.

IFDC, with FMO support and inspired by the close proximity of all partners in Pakokku, initiated an event for IPs to introduce their projects to one other. Further events to encourage this coordination are being planned by LIFT. These forums also present opportunities to discuss common issues, such as those emerging from reporting questions, MEAL plans, or knowledge sharing.

Several CoP events before the end of the year will provide opportunities to exchange experiences and learn across projects and approaches. The focus will be on gender and social protection, in order to introduce the new LIFT Social Protection Guidelines to a wider audience and receive feedback from the field.

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3.3 UPLANDS

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During the first half of 2016, the FMO has been focused on negotiating grants with IPs selected by the late 2015 call for proposals for the Uplands programme. Seven new contracts have been signed between June and July 2016 total-ling USD 18.5 million.

The Uplands Programme

The context for development in Myanmar’s upland areas

Myanmar’s upland region covers 55 per cent of the country’s land area and is home to over 13 million people 27. It ranges from the mountains along the south eastern border with Thailand to the Shan Plateau, to the Myanmar Himalayas, to the Chin and Naga hills along the Indian border. The region is characterised by poverty and food insecurity despite substantial forest and natural resource endowments. However, there is significant variance across the Programme’s area. For example, the poverty rate ranges from a low of 11.4 per cent in Kayah State to a high of 73 per cent in Chin State.

Myanmar’s diverse ethnic minorities, speaking various languages and dialects, populate most of the upland or mountainous areas. Since independence, many of these ethnic minorities have been represented by various Ethnic Armed Groups (EAGs) that have fought the Myanmar military for greater levels of autonomy. Some areas have been under long-term ceasefires. In others, EAGs are engaged in armed conflict with the Myanmar military and/or with each other. The uplands region includes a significant population of displaced people living either in IDP camps and refugee camps in Thailand or in forcibly displaced villages that have very limited livelihood opportunities. The current peace process is a key factor in securing livelihood improvements for these communities in the long term.

The uplands region includes a diverse range of agricultural livelihoods. In remote mountainous and forested areas with low population density, smallholder subsistence farming dominates with rice and maize cultivation in traditional rotating fallow systems (shifting cultivation) as the most common agricultural activity. Nonetheless, many communities are beginning to adopt terracing and irrigation, allowing some villages to grow multiple crops a year.

27 26per cent of the population; this number is based on the census in 2014 considering the ‘Uplands’ as the following states and region of Myanmar: Chin, Kachin, Shan, Kayah, Kayin, Mon, Tanintharyi. There is a significant population in some of these states living in lowlands and coastal areas. There is also a significant population in the Uplands of other states and regions.

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Investment by outsiders in perennial plantations and industrial crops is a critical issue threatening land access and the livelihoods of the locals. It has generated conflict among communities and between communities and government authorities at the village and township levels. At the same time, investment by smallholders in perennial crops has also seen significant increases driven by access to remittances. These areas tend to have relatively high rates of economic out-migration. In contrast to these subsistence and perennial agricultural models, the Uplands region also includes some of Myanmar’s most dynamic agricultural areas with favourable cropping conditions, less steep slopes, and better access to markets. These areas are market-oriented and mechanisation is increasing rapidly as farmers with access to irrigation respond to urban market demand by producing higher value crops such as wheat, garlic, potatoes, soya, beans and vegetables and fruits.

Nonetheless, many upland areas are remote and isolated with limited infrastructure. Households there face significant challenges accessing new knowledge and skills, health, education, public and extension services, as well as access to finance and markets for agriculture products and economic development.

Development of the Uplands Programme

During the first half of 2016, the FMO has been focused on negotiating grants with IPs selected by the late 2015 Call for Proposals for the Uplands programme. Seven new contracts have been signed between June and July 2016 totalling USD 18.5 million. These seven new projects will be implemented alongside two ongoing projects (ICRAF and TAG) funded under the Learning & Innovation window. One proposal from The Border Consortium (TBC) for a project in the South-East in consortium with 8 local CSOs is still under consideration. In addition, a SwissAid-led consortium, along with Metta and Gret, are in contract negotiations to be fund manager of LIFT’s Uplands small grant fund, a key part of LIFT’s broader CSO engagement strategy.


The major thematic areas for the Uplands Programme are agricultural extension and value chain, vocational training, and natural resource management. LIFT is also emphasising civil society support and nutrition programming across the Uplands contexts.

Agriculture extension and value chains

The Uplands Programme aims to support smallholder farmers searching for new opportunities to enhance agriculture productivity. These opportunities vary greatly depending on the specific context, environment, and local market dynamics. This variation is reflected by the projects.

CORAD will support the adoption of sustainable farming practices through farmer-led extension services provided both through farmer groups and to individual farmers with the MAFF model as developed by GRET in the Delta. The Myanmar Institute for Integrated Development (MIID) will work with the newly-established State Agriculture Institute and the Yezin University of Agriculture to build up the next generation of agriculture extension workers, developing a curriculum adapted to uplands that includes nutrition and economic analysis. They will also provide opportunities for students to work with farmers on demonstration farms.

Upland areas provide a variety of environments suitable for cash crops with high value. In areas with opportunities and sufficient access to markets, partners will work with producer groups on value chain improvements. CORAD will support farmer groups involved in elephant foot yam, ginger, onion and grape production, assisting them to better understand market issues and improve crop quality and marketing practices. CDN, with SNV expertise, is in negotiations to support farmers and traders in the cardamom value chain, the main cash crop in Thandaunggyi. In Kachin and northern Shan, Metta Foundation will support farmer groups to set up small processing units for their organic products (oils and chillies). Metta will also improve access to higher-value markets.

Both CORAD and Metta have long experience working on agricultural extension systems, but these projects represent their first ventures into value chain improvement. Through the contract negotiation process, LIFT has ensured that they will mobilise the appropriate expertise to strengthen their capacity in value chain work. In addition, LIFT will facilitate the creation of a Community of Practices group that will better enable these organisations to exchange information on practices and tools.

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TAG’s project in Southern Shan State was extended for one year in February in order to strengthen their work on the honey value chain. Plan Bee honey is now available in major retail outlets around Yangon and other cities. They are in the process of getting the FDA approval that will allow them to approach larger retailers such as City Mart and are beginning to explore international markets.

TAG has shifted from its initial community-based approach towards vocational training and is working alongside the Department of Apiculture to ensure that appropriate training opportunities are available. These include full apprenticeships for new bee keepers who accompany experienced bee keepers during the migration period. This training requires a long term commitment from the trainees and TAG has been struggling somewhat to identify suitable candidates despite providing incentives. As a result, the TAG programme now includes a number of trainees from the Dry Zone.

Vocational training

In Tanintharyi Region, the Karen Development Network (KDN) is in negotiations with the FMO for a contract to work with local authorities in an effort to establish a vocational training centre in Dawei township. The trainings will target people previously excluded from formal education due to conflict, movement restrictions, and the language, education and economic barriers in government vocational training schools. The project will be based on training led by ADRA in refugee camps. However, as the needs of young people in Thai camps are not the same as those of local villages, this project will require monitoring to ensure it responds to local needs as well as those of returnees.

Natural resource management

In addition to the ICRAF research project on agroforestry (see below), Metta, CORAD and KDN will be working with Forest User Groups both to establish new community forests and to improve the value of non-timber forest products (NTFPs). In Chin State, watershed management committees will support the development of irrigation and the fair sharing of limited water resources. IPs will also support awareness about land laws and the importance of land registration.

Consortium of Dutch NGOs (CDN) project, will facilitate land development in some villages where rice fields were left uncultivated for years due to the conflict. The project will support land clearance and the construction of small irrigation systems to help local farmers grow rice and improve their food security.

Financial inclusion

GRET Chin, PGMF, Proximity Designs, and Vision Fund International are LIFT’s partners for financial inclusion in rural communities across the Uplands programme areas. PGMF is receiving institutional capacity building through IFC alongside its financial service provision. To date it has disbursed USD 21 million to 61,402 households. GRET’s project is focused on rural Chin, where it has provided financial services to 10,197 households, disbursing USD 1.288 million. Proximity Designs and Vision Fund International’s activities are as follows:

Table 13: Financial Inclusion in the Uplands

Name of IP Project Area Loans Disbursed (USD) Beneficiaries

Proximity Designs Yat Sauk, Taunggyi, Nyaungshwe, Kalaw 613,314 3243

Vision Fund InternationalHpa-an, Loikaw, Tachilek, Kengtung, Lashio, and Hsipaw

1,843,192 5499

Programming for sustainability

Nutrition

LIFT’s new Upland projects include a focus on nutrition. As was reported in late 2015, new projects will ensure the continuation of LIFT interventions in northern Chin with a stronger focus on nutrition and a particular focus on gender issues through the Catholic Relief Services (CRS)-led consortium. In collaboration with CRS, CORAD will build its nutrition capabilities and ensure nutrition sensitive programming. The CDN expected project will support nutrition behaviour change and improved access to water and nutritious foods in Thandaunggyi Township with a focus on IDPs and on strengthening access to public services.

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Capacity building of CSOs

LIFT’s refocus towards CSO and local NGO engagement is reflected in the signing or expected signing of three new contracts led by national NGOs (CORAD, Metta and KDN). For CORAD and KDN, it is the first time they have signed a large grant contract directly with donors. They have begun to strengthen their management systems and are receiving support from international partners, GRET and Covenant Consult, respectively.

A range of Uplands projects involve national organisations and CSOs, many of which are church-based, who will gain first-hand experience in development work. In particular, CRS has a long term commitment to strengthen KMSS capacities.

The small grant fund in the Uplands will provide opportunities for local CSOs to implement small livelihood activities and strengthen governance and management capacities. This will be an additional opportunity to engage with ethnic organisations active in conflict sensitive areas and to promote on the ground collaborations between the Government and EAGs.

Private sector engagement

In the private sector, PRIME-SPE has been implementing the Water for Livelihoods and Smallholder Prosperity (WFL) project in southern Shan State. It is working to increase agricultural productivity and smallholder incomes by introducing year-round irrigation alongside training and certification, financing, and market access. Over the December-June inception, PRIME-SPE built its first delivery platforms in Kalaw, Pindaya, Taunggyi and Hsihseng townships, established 4 operational offices, covered 99 acres with drip irrigation where it grew a potato crop for the initial commercial off-take. PRIME-SPE advances seed and other crop inputs to their contracted leased-in farmers if required. Ten farmers adopted the drip irrigation system for their farms in the inception period. These early adopters bought the equipment but were advanced finance by PRIME-SPE. A total of 17 farmers have so far participated in the project’s month-long training program.

Making Vegetable Markets Work for the Poor (MVMW) project is being implemented in five townships of Southern Shan State and five townships of Rakhine State by Mercy Corps and SwissContact. The programme works to improve farm incomes from vegetable production of 15,000 smallholder farmers directly. By using Market Systems Development (MSD) approach, the programme seeks to impact an additional 9,000 farmers indirectly through the effects of crowding in and replication. During the first half of 2016, 3,636 farmers received improved inputs or vegetables extension services through MVMW’s main implementing partner, East West Seed (EWS) Int’l Ltd. EWS has established 247 demonstration plots and trained 3,522 farming households on improving inputs and production technology.

The programme also supports improved contract farming in partnership with the agribusinesses Big-M and Ecoma Consultancy. Big-M contracts 15 farmers with MVMW’s, and MVMW has helped Ecoma identify and contact 114 Southern Shan farmers for organic chili production/fair trade specifications. To date, MVMW has mobilized 3,190 farmer households in 219 farmer groups across the target townships in Southern Shan and Rakhine. MVMW’s local partners have trained 864 entrepreneurs in basic business skills and conducted land law awareness-raising with 4,609 farmers.

The Uplands Progamme and the conflict context

Areas emerging from conflict and implications for LIFT

An important consideration for the Uplands Programme design has been the move of LIFT interventions towards ‘areas emerging from conflict’ and in particular targeting IDPs and people with a history of displacement. LIFT’s intention is to give access to development opportunities to populations who have only had access to humanitarian aid. An important challenge is the necessity of engaging with local organisations familiar with the context, but who have limited experience in development programming. The programme will work across projects to strengthen the capacities of local CSOs to deliver development-oriented interventions. The small grant fund will be an important tool to this end.

Two projects in final contract negotiations target areas emerging from conflict in Myanmar’s south-east: CDN’s nutrition, WASH, and agricultural support project in Kayin State’s Thandaunggyi Township and KDN’s vocational centre in Tanintharyi Region. Target communities have a long history of conflict and

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village displacement. The situation improved only in 2012 with the signing of a ceasefire agreement between the KNU and the government. Most of the villages are now under mixed control with both the government and KNU exerting influence, delivering services, and collecting taxes. These areas are still heavily militarized, but a sense of normalcy has emerged over years and villagers are generally able to return to their original villages at least for the cropping season.

Some targeted villages, particularly in Thandaungyi, are under full KNU control, which remains wary of any external intervention, even if implemented through well-established local church organisations. Initial meetings between LIFT FMO, IPs and the KNU have indicated that the projects are allowed to operate, but that it will be a long road towards building trust and confidence. International staff, and even Myanmar staff from international organisations, are not yet welcome in those areas. The slow process of trust-building may cause some slow starts to project activities within the target area.

Conflict sensitivity assessments

To work in these conflict contexts LIFT requires specific guidelines and will need to pay particular attention to the peace process. To guide its projects LIFT has adopted twelve conflict-sensitive principles to be followed by LIFT and its partners. It has also engaged a Conflict Sensitivity Advisor to guide the Programme Officer in their application. Thus far, the advisor has accompanied two LIFT FMO missions to assess IP familiarity with the local context and determine whether they have the necessary understanding of local conflict dynamics. CDN and KDN will be expected to work through stakeholders who have strong links with communities and they have developed the relevant contacts with the KNU and government. LIFT will continue to advise both IPs to ensure that they have robust conflict sensitivity management mechanisms in place.

Other Uplands partners are operating in less sensitive areas. In Chin, the FMO has met with State Government representatives and has received their support. The FMO will be soon assessing conflict sensitivity in Metta project target areas near Myitkyina and Lashio.

ICRAF is implementing a research project in an area that would seem, at first sight, to have low conflict sensitivity requirements. However, one of ICRAF’s two agroforestry demonstration sites is located in a village affected by a controversial hydro-electric dam, the Upper Paung Laung dam. The inundation of the upper Paung Laung valley has led to the forced displacement of numerous villages to this area28. Displaced people are now competing with original villagers for resources and land at the resettlement sites. ICRAF selected its forest plot with the Department of Forestry without appropriate consultation with the local villagers and farmers who were already growing crops on the site when the project cleared the forest and planted trees. Following LIFT insistence that the project team negotiate with and inform local communities properly, the project has agreed to consider the farmers’ inclusion in the future Forest User Group to which the plot will be handed over.

In addition, ICRAF found that their project title ‘Agroforestry Alternatives to Shifting Cultivation’ was controversial among CSOs active in Myanmar’s forestry sector. Many CSOs are advocating for the protection of shifting cultivation, which is officially prohibited by the government, and protection of the related fallow areas from land grabbing. The agroforestry project was perceived to be government-led and in favor of the prohibition of shifting cultivation. The ICRAF team is now trying to explain their actual research purpose and have adopted a new working project title: ‘Is agroforestry a sustainable land use option for upland Myanmar?’

Value for money in the Uplands Programme

VfM was identified as an evaluation criterion for both concept notes and full project appraisals.

Seventy four concept notes (CNs) were reviewed mainly on the relevance and feasibility of the intervention. 24 CNs were either not eligible, incomplete, or not relevant to the programme. Many CNs had insufficient information on budget and quantitative targets for value measurements. Fifteen CNs were identified as having poor VfM based on rough estimates of cost per outreach and sustainability of project results, two key VfM criteria. Of these, two were allowed to be developed into a full proposal due to other qualities (interesting local partnership and innovative approach).

28 www.mizzima.com/news-domestic/new-report-highlights-per cente2per cent80per cent98devastating-human-costper cente2per cent80per cent99-upper-paunglaung-dam-project

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The subsequent 25 proposals provided additional information, including a detailed budget, a measurement plan and the key figures on outreach per component. Only three proposals were explicitly assessed as of relatively poor VfM. Of these, only MIID’s proposal was approved, largely due to its innovative approach requiring more external expertise, complementarity with other proposals in Chin State, and the opportunity for engagement with local government and the State Agricultural Institute.

After approval, VfM was re-assessed during contract negotiations, including a detailed review of budget. These budgetary analyses didn’t focus only on cutting costs, but ensured the project is sufficiently resourced to achieve objectives. In particular, some partners were asked to allocate additional resources for the field team or to include sufficient expertise for nutrition and value chain (e.g. Metta). In order to reduce costs, NGOs often reduce MEAL-related costs that tend to be human resource heavy. For this purpose, the Fund Board agreed to allocate additional resources in four proposals (CRS, CORAD, and Metta).

LOOKING AHEAD &

SUSTAINABILITYUplands

The projects with contracts signed between June and July 2016 are now in their inception phase until the end of the year. During this period, the IPs will be recruiting teams, refining MEAL plans, and conducting baseline assessments that include a vulnerability assessment. No major field operations are expected during the inception period, other than the establishment and training of Village Development Committees and planning activities.

LIFT will be supporting the MEAL plans, conducting conflict sensitivity assessments, and engaging with local authorities and local stakeholders to inform them about the new projects. LIFT will support organising coordination meetings in Chin and in Yangon and establishing Communities of Practice Groups for nutrition and value chain improvement.

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3.4 Rakhine

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In 2013, LIFT funded the Tat Lan Programme to improve livelihoods within the 221 communities most affected by Cyclone Giri. The first phase of Tat Lan focused on building resilience, improving food security, and increasing incomes. The second phase of Tat Lan will run from 2016-2018 and both expands its coverage and increases its focus on nutrition and hygiene.

The Rakhine Programme

The context for development in Rakhine

Rakhine State is one of the least developed areas of Myanmar, with an estimated 78 per cent of people living on less than USD 1.25 a day29. According to UNICEF, nearly 50 per cent of children under five suffer from stunting30. Unemployment rates are over 10 per cent and labour force participation is the lowest in the country with only 58.8 per cent of the population aged 15 and over economically active compared to 67 per cent nationally.31 Rakhine’s population depends on fishing, agriculture, and casual labour livelihoods, with 26 per cent reporting casual labour as their primary income source32. Rakhine State regularly faces extreme weather, such as Cyclone Komen in July 2015 that left thousands homeless and destroyed paddy crops.

LIFT’s Rakhine Programme aims to address the above challenges to communities’ resilience and livelihoods through interventions to improve nutrition and hygiene practices, increase income from agricultural production, increase income from non-farm employment, and increase access to affordable financial services. LIFT’s investment for 2016 to 2018 is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: LIFT Investment by Sector 2016 – 2018 (in USD million)

* Agriculture contains embankment construction to protect paddy land from salt water intrusion (USD 4m)

USD

mill

ion

29 World Bank Group (2014). “Myanmar: Ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity in a time of transition.” 30 United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) (2013). “Rakhine State: A Snapshot of Child Wellbeing.” 31 The Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Department of Population, Ministry of Immigration and Population. “The Union Report: Census Report Volume 2.” dop.gov.mm. May 2015, p.29. Web. 32 Livelihoods and Food Security Trust (LIFT) Fund and CARE International, Myanmar. “Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Program: Baseline Assessment.” Myanmar: CARE. November 2014. Print.

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In 2013, LIFT funded the Tat Lan Programme to improve livelihoods within the 221 communities most affected by Cyclone Giri. The first phase of Tat Lan focused on building resilience, improving food security, and increasing incomes. The second phase of Tat Lan will run from 2016-2018 and both expands its coverage and increases its focus on nutrition and hygiene. Tat Lan is implemented by four partners: International Rescue Committee (IRC), Save the Children, Oxfam, and a local NGO, Better Life Organisation (BLO). CARE conducts monitoring and evaluation.

Alongside extending Tat Lan, LIFT has expanded activities in other areas of Rakhine, ranging from a Call for Proposals on vocational training to an agricultural livelihood project in Rathedaung Township. Due to its long experience working in areas of Rakhine affected by intercommunal violence, CARE was chosen as the implementing partner in the Rathedaung project targeting 3,900 poor households and farmers to increase farming productivity in 32 villages (seven of which are Muslim).


Improved agricultural production through protection from salt water intrusion

Rice production levels in Rakhine tend to be lower than other regions for a variety of reasons, but salt water intrusion and poor surface water management are major constraints. As a result, LIFT works to protect productive land from saltwater intrusion, with the additional aspect of improving farmer capacities through farmer-field-schools. These efforts at surface water management are mainly conducted through embankment rehabilitation and construction of sluice gates. To ensure village ownership and sustainability, maintenance systems are defined prior to rehabilitation work.

During the first half of 2016, Tat Lan renovated 33.3 miles of embankment exceeding the set target for all of 2016. These 33.3 miles will protect 4,160 acres of paddy fields from salt water and flooding.

The cash for work nature of the construction benefitted 1,080 workers, with slightly more women than men employed. In Pauktaw, MMK 258,559,000 was injected into the local economy and on average each beneficiary earned MMK 239,000 from the project. Women and men are paid equal wages.

Farmer Field Schools (FFS) continue to operate and cooperation with the Department of Agriculture (DoA) has increased. The joint development and implementation of the FFS modules with the DoA promotes a good understanding by the DoA on the Tat Lan activities.

Every month the Hmin Htaunt village Embankment Committee inspects their 2,500 ft sea wall, looking for slips and cracks that could allow salt water to enter their paddy fields. Built in April 2014, this Tat Lan embankment provided employment for 49 beneficiaries for 59 days’ work through a Cash for Work (CfW) project. The community is proud they built it and that they have the expertise to repair and maintain it themselves.

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Key cumulative results up to June 2016 for increased income from agriculture:

• 125.8milesofembankmentswithover35sluicegatesand42culverts have been built to protect 26,457 acres of paddy land. • Constructionwasdonebyover31,982vulnerablecommunitymembersthroughCfW.• 16,485participantshavebeentrainedinimprovedproductionpracticesandtechnologies(about2/3 male, 1/3 women). o 31 per cent of participants report practicing at least one new approach learned. o 32 per cent of practitioners report increased income due to increased production.

Improved nutrition and roll out of Maternal and Child Cash Transfers

Tat Lan’s second phase launched in 2016 and a significant scaling-up of the nutrition component is underway. A total of 182 villages in Pauktaw, Myebon and Minbya townships will participate in the 1000 day maternal and child cash transfer project. The project also promotes ante-natal and post-natal health care through mother-to-mother support groups (MtMSGs). Fathers, grandparents, village leaders and midwives will also be targeted with nutrition-related information and activities.

The maternal and child cash transfers during the first half of 2016 reached 281 new pregnant or lactating women. The MCCT activities will be transferred to the Village Development Committees (VDCs) later in the year and VDC members and village nutrition volunteers are currently being trained. Programme staff will support the VDC and nutrition volunteers following the hand-over to ensure continuity.

Key cumulative results up to June 2016 for nutrition:

• 5.1percentreductioninstuntingamongchildrenundertwoyearsafter14monthsofpilotMCCTs• 1,025ofpregnantorlactatingwomen(PLW)weresupportedthroughcashtransfers• Motherswhoreceivedcashtransfersconfirmedthattheuptakeofantenatalcareincreasedasa direct result of the MCCT. • 12,778womenandmothersofchildrenundertwowerereachedthroughawarenessraising activities• 90MtMSGsestablished.Monitoringfor45groupsshowthat92.1percentofthempracticeage appropriate optimal IYCF.

Improved hygiene and reduction of water-borne diseases

As with nutrition, the WASH component of Tat Lan is scaling up. Rakhine communities have limited access to safe water in part because of open-air defecation, which contributes to water-borne diseases. LIFT will introduce community-centred WASH interventions to complement nutrition activities. Tat Lan is working with communities to encourage people to build family latrines, while community-led social infrastructure projects are building 5,000 village latrines. Hygiene promotion and sanitation sensitisation packages complement the infrastructure component. Community-led, cash-for-work infrastructure projects employ financially vulnerable members of the community through the application of a social protection principle.

In Pauktaw, Save the Children built 1,000 household latrines in the first half of 2016 benefitting 5,222 beneficiaries in 17 villages. A wealth analysis indicates that 80 per cent of the villages’ population cannot afford to build latrines on their own. Brick-and-concrete school latrines were constructed benefiting a total of 578 school children and teachers. In Minbya and Myebon, IRC has initiated community hygiene promotions in 44 villages.

Pond and well assessments were conducted in 56 villages leading to renovations and enhanced access to safe drinking water. Pond renovation included concrete steps and fencing to prevent livestock soiling the water.

Key cumulative results up to June 2016 for WASH:

• Over116freshwatersourcesonstructedorrepaired.MostofthepondsinTatLanareadidnothave any fencing. • Atotalof25,397people(11,311maleand14,086female)reachedthroughawareness-raising sessions facilitated on water treatment for safe consumption. 986 activities were conducted to promote proper hygiene practices. • 55percentofparticipantsnowboilwaterand62percentstrainwaterthroughaclothwaterstand.

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• 75percentofpeoplewashtheirhandswithsoapand39percentwashtheirhandsbeforefeeding children. • 9,226hygienekitsand510ceramicfiltersweredistributed.• 1,924latrineconstructionsinitiatedbycommunitiesandsupportedbyLIFT.Mostwerehousehold latrines, but 136 latrines are demonstration latrines to show how a latrine is constructed. Of those, 73 are in 33 schools, 66 in households, and 2 in rural health centres.

Village saving and loan associations (VSLAs) and financial education

Thirty-four new VSLAs have been formed in 2016 with a total of 2,278 members while 205 non-VSLA members have completed a financial education course (84 per cent women). In addition, a total of 876 children have received financial education across 24 villages in Myebon and Pauktaw townships (46 per cent boys and 54 per cent girls). Courses are being delivered both in schools - with the permission and support from local education officials - and in village community halls. On completion, children are provided with savings boxes and over 90 per cent are actively saving small amounts from their pocket money or payment from helping at home. The courses are reinforced by graphic novels, which will be distributed to the villages in the next reporting period as well as children’s storybooks with financial education themes that are currently under development.

Sustainability for VSLAs - piloting the village agent model

For long-term sustainability of LIFT-funded VSLAs, Save the Children’s Financial Services team are training 83 villagers to become Village Agents (VAs) who can assist groups to resolve any conflicts, and facilitate new Village Savings and Loans Associations when the Tat Lan programme ends. One person from each VSLA village is chosen to train as a VA, and after one year of training they will be considered for accreditation. After completing training, they will facilitate and manage the sustainability of their village’s long-term access to saving and affordable loans. VAs will be paid an affordable stipend by every member of the VSLAs they serve. Research shows that 90 per cent of VSLAs operate for more than five years, so their income will be secure.

By Jennifer Macintyre, Head of Communications for the LIFT-funded Tat Lan Programme

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Expanding financial education

An estimated 3,378 households have received financial education messages delivered through financial education songs and video shows. Preliminary observation suggests there are no clear differences in loan use for VSLA members who have undergone financial education and those who have not. However, initial results suggest that savings have significantly increased among the groups that receive financial education, which in turn subsequently increases the group’s loan fund. This allows members to borrow larger loans.

Save the Children produced and screened the financial education film ‘Father’s Watch’ in the first half of 2016. The financial education film takes on an emotional and challenging topic across Myanmar and Rakhine: over-indebtedness.

‘Father’s Watch’ is dedicated to helping foster an informed dialogue on the issue and complements other financial education tools provided by the Tat Lan programe. The film tells the story of members of a family in Rakhine State who find themselves in debt and the decisions and actions they take.

LIFT implementing partners have observed an increasing migration rate affecting the VSLA model in project villages. Some VSLAs are at risk of disintegrating as members leave villages in search of work. Where possible, and with agreement from remaining VSLA members, IPs merged two or more groups into one and reworked the group constitution. In cases where there is only one group in the village or members do not wish to merge with another group, project teams support the mobilization of new members. IRC has been piloting a youth VSLA group in Minbya and Myebon and initial experiences showed that villagers aged 15-23 have low interest in forming VSLA groups as many aspire to leave the village.

Key cumulative results up to June 2016 for VSLAs and financial education:

• 244VSLAsinover137villageswith82percentfemalemembership• 5,523VSLAmemberssavedMMK633,292,500• 93percentofmembersborrowedloans(581male,3898female).15,692loansforatotalofMMK 1,057,969,250 (almost USD 900,000) were disbursed: 33 per cent for agriculture, 33 per cent for other productive use (grocery kiosks, petty trade, livestock farming), 20 per cent for social/consumption, 15 per cent for fishery. These loans were repaid within three months (99.4 per cent repayment).• 7,609peoplehaveparticipatedinFinancialEducation• 80percentoftheloanswereusedtofundproductiveventures.Thenumberofloansusedfor consumption/social expenditure dropped from 28 per cent by June 2015 to 20 per cent by December 2015, possibly due to an increase in loan funds and to financial literacy offered along the VSLAs.• 69percentofwomenareincludedinfinancialdecision-makingprocessesathouseholdand community level.

Skills and vocational training

In early 2016, LIFT launched a USD 4.2 million call for proposals to improve both government-run and non-formal vocational training systems in Rakhine. All three government-run vocational training schools have low enrolment rates as courses only marginally increase employability. As a result, many companies or development agencies recruit internationally or outside of Rakhine as local hires have limited skills. This CfP aimed to support the move from supply driven to a demand driven TVET system.

LIFT contracted a first project with DRC on skills development for IDPs in northern Rakhine in June 2016 and is evaluating a second project to support the overall Rakhine TVET system and government-run schools.

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The first project will create two vocational training centres in Maungdaw, a township which currently has no training providers. About 90 per cent of the Maungdaw population is Muslim and restrictions on movement limit opportunities to seek training. LIFT support aims to provide comprehensive life skills and competency-based training with practical internships for 1,400 youth. In response to the protracted IDP situation in Rakhine, this project will also provide a mobile vocational skills training model for about 1,800 youth in the Sittwe IDP camps. Training and coaching is designed to offer youth a sense of engagement and capacity to contribute even within their restricted movement. Skills shall be transferable to prepare for a ‘life after displacement’. This model offers scope to be replicated and contributes to the discussion on bridging humanitarian and development assistance for long-term IDPs.

Financial inclusion

LIFT supports PGMF to implement the Rakhine Access to Financial Inclusion (RAFIN) project expanding access to financial services. Alongside its many other development needs, Rakhine State faces severe financial inclusion challenges. There are only three microfinance projects state-wide and PGMF is the only active international microfinance agency. Two local microfinance organisations run programs, but only in Sittwe and Ponnagyun townships.

In the first half of 2016, RAFIN reached 11,806 clients (100 per cent women) from 147 villages across five townships: Gwa, Thandwe, Ann, Kyauk Phyu and Taunggup. The project disbursed USD 1.5 million in loans for small businesses such as livestock breeding, mobile trading or small grocery shops. Over the winter there was a high demand for agricultural financing, which proved a useful learning experience for the project and has improved planning for the coming (2016/17) winter planting period.

Progress towards gender equality

The Rakhine Programme aims to contribute to increasing women’s access to and control over economic resources and opportunities. Gender equality is promoted across the sectors and working approaches. The programme aims to ensure that social, cultural, and physical constraints are addressed to allow women to fully benefit from activities.

Figure 2: Increase of women’s participation in Tat Lan Sectors

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Women’s leadership trainings, conceptualised by Tat Lan implementing partner Oxfam, aim to ensure both women and men have an awareness of gender issues and understand three key messages: i) women and men have equal rights; ii) violence against women is not acceptable; and, iii) women can be leaders as well as men.

On the final day of the training, women and men developed action plans for how they could apply what they had learnt to their daily lives.

The training challenged many male participants’ perceptions that such trainings encouraged women to ‘disobey their husbands’. One participant from Ka Lan Kyan stated: “… before I attended the training I thought that gender and women’s leadership training was about encouraging women to fight with their husbands but the training is really different to what I expected. We discussed the friendship and relationship between men and women. I want to try not to quarrel with my wife and I want to give both my son and daughter equal opportunities in life.”

Women’s leadership in Kyaukphyu

In Tat Lan villages women are supporting each other to break gender discrimination barriers as they take a lead in their communities. Daw Shwe Than is stepping through boundaries that once separated men and women in rural Rakhine State villages. Chaung Wa villagers elected her to be a 10-household administrator, and her election has won the approval of village elders.

In the beginning, Daw Shwe Than felt afraid to perform the role, because she is not able to read. But, the villagers’ trust in her, and her participation in the Women’s Empowerment

Programme and leadership trainings, encouraged her to accept the leadership role.

“I built my confidence and encouraged myself by successfully performing as a leader in Better Life’s women’s empowerment activities. I learned presentation skills there.” These skills and her motivation training will guide her as she organises village meetings - a task for leaders of 10 households.

By Jennifer Macintyre, Head of Communications for the LIFT-funded Tat Lan Programme

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LIFT projects across Rakhine recognise that a growth of female participants in trainings is becoming even more important as men increasingly migrate for work. Equal participation of men and women in all activities will help bridge information and communication gaps, as both women and men will be equally knowledgeable about the physical, social, or economic developments in the community.

Key cumulative results towards increased gender equality in Rakhine:

Active participation in decision making

• LIFTfundedprojectsachieveda30percentrepresentationofwomeninVDCs.• Surveysconfirmincreasesamonghouseholdswhoperceivethatwomenparticipateincommunity decision-making (from 41 to 65 per cent). • ThroughoutTatLan,women’sparticipationhasincreasedinworkshops,andtrainings,implying their participation is accepted by local authorities. • Strongcorrelationhasbeenfoundbetweengendertrainingsandperceptionsofwomen participation in public decision making. • 65percentofwomenattendingTatLanwomenempowermenttrainingsfeltmoreconfidentin knowledge and skills on gender in post-training evaluations.

Village saving and loan (VSLA) models

• Women’sparticipationinLIFTfundedVSLAgroupsisthehighestofallactivitiesat82percent.Many women also hold leadership positions. • 69percentofwomenareincludedinfinancialdecision-makingprocessesathouseholdand community level.• The5,523VSLAmembers,mostlywomen,savedUSD420,000andprovidedloansforalmostUSD 900,000. Thirty-three per cent of the loans taken went into small businesses led by women. Loans were repaid within three months.

Income and equal pay

• Oftheover31,000vulnerablevillagersthatparticipatedinTatLanCfWactivities,54percentwere women which substantially exceeded the original target of 40 per cent. In 2015, 15 women held group leadership positions. • The equal payment for men and women was contested by men who demanded higher payments but the equal payment system was upheld.

M&E and organisation procedures• GendersensitiveMonitoring,Evaluation,andLearning:Genderequalityandwomen’sparticipation and empowerment is reflected in the Tat Lan M&E system. • Gender-sensitiveindicatorsareembeddedinthelogframe,andspecificdisaggregatedtargetvalues are established to monitor equitable access to and control over resources and programme benefits. • IPsinternalmeasuresongender:AllIPshaveamandatoryreportingpolicyonsexualharassment and provide orientation to staff and beneficiaries

Value for money in the RakhineVFM was identified as an evaluation criterion for both concept note and full project appraisals. This was clearly stated in the calls for proposals released in July and October 2015.

Seventy-four concept notes were reviewed mainly on the relevance and feasibility of the intervention. Twenty-four concept notes (CNs) were either not eligible, incomplete, or not relevant to the programme. Many CNs had insufficient information on budget and quantitative targets for value measurements. Fifteen CNs were identified has having poor VfM based on rough estimates of cost per outreach and sustainability of project results, two key VFM criteria. Of these, two were allowed to be developed into a full proposal due to other qualities (interesting local partnership and innovative approach).

The subsequent 25 proposals provided additional information, including a detailed budget, a measurement plans and the key figures on outreach per component. Only three proposals were explicitly assessed as of relatively poor VFM. Of these, only MIID’s proposal was approved, largely due to its

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innovative approach requiring more external expertise, complementarity with other proposals in Chin State, and the opportunity for engagement with local government and the State Agricultural Institute.

After approval, VfM was re-assessed during contract negotiations, including a detailed review of budget. These budgetary analyses did not focus only on cutting costs, but ensured the project was sufficiently resourced to achieve objectives. In particular, some partners were asked to allocate additional resources for the field team or to include sufficient expertise for nutrition and value chain (e.g. Metta).In order to reduce costs, NGOs often reduce MEL-related costs that tend to be human resource heavy. For this purpose, the Fund Board agreed to allocate additional resources in four proposals (CRS, CORAD, and Metta).

LOOKING AHEAD &

SUSTAINABILITYRakhine

2016 is seeing significant evolution of the Rakhine programme grows as Tat Lan expands and new projects launch as part of LIFT’s 2016-2018 funding period.

Tat Lan’s IPs made good progress in 2016’s first six months as they had teams established and valuable experience from the previous funding cycle. The infrastructure CfW component and the MCCT in Pauktaw Township have gone particularly well. For the second half of 2016, the Tat Lan focus will be to further roll out MCCTs in Minbya and Myebon township and to make progress on WASH, increased agricultural yield, VSLAs, governance, and fisheries.

The new food security and livelihood project in Rathedaung invested considerable effort in establishing a presence and gaining interest and trust among project villages. The second half of 2016 will require a strong focus on increasing the implementation rate.

The new skills development project in Maungdaw district launched in June 2016 and the second half of 2016 will see the development of field teams and building relationships with the local authorities to facilitate a smooth environment for project implementation.

LIFT will consider a last proposal on skills training for the Rakhine TVET system and government-run TVET schools in the second half of 2016.

4.1 Financial Inclusion

Agricultural financing

Myanmar’s farmers still have limited access to financial services despite the clear importance of agriculture to the GDP (accounting for 23 per cent nationwide) and contribution to national employment (employing 61.2 per cent of the total labour force)33. The shift from subsistence level to commercial production requires additional funds meaning most farmers’ limited access to finance presents an acute challenge for the agricultural sector’s growth.

The characteristics of the agricultural sector demonstrate how different it is from other parts of the economy: agriculture is located in low population density areas with poor infrastructure and depends on weather and long production cycles. Income generated is seasonal, financial institutions are reluctant to accept the risks prevalent in the sector (including droughts, floods, pests and diseases, and volatile prices), and the transaction costs of covering large geographical distances are significant. Consequently, although the Myanmar government’s efforts to attract agriculture investment are beginning, the lack of understanding of the sector’s financial risks and opportunities deprives it of much-needed funds to boost production, processing, and marketing.

LIFT’s agricultural finance programme

Presently, there are 166 MFIs in Myanmar in total, but not all of them provide agricultural loans. Many, however, do aim to increase smallholders’ access to affordable and formal sources of credit through various loan models. Agricultural loans come in many forms, including loans targeted at crops, farm equipment, and farm machinery. There are also crop loans targeted specifically at flood-affected farmers.

LIFT is currently funding 42 financial institutions. Table 14 below summarises the achievements of LIFT implementing partners during this reporting period. LIFT’s financial inclusion partners are active in 222 townships nationwide with 854,466 clients receiving loans during January to June 2016. Of these clients, 27 per cent of them have current agricultural loans, equivalent to USD 75.46 million or 32 per cent of the total loan amount disbursed. According to LIFT’s IPs, all of them achieved 100 per cent repayment rates, except for Proximity Designs, which reported a 97 per cent repayment rate. Engagement with agricultural clients has suggested that farmers with larger plots and higher repayment capacity require larger loans.

While there is a huge unmet demand for agricultural loans, microfinance institutions/organisations are experiencing liquidity and capital constraints to expanding their businesses. Currently, the ratio of loans

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4. ThematicAreas

As well as specifically funding each geographic programme, LIFT provides cross-cutting support across all four, particularly in the areas of financial inclusion, private sector, civil society engagement and migration. For policy developments in these areas, please see Chapter five.

33 Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, 2014.

outstanding to total assets among LIFT-funded microfinance institutions/organisations is 0.96 (USD 200.7 million to USD 208.5 million), which is higher than the optimal ratio 0.8 of a healthy microfinance sector. This ratio indicates that microfinance providers have an opportunity to increase their liquidity/capital to meet existing demands for loans.

Table 14: Loan Disbursement by MFIs and Yoma Bank (from January to June 2016)

Implementing partners

No. of active townships

No. of clients receiving

loans Total loan

disbursement Grants

signed in 2016

Value of grants signed (USD)

GRET Chin 5 10,197 1.29 713 0.06 (5 per cent)

GRET DZ 3 6,932 0.61 4783 0.42 (69 per cent)

IFC 12 44,496 8.27 0 0.00

PGMF 73 622,182 198.41 222,383 71.95 (36 per cent)

Proximity Designs 66 56,836 2.75 56,836 2.75 (100 per cent)

UNCDF 10 31,578 6.11 0 0.00

Vision Fund Int'l 29 81,048 2.35 691 0.28 (12 per cent)

Yoma Bank 24 1,197 16.10 0 0.00

Grand Total 222 854,466 235.89 286,603 75.46 (32 per cent)

Programming for sustainability: the institutionalisation of local MFIs

As per its strategy for financial inclusion, LIFT has been supporting the increase of rural financial services by supporting the institutional and financial sustainability of financial service providers. LIFT partners with 17 microfinance institutions/organisations and 24 village cooperatives. By June 2016, LIFT financial inclusion efforts had achieved significant growth when compared with 2015 results.

Table 15: Comparison of Results: Financial Inclusion Efforts December 2015 and June 2016

Indicator December 2015 June 2016 Progress in 6 months

Total number of clients (households) 934,511 1,080,242 16 per cent increase

Total amount of loan outstanding (USD) 139,560,711 200,738,418 44 per cent increase

Total assets (USD) 162,433,147 208,454,299 28 per cent increase

Number of microfinance institutions/organisations financially sustainable 6 (of 41) 12 (of 41) 100 per cent increase

Number of villages 12,838 13,220 3 per cent increase

As of June 2016, 12 out of 41 microfinance organisations have achieved financial sustainability. Among them, there are nine microfinance NGOS being supported by the Myanmar Access to Rural Credit (MARC) project implemented by PGMF. This project aims to improve institutional development of microfinance business units of local NGOs. After four years, all nine microfinance business units of these local NGOs have achieved operational and financial sustainability. In other words, for all nine NGOs, the interest income earned covers both operational costs and financial costs. They have reached 56,980 households from 577 villages with an outstanding loan portfolio USD 5.25 million.

The project was to be completed by June 2015 but LIFT and PGMF agreed to extend the project for another two years aiming to get all of the NGOs to institutional sustainability. The extension’s primary objective is to transform all business units of these NGOs into separate and legal microfinance institutions. It is important that this occurs in order for these microfinance operations to access debt and equity financing. Though operational and financial sustainability are the foundation to institutional sustainability, there needs to be legal separation from NGO ownership and control, and this requires independent governance and ownership.

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Farm modernisation through private sector financing

In response to the need for increased farm mechanisation that helps farmers move up the value chain, Yoma Bank’s special agricultural hire purchase programme (SAHP) provides rural smallholders and SMEs with access to specialised finance options. The project is motivated to assist rural households with commercial potential to ‘step up’ the value ladder, ‘step out’ of agriculture for better-paid non-farm activities, and ‘hang in’ to improving food security and nutrition outcomes. LIFT funding has allowed Yoma Bank to take the first steps towards a model of financial services designed to serve Myanmar’s agricultural sector development.

As part of its structural transformation, in 2012 the Government of Myanmar relaxed policies for imports of chemical fertilisers, agricultural farm equipment and machinery. Over the past four years, dealers authorised to sell and market imported equipment have appeared. One sales model is lease financing, more commonly known as hire-purchase (HP) via formal banks. However, the terms and conditions of HP services are barriers that frequently prevent rural entrepreneurs from accessing agricultural equipment and machines in this way.

LIFT and Yoma Bank have agreed to promote agricultural mechanisation by removing market barriers. The programme sees LIFT providing partial risk guarantee to reduce Yoma’s risk of delinquent HP that accompanies more small business - friendly HP financing terms in order to expand the financial frontier. The bank is currently implementing the project in three phases: reducing the down payment of the lessees to 10 per cent, reducing the guarantee of the equipment dealer, and moving into unsecured lending. The next phase will be LIFT sharing the equipment dealers’ risk. Table 16 below presents a summary of the Hire Purchase Programme of Yoma Bank with the support of LIFT funds and without it.

Table 16: Agricultural Hire Purchase Program

Description Normal HP (without LIFT)

Special HP (with LIFT)

Cash Down Payment Minimum 30 per cent Minimum 10 per cent

Loan Tenor One year (12 months) Up to three years

Requirement Land certificate (ownership)

No collateral required

Service Charges 2 per cent on product value 12 (of 41)

(1 per cent buyer, 1per cent dealer) 1 per cent on dealer 13,220

Commission fees Nil 1 per cent of total cost

Security deposit by dealer to Yoma Bank 10 per cent of total HP capacity

10 per cent of total HP capacity

Compulsory saving account starting with minimum 10,000 MMK with interest

10,000 MMK with interest

Interest rate charged to buyer 13 per cent per annum

13 per cent per annum

Repayment Every six months Every six months

Yoma Bank has opened the programme to 10 of its most active and reliable equipment dealers that they currently do business with. Equipment dealers are very important; they know the mar-ket and directly link small business owners to Yoma Bank, and they are responsible for collecting payments or ensuring buyers (or lessees) pay directly to the bank. After sales services like training on machines operation, maintenance and repairs, and spare parts arrangements are also under the responsibility of the dealers.

4.2 Private Sector Engagement

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The Yoma Bank Partial Risk Guarantee project was officially launched on 19 January 2016. By the end of June 2016, the total number of lease contracts had reached 1,197, with a value MMK 19.78 billion (USD 16.35 million). Tractors are the most popular product financed under the programme, followed by combine harvesters and transport trucks. Thirty six per cent of the sales volume has been in the Dry Zone, with 23 per cent in the Delta, 38 per cent account for the transition area between Dry Zone and Delta. Only three per cent account for Uplands.

Table 17: Lease contracts by types of equipment

Item Currency* Tractor Harvester Truck Unspecified Total Portifolio

Total amount disbursedMMK 10,151,733,428 2,799,808,000 2,238,952,000 4,586,091,100 19,776,584,528

USD 8,642,568 2,383,586 1,906,108 3,904,319 16,836,581

Average LoanMMK 14,258,053 28,864,000 15,128,054 19,108,713 16,521,792

USD 12,138 24,573 12,879 16,268 14,066

Average 6-monthly installment

MMK 3,313,486 6,562,605 2,034,801 4,570.200 3,665,117

USD 2,821 5,587 1,732 3,891 3,120

Number of accounts (clients) N/A 712 97 148 240 1,197

Figure 3: Lease contract amount by types of equipment and by month

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During the inception phase, the project found that both land-owning farmers and landless rural entrepreneurs purchased agricultural machines. The landless entrepreneurs were buying machines to rent out to smallholder farmers at a rate of between MMK 15,000 to MMK 20,000 per hour. In some cases, rental services were provided on credit, i.e., smallholder farmers paid the service fee at the time of harvest or at the time they received loan from Myanmar Agricultural Development Bank. By using four wheel tractors, farmers can level land and expand the size of their paddies by removing small embankments. The time and cost of land preparation for crop planting has been significantly reduced as a result of this mechanisation.

SUCCESS STORY 1

Evidence from authorised dealer Dr. Thet Lwin Phyo

On the back of the recent rice harvest season, the introduction of harvesters has been a success. Fewer villagers are required to stay at home for what used to be a manual, labour intensive process, which allows them to work in the secondary/tertiary sector in urban areas. The added value of tractors will be most visible in the upcoming planting season. One of the main advantages of using a tractor (vs. a plough) is that it allows for the creation of a stable water level in the rice paddies, which is critical for the cultivation of higher quality seeds.

SUCCESS STORY 2:

Findings from Inputs Survey, MSU-CESD

Machinery has almost completely replaced the use of draft animals in agriculture in the village tracts in four townships surveyed (two in Yangon and two in Ayeyarwady regions). The rate of increase in farm mechanisation since 2009 has been stunning: in 2016, almost all paddy farming households (94 per cent) used machines for land preparation, with only 12 per cent still using draft animals. The study also showed that farm size and adoption of mechanisation are weakly correlated. In other words, smallholder farmers are adopting mechanisation almost as quickly as large landholders. Farm mechanisation by smallholders is being driven largely through the rental of services, especially rental of combine harvesters.

The real wage rate for farm labour increased 8 per cent from 2011-2013, but jumped by 32 per cent from 2013 to 2016. Rural labour shortages and increases in real wage rates resulted from economic reforms and the growth in the non-farm sector from 2011 have been major drivers of mechanisation in the agricultural sector, particularly from 2013 onwards. The increasing availability of financial services since 2011 is also likely to have accelerated the adoption of large-scale agricultural machinery. The rise of rental markets, especially for large-scale equipment (combine harvesters and four wheel tractors), has further improved access to these machines for farmers with small and large landholdings alike.

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Radanar Ayar/Heineken

As of 30 June 2016, Radanar Ayar has provided good agricultural practice (GAP) training to 223 farmers from 23 villages in Paungde Township. This covers up to 350 acres of paddy production.

Radanar Ayar is responsible for the training and the quality/impact metric will be whether the trained farmers are able to attain a GlobalGap certification from Control Union, not simply being trained. GlobalGap certification requires the paddy to be free from hazards (biological, physiological, chemical and bio-chemical). Control Union is the only certified international body operating in Myanmar. GlobalGAP certification for an individual farmer will cost USD 700. The farmers are to be organized into a legally registered entity, e.g. cooperative, in order to drive the cost of certification down to an economically affordable price. Organising the farmers into five producer cooperatives will lead to a cost of approximately USD 65 per farmer. The project will cover the cost of GlobalGap certification in year one. The challenge is whether Heineken will pay the additional cost per certification through its pricing for procured GlobalGap certified paddy in the future.

Small Prosperity Enterprise (SPE)/PRIME

LIFT performed a ‘Financial Capacity Assessment’ (FCA) on SPE/Prime in February 2016. As a result of the FCA, SPE/Prime was classified as a significant risk. The changes of the organizational structure, in particularly the removal of the agreed project director and the inability of SPE/Prime to provide a clear understanding of approval and decision lines, the absence of any guidelines on separation of duties, policies on procurement of HR, a high potential of conflict of interest, and vacant key positions weighs heavy on the classification. As an interim solution for the project director (Chief of Party), LIFT accepted an interim project director. As of September, the position remains open.

SPE/Prime’s implementation has not transitioned into the commercialization component of the project as of September. There are several delays that are essential for the successful take-off of the project:

1) The procurement of irrigation technology for smallholder farmers, training on that technology, and global gap training and certification has not started. 2) SPE/Prime has yet to refer the smallholder farmers who they are working with to Yoma Bank for financing. 3) Netafim irrigation technology was chosen as the preferred equipment through a tender (that LIFT reviewed and approved in March 2016). Prime Agri (Singapore) is the exclusive dealer for Netafim in Myanmar. LIFT suggested to SPE/Prime (May 2016) to consider other equipment dealers who could procure and lease the second rated technology from the tender. SPE/Prime is now considering this approach.

SPE/Prime has established four demo plots together with providing nine lead farmers in those communities with Netafim drip irrigation. SPE/Prime has as of July 2016 identified and begun preparation in Than Te village—365 acres of land (69 smallholder farmers)—for project roll-out. That said, identifying farmers and other details regarding the irrigation technology procurement has not been presented to Yoma Bank, nor is there any resolution close to the issue of the equipment dealer guarantee.

In conclusion, SPE/Prime leadership and management have been poor. There is a lack of flexibility and creativity in addressing the important issue of financing irrigation technology. Representations that water resource work products were completed and served as the foundational base for proposed project areas in the proposal were untrue. LIFT is reviewing options to address the issue.

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Engagement with civil society is an integral part of LIFT’s work on sustainable livelihood system strengthening. LIFT recognises that improved policies and public expenditure for pro-poor development is dependent on empowered and better informed citizens and transparent governance.34 Since its inception LIFT has worked with CSOs through its normal funding windows both as directly contracted IPs and as sub-implementing partners through INGOs and UN organisations.

Figure 4: Number of Myanmar organisations managing LIFT funds and proportion of LIFT funds managed (up to 30 June 2016)

However, contradictory to LIFT’s goal of expanding engagement with civil society organisations, the number of CSO partners LIFT works with declined in 2015 (see figure 4). To address this decline, at the end of 2015, the Fund Board agreed to put in place some new processes to increase the likelihood of local CSO proposals being funded through LIFT calls for proposals. The FMO re-assessed all of the applications from Myanmar CSOs with the aim of identifying projects with the greatest potential for strategic fit with the LIFT programme frameworks. Those applicants were given an opportunity to submit revised proposals based on detailed feedback on their original submissions.

For the Uplands call for proposals, a two-step process (concept notes from all applicants and then full proposals from shortlisted applicants) was selected, and shortlisted Myanmar CSO applicants were provided with small grants (maximum USD 15,000) to support their proposal development process. This process was successful as five CSO applicants received proposal support grants and three of those proposals were eventually funded. The successful applicants used the small grants in different ways: hiring a value chain specialist; collecting more data and further engaging with communities; and hiring English language writers. In LIFT’s view, the resulting proposals were significantly stronger than they would have been without the small grants for proposal development.

The above measures have successfully increased the proportion of LIFT funds being granted to Myanmar CSOs. In the first half of 2016, LIFT signed nine new contracts, of which three were directly with Myanmar NGOs. It is expected that 34 per cent of LIFT’s grant funding in 2016 will be managed by Myanmar NGOs with direct grants from LIFT.

4.3 Working with Civil Society

34 LIFT Strategy (2014~2018)

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The small grant funds

In July 2015, the FMO commissioned a study on ways LIFT could better support civil society. A central recommendation of the study was the establishment of small grant funds for LIFT’s geographical programmes in the Delta, the Dry Zone and the Uplands. As LIFT funding already engages with national-level CSOs through direct contracts and with village-level CBOs through project implementation, the small grants would focus on local/township-level civil society, though the specific parameters would vary across geographical areas.

In February 2016, the FMO appraised expressions of interest (EOIs) from agencies interested in being the facilitators for the small grant funds in the Delta, the Dry Zone and the Uplands. During EOI appraisal it became clear that there were clearly superior candidates for each zone. However, even the top-rated EOIs had gaps or lacked clarity with regard to some criteria. Face-to-face meetings were held with each of the top rated candidates, which provided additional clarity and led to LIFT confirming its recommended selection.

Shortly following the reporting period, LIFT expects to sign a contract with SWISSAID in consortium with GRET, and Metta Development Foundation to administer the Uplands small grant fund. Discussion processes are ongoing with Pact to administer the Dry Zone fund and with GRET for the Delta fund.

Entering strategic partnerships with CSOs

A further recommendation of the LIFT-commissioned study on better engagement with CSOs, was the creation of strategic civil society partnerships. These partnerships provide LIFT with direct access to civil society analysis both from their leadership and from their local civic actors, while LIFT provides support to capacity development and policy engagement. In 2015, the FMO identified potential strategic partners based on the following, study-recommended, criteria:

• CSOswithgoodreachandcredibilitywithincivilsocietyinMyanmar• CSOswithademonstratedcommitmenttostrengtheningcivilsocietybeyonditsown organisation.• CSOswithagoodtrackrecordofsuccessfullyimplementedlivelihoodsprojectsinareasonably broad geographic area or a track record of successful engagement in key areas of policy.• CSOswithmutuallysharedlong-termgoalswithLIFT.

Strategic partnership with current LIFT partners

Several CSOs and networks that LIFT had worked with extensively met the above criteria and strategic partnerships were rapidly agreed to. These include the Food Security Working Group (FSWG), GEN and Land Core Group (LCG).

Following bilateral discussions with each partner, LIFT FMO appraised full proposals from each organisation and submitted them successfully for Fund Board approval. All three have been working on policy advocacy in a specific sector (food security, gender, and land) that fits closely with LIFT strategy. Both GEN and FSWG are members of LIFT’s Senior Consultation Group as representatives of Myanmar voice on the Fund Board.

Strategic partnership with potential local partners

In early 2016, a two-page briefing note on strategic partnerships was sent to three organisations (KMSS, Metta Development and Network Activity Group) as these organisations were determined to best meet the criteria above, and therefore had good potential for strategic partnerships with LIFT. The briefing note provided a description of LIFT’s goals for the strategic partnerships. Through a series of meetings with the three organisations, an understanding was developed of the main areas where partners planned to focus their LIFT-funded work, which led to each organisation submitting a concept note and draft implementation plan and budget to LIFT. Negotiations are ongoing, but LIFT anticipates signing these new partnership agreements by the end of 2016.

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Figure 5: Cumulative training achievements from 2010 to June 2016

Since LIFT initiated its earliest projects, IPs have been providing technical support to communities to strengthen capacity. These efforts have included a range of activities, including trainings, exchange visits, workshops, seminars, coaching and mentoring approaches. The chart above captures the cumulative training achievements that LIFT has reached by the end of June 2016.

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4.4 MigrationBackground

Myanmar is the Greater Mekong Subregion’s (GMS) largest labour migration source country, with up to 10 per cent of the Myanmar population migrating internationally35. The 2014 Census data indicates that almost 20 per cent of the population are internal migrants36. A qualitative study across villages in six states and regions that included migration as a thematic component, found that between 17 per cent and 38 per cent of households had a migrant family member37. Labour migration is clearly an important livelihood strategy for rural households in Myanmar and remittances can have a significant impact on reducing poverty38.

Lack of employment at home, income opportunities, and stark wage-differentials are major contributors to the decision to migrate both internally and to neighbouring countries. About 70 per cent of all international female and male migrants go to Thailand to work in construction, manufacturing, agriculture, garment production, or domestic work39. Research suggests internal migrants earn monthly salaries between USD 60 -10040, while international female migrants in Thailand can earn a monthly income of USD 219, and males can earn USD 23541.

As labour migration is increasing rapidly, there are a variety of needs and opportunities emerging from this phenomenon that LIFT aims to address. LIFT will work towards making labour migration safer and economically more rewarding with priority intervention areas including safe migration through access to accurate and relevant information, promotion of professional development through skills training and job matching to move to higher productivity jobs, access to services and resources such as health and financial service, and improved international and national laws and regulations for migrants.

In 2016, LIFT launched its first two migration projects, partnering with IOM and ILO. Together the three organisations will build an evidence base in support of better practices and policies on labour migration.

Knowledge on labour migration and remittances for policy development planners

The LIFT-funded IOM project, conducted in cooperation with the University of Sussex and the Metta Foundation, aims to understand the motivations, patterns, and dynamics of Myanmar’s existing migration practices in order to further balanced and inclusive development. A total of 4,416 households will be surveyed in order to generate a statistically representative sample for each of LIFT’s geographic areas42. The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, and Population (MOLIP) has agreed to become an official government partner for the study as part of the new administration’s effort to develop evidence-based policy making on labour migration. MOLIP involvement will create government ownership for the research process and findings, support greater involvement of regional government stakeholders, and foster MOLIP’s ability in evidence-based policy making. The MOLIP has designated an officer from the Migrant Workers Division and the Minister has provided his endorsement and support.

IOM has also started a migration governance analysis to provide a strategic view of the human and institutional landscape surrounding migration - of stakeholder needs, interests, views, roles on migration policy, of how decisions are made at macro, meso and micro levels, and of the relationship dynamics between stakeholders.

35 International Organisation for Migration (IOM). “Myanmar: Overview”. 2015. Web. 36 The Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Department of Population, Ministry of Immigration and Population. “The Union Report: Census Report Volume 2.” dop.gov.mm. May 2015, p. 123-124. Web.37 The World Bank. “Livelihoods and Social Change in Rural Myanmar: QSEM Series, Round Five Report.” LIFT: Yangon. 2016, pp. 30-31 38 Adams, RH; Page, J (2005) ‘Do international migration and remittances reduce poverty in developing countries?’ World Development 33(10): 1645-166939 International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and Asian Research Center for Migration, Chulalongkorn University. “Assessing Potential Changes in the Migration Patterns of Myanmar Migrants and their Impacts on Thailand.” IOM: Bangkok, Thailand. 2013.40 International Labour Organisation (ILO). ILO Liaison Officer for Myanmar. “Internal Labour Migration in Myanmar: Building an evidence-base on pat terns in migration, human trafficking and forced labour”. Yangon: ILO. 2015.41 International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and Asian Research Center for Migration, Chulalongkorn University. “Assessing Potential Changes in the Migration Patterns of Myanmar Migrants and their Impacts on Thailand.” IOM: Bangkok, Thailand. 2013.42 A statistically representative sample in Shan State and Rakhine State may not be possible. In Shan State, there are inaccessible areas due to conflict, and some areas are effectively administered by ethnic armed groups with whom negotiating an access would be a big challenge.

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In February, LIFT, in collaboration with IOM, organised a two-day awareness raising and capacity building workshop with local CSOs. There are few local organisations currently working on migration, while others with large constituencies do not yet have the ability to effectively address out-migration in a constructive manner. Such organisations enjoy the trust of their communities and have a large presence in their respective geographical areas. LIFT and IOM are working to enable these organisations to constructively address increasing labour migration rates among their communities, and by doing so expand the uptake of messages on safe and economic viable migration.

Improved policies on labour migration

LIFT has partnered with ILO to support efforts to improve policies on international and national migration. The aim is to better protect international migrants with international employment standards, particularly related to recruitment processes, complaints mechanisms, and a newly designed welfare system. ILO’s Union-level focus will be on developing needed supplementary regulations to the Law Relating to Overseas Employment. The former MOLES Permanent Secretary has also requested legal expertise support for the effort to redraft the Law Relating to Overseas Employment.

During the project’s first five months, 72 (48 women, 24 male) state and regional government officials and local CSO staff have been trained on labour migration management. MOLIP provided assistance in organising the attendees. The Chief Minister in Mandalay and the Union Minister were scheduled to attend the session in Mandalay, but had to cancel on short-notice and were replaced by the Permanent Secretary. Participants attached great importance to these trainings and stated that “this kind of trainings should be conducted more and more throughout the country of Myanmar”.

A further milestone was achieved with the preparation and dissemination of the Complaints Mechanism Briefing Paper. The Government of the Union of Myanmar has committed to strengthening migration legal frameworks, reviewing bilateral agreements with destination countries, regulating recruitment actors, and improving support services to migrant workers. Nevertheless, the normative framework governing international and internal migration in Myanmar and the region is still not robust enough to ensure the safety of those migrating or to increase the potential development benefits of migration.

The Complaints Mechanism Briefing Paper is the first of a series to try and affect that normative framework, providing analysis of the existing international and national legal systems, an overview of the different complaints mechanisms available in Myanmar, good practices from other countries of origin (Nepal, Sri Lanka, The Philippines and Indonesia) and recommendations to government. The briefing paper has been translated into Myanmar language and disseminated to different stakeholders, including the Migration Division staff, MPs, employment agencies, labour organisations, and CSOs.

Labour migration and gender

Globally and in Myanmar, women are increasingly migrating in an effort to enhance their economic opportunities. IOM reports that more than half of global migrants are women and trends indicate that female migration is increasing more rapidly than male. The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census confirms this trend for Myanmar. Of the more than 9 million internal migrants, more than half are women. Their main reason for their migration is to follow family, but 34 per cent move for economic reasons. The LIFT-funded 2016 On The Move migration survey records that the vast majority of female migrants prefer long-term domestic migration to urban areas of Yangon and Mandalay.

Labour migration can bring significant changes to the lives of women migrants and their families. The experience can empower women and provide a new autonomy to develop self-esteem and capacities. Research shows that women’s authority and value improves in their families and villages while traditional roles and norms are challenged. When women return to their home villages, they often build on their new assertiveness, skills and expertise and venture into small businesses. It has further been shown that women migrants tend to remit a higher share of their earning than male migrants, even though the total amount is smaller as women earn lower wages than men. Despite this lower number, women’s remittances have a stronger impact on their families’ well-being as the funds are more frequently directed to health care and education. Both the financial and social remittances of female migrants are relevant.

These trends underline the need for specific attention to better understand the nature and dynamics of female labour migration and to design tailored support mechanisms.

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LIFT-supported research on migration specifically looks at gendered differences on migration patterns and characteristics such as age, destinations, length and reason, living conditions, wages, working conditions, amount and transfer channels for remittances, and security and safety. The research investigates how households make decisions on who migrates and who returns home, what kind of support the household provides to the migrant, and the effects on those who remain. Research will look into the gender dynamics of migration of household members, who makes financial and social decisions over the remittances, and how the socio-cultural and inter-generational transition is affected. These questions are particularly relevant as they will identify specific migration vulnerabilities differently attributed to women and men, and how policies and practices to support migrants, families of migrants and communities can be oriented towards greater gender equality and empowerment of women.

A particular policy focus of LIFT’s migration window is the rights of female migrant domestic workers, with the aim of ratifying Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers and the development of effective related regulation. Interactions with the MOLIP on trafficking, migration and women’s employment has led to discussions on the concept of women’s empowerment versus protectionism and a discussion about the banning of domestic workers.

Upcoming migration projects and new window for urban migrants

Through a call for proposals in early 2016, LIFT explored additional partnerships to implement specific migration-related activities on issues such as awareness, skills development, financial literacy and services, and innovative job matching services.

A new partnership with BBC Media Action aims to increase awareness of the opportunities and risks of labour migration and remittances. Forty-eight weekly radio episodes aim to reach a large audience (3-3.5 million listeners) and 40 facilitated Listener Clubs promise a more in-depth discussion of the radio content. This project will train local media outlets to increase their programme production capacity on migration.

Further proposals are currently under review as LIFT is seeking new partners to foster safe migration and work towards empowerment of migrant women in urban centres.

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Background

In 2015, LIFT identified a need to review and redefine its gender strategy. In the first six months of 2016 a gender review was carried out. The review made recommendations that informed the drafting of a new gender strategy, the purpose of which is to upscale LIFT’s work towards women´s empowerment and gender equality through its programmes. It achieves this by:

• MainstreaminggenderacrossLIFT’sprogrammesandprojects:• FocusingongenderdifferencesandtheneedsofwomenwithinLIFT’sknowledgemanagement, policy and advocacy work • EnsuringstrongleadershipandgovernancestructureswithinLIFTtosupporttheimplementationof the gender strategy • RelatedtoLIFT’sleadershipandgovernancestructures,buildingLIFT’scapacityandaccountability for achieving greater women’s empowerment and gender equality.

With regard to mainstreaming gender across LIFT’s programmes and projects the strategy takes a twin track approach. It places particular emphasis on areas where it can achieve increased impact. These priority areas are: 1) nutrition, 2) social protection, 3) financial inclusion, 4) inclusive value chains, 5) migration and 6) policy advocacy. It also defines a set of gender mainstreaming minimum standards for all programmes and projects, and encourages stakeholders to empower women or enable greater gender equality in Myanmar. An associated action plan with clear indicators, defined targets and designated roles and responsibilities has also been drafted to support the implementation of this strategy.

The strategy and action plan are still under review by the FMO. They will be shared and implemented in the second half of 2016. Progress on the implementation of the strategy will be provided in the 2016 annual report.

Gender across LIFT’s programmes and projects

Whilst the strategy is still being finalized LIFT continues to build the resilience of women and work towards greater gender equality and women’s empowerment through its programmes, policy work and governance policies. Some of the highlights of LIFT’s work on gender are detailed below.

Financial inclusion

Women’s access to finance and their say in financial decisions is limited in rural Myanmar and there are gender inequalities related to access and control over financial resources43. Worldwide research highlights that providing women access to financial resources and financial literacy training can help to address these gender inequalities and enhance women’s financial decision-making power. Evidence also suggests that finances can empower women in other areas of their lives with women becoming more confident and taking prominent roles in community decision-making after accessing finances 44.

LIFT’s financial inclusion programme empowers women and works towards greater gender equality by providing financial services, including loans and financial literacy training, to women. Over 90 per cent of LIFT’s financial inclusion clients are women and all of LIFT’s microfinance partners confirm that all clients have completed basic financial literacy training. The training covers the following topics; household and business income and expenditure, opportunities for maximizing profit, reducing costs and understanding different financial services. Furthermore LIFT’s microfinance partners empower women through their staffing policies. Across LIFT’s financial inclusion partners approximately 60 per cent of staff are women.

4.5 Gender

43 Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Women and the economy in Myanmar: An assessment of DFAT´s private sector development programs, January 2016 44 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Myanmar Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Irrigation, Formulation and Operationalisation of National Action Plan for Poverty Alleviation and Rural Development through Agriculture (NAPA), Social Inclusion and Gender, Working Paper – 12, Yangon, June 2016, available at: http://www.fao.org/3/a-bl834e.pdf [accessed on 16/11/16].

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LIFT microfinance partner’s client and staff portfolio disaggregated by sex by June 2016:

In terms of LIFT’s partnership with Yoma Bank, which is supporting farm mechanisation, initial data indicates that male-headed and female-headed households are adopting mechanised services reasonably equally. From the MSU/MDRI study on farm mechanisation, female-headed households are adopting mechanisation at nearly the same rate as male-headed households. In the survey, 14% of all households are female headed and 10% of households engaged in agriculture are female headed. Nearly 90% of female headed households engaged in agriculture used some type of agricultural equipment during the past 12 months. The breakdown of the type of machinery is as follows: 2WT = 69% of female-headed households engaged in agriculture; 4WT = 31%; combine harvester = 42%; thresher = 37%). Additional analysis is currently being done on the data to determine how the adoption of mechanisation by female-headed households differs from male-headed households.

Nutrition

LIFT’s flagship nutrition projects include maternal and child cash transfers (MCCTs) which improve women’s access and control over their own food consumption and that of their children. The first six months of 2016 have seen a significant rise in the distribution of LIFT-funded MCCTs with accompanying nutritional training. LIFT reached 1,104 new pregnant or lactating women in the Delta. Meanwhile in the Dry Zone LodeStar introduced new social protection groups and provided women’s groups with monthly MCCT grants, and Save the Children has been piloting several new approaches to delivering cash transfers to pregnant women and women with children. Furthermore, the Uplands programme has signed new projects with a stronger focus on nutrition through supporting nutrition behaviour change and building nutrition capabilities. Finally, in Rakhine, 281 new pregnant or lactating women received MCCTs.

Migration

In 2016 LIFT published the ‘On The Move’ migration survey, which found that the vast majority of female labour migrants favour long-term domestic migration to urban areas of Yangon and Mandalay45. Along with other research it also suggested that labour migration can empower women, providing them with more autonomy and opportunities to build self-esteem and capacities46.

Further LIFT-funded research has begun in 2016 and will look into the gender dynamics of migration of household members, who make financial and social decisions over the remittances, and how the socio-cultural and inter-generational transition is affected. These define how specific migration vulnerabilities differently affect women and men, and how policies and practices to support migrants, families of migrants and communities can be oriented towards greater gender equality and empowerment of women.

A particular policy focus of LIFT’s migration window is the rights of female migrant domestic workers, with the aim of ratifying Convention 189 on Decent Work for Domestic Workers and the development of effective related regulation. Interactions with the Ministry of Labour Immigration and Population (MOLIP) on trafficking, migration and women’s employment in 2016 has led to discussions on the concept of women’s empowerment versus protectionism and a discussion about the banning of domestic workers.

During the first half of 2016 the migration programme launched a further call for proposals with a particular focus on safe migration and working towards the empowerment of migrant women in urban centres. These proposals are currently under review.

Indicator Women Men Total

Clients992,529 (93 per cent of total clients)

74,706 (7 per cent of total clients)

1,067,235(100 per cent)

Staff members2,777 (60 per cent of total clients)

1,852 (40 per cent of total clients)

4,629(100 per cent)

45 The World Bank, On the Move, Migration Survey, LIFT, Yangon, 2016.46 BRIDGE at the Institute of Development Studies, Gender and Migration. Overview Report, University of Sussex, Brighton, 2005; The World Bank, On the Move, Migration Survey. LIFT: Yangon. 2016.

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Working with government

LIFT continues to work closely with the government on gender-based-policy development and is achieving notable progress through its partner, the Gender Equality Network (GEN). In the first six months of 2016 GEN carried out eight policy oriented events, including a Prevention and Protection of Violence Against Women Law Drafting Core Group Meeting, and a meeting with Amyotha Hluttaw Women and Children Rights Committee in Nay Pyi Taw in May. GEN also published a commission on status of women pamphlet for gender based violence in IDP camps in Myanmar, a protection of violence against women law brief and a full report on the Committee on the Elimination of the Violence Against Women during this period.

Governance and LIFT

LIFT has ramped up its commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment in its own governance structures and that of the projects and organisations that it funds. The gender strategy pays particular attention to staffing and leadership within the FMO and pushes for gender balance in teams that manage and implement LIFT funded projects. This staff balance is part of the minimum required standards and will be incorporated into mid and end term project evaluations. However, as this strategy and action plan are still being finalised, its implementation will only be reported on in the 2016 and subsequent annual reports.

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Analysis on changes of microfinance policies As of June 2016, five INGOs, 24 NGOs, 22 foreign companies, 112 local companies, and four joint venture companies provide financial services to households living in rural areas and urban outskirts with total portfolio of USD 287 million. They service approximately 2.03 million borrowers47 and LIFT partners account for 50 per cent of those clients and portfolio size.

Despite the high demand for financial services, the existing regulatory framework restricts microfinance service providers in a number of key areas, particularly:

i. Debt financing for local/international MFIsii. Restriction of offering voluntary savingiii. Limitation of area coverageiv. Setting high solvency ratio and liquidity ratiov. Explanation on loan loss provision and loan classification

To address these issues, Myanmar Microfinance Association has organised a series of policy dialogues with the FRD, funding agencies including LIFT, microfinance providers, and other related stakeholders, to draft a Microfinance Policy. FRD circulated the following five new directives in August 2016;

i. Directive 1/2016 is instructed for ‘Client Protection Principles for MFIs’ in terms of Appropriate Product Design and Delivery; Prevention of Over-indebtedness; Transparency; Responsible Pricing; Fair and respectful treatment of Clients; Privacy of Client data; Mechanisms for Complaint resolution.ii. Directive 2/2016 is instructed for ‘Allowing MFIs for borrowing loan from international and local investors’ iii. Directive 3/2016 is instructed for ‘Releasing limitation of urban and rural; allowing hire purchase services and new financial services such as remittance and insurance business’iv. Directive 4/2016 is instructed for ‘Accepting voluntary Saving within the condition of 3 years working experience with 2 years earning profit, set Solvency Ratio and Liquidity Ratio; changes of capital requirement for Deposit taking and non-deposit taking MFIs and changes of provision for loan loss’v. Directive 5/2016 is instructed for ‘Changes of minimum level of solvency ratio to 12 per cent and liquidity ratio to 25 per cent’

5. Policy Engagement

Financial Inclusion

47 Financial Regulatory Department, June 2016 release

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These new directives have lifted some of the restrictive regulations such as the prevention of MFIs from borrowing money from international and local investors. However, local MFIs have no collateral to get loan from local banks as per Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) regulation. Also, if MFIs want to borrow foreign currency, they must get approval from both the FRD and the CBM, likely slowing the needed rapid response to seasonal credit demand.

There are not clear incentives in new directives to provide more agriculture financing to rural areas where 70 per cent of population live. Although Directive 4/2016 seems to support MFIs to overcome capital constraints, it is not a practical directive for MFIs who would like to get working capital through mobilising voluntarily savings from members only as most of the microfinance borrowers are poor and can be unaccustomed to cash saving practices.

In Myanmar’s new market economy, land prices have risen rapidly across the country, transforming the way people access and perceive land. It has led to uncontrolled informal markets and speculation that keeps land unproductive while driving new forms of exclusion. Therefore, in addition to resolving the numerous past grievances over land seizures, Myanmar must plan its future land governance system.

The NLD manifesto recognises the importance of land governance within the framework of its reform agenda for stronger rule of law, and has set clear priorities to resolve land conflicts, strengthen land tenure security, improve access to land for landless, increase the productivity of smallholders and strengthen the role of farmer associations. These priorities are broadly in line with the National Land Use Policy developed under the previous government. LIFT is working to support the development of strong land policy that protects the rights of farmers and smallholders to make their land as productive as possible.

The national land use policyThe National Land Use Policy (NLUP) received cabinet endorsement by the previous government in January 2016. While an official policy, it remains unclear how the new NLD-led government is going to bring forward this agenda. LIFT is supporting the development of the NLUP through its strategic civil society partner Land Core Group (LCG). According to LCG, initially the NLD viewed the NLUP negatively as an artifact of the previous USDP government.

LCG, who played a pivotal role in facilitating discussions around the NLUP’s formation, has been meeting with NLD officials to raise awareness about the policy and to explain its origins. U Shwe Thein, LCG Executive Director, has been at the forefront of this work. LIFT’s partnership with Landesa, who has been advising the NLD on land policy for two years, has provided opportunities for LCG to engage with NLD leaders. LCG is also conducting land discussions with the new Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation.

To this date, the Government has not made any clear statement on how they will follow up on the NLUP. The National Land Use Council formed by the previous government to prepare an umbrella land law based on the policy has not yet been re-established.

The Government has formed the Central Committee on Confiscated Farmlands and Other Lands chaired by Vice President Henry Van Thio to solve land conflicts around the country. Similar sub-committees have been established at regional/state level.

In parallel the KNU has released its own land use policy with the support of Karen Environmental and Social Action Network (KESAN) and Transnational Institute (TNI). The KNU is active in land registration in areas under their control.

Ayeyarwady land allocation programme

Landesa has been in contact with LIFT with a request to support the Ayeyarwady Regional Government plans to allocate available public land to landless villagers. The FMO has met with the Regional Government and visited a potential site. It was agreed that LIFT could support complementary services for new landed households to increase their productivity, on three conditions:

Land Policy Engagement

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• Thereisanappropriateprocessoflandrestitutionaccordingto‘donoharm’principles.• ServicesprovidedbyLIFTareinamaximumoftwoneighbouringtownships(e.g.Maubinand Pyapon), where LIFT is currently active.• ThereisclearlinkagewithnationallevelprogrammesandsupportfromtheUnionLevel Government.

LIFT has proposed supporting an independent field assessment of the planned pilot sites to ensure the government has sufficient knowledge about current land use, the potential for agriculture, the current needs of the local communities, the various claims within the local communities, and the conflicts surrounding these sites. LCG has agreed to lead this assessment based on their existing grant agreement with LIFT.

LIFT has also held meetings with the Deputy-Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation to assess the Union Government intentions towards land restitution and the level of support for the Ayeyarwady Regional Government’s initiative. While confirming that Landesa is the preferred partner to bring forward land issues, the ministry has not communicated specific plans. Following the field assessment, further discussions will explore potential LIFT support to the Government initiative.

UN-Habitat

Between 2013 and early 2016, LIFT funded UN-Habitat to support Department of Agricultural Land Management and Statistics pilot of new land administration systems utilising modern technologies. This successful pilot has proven these new systems reduce costs, increase efficiency and improve the accuracy of land records. Strengthening land administration is the foundation for other reforms towards better land governance with the long term vision for a public service which is fair and responsive to the citizens’ needs. The needs for investment and capacity building are considerable and beyond the scope of what LIFT can provide alone, but LIFT is looking at opportunities to work with other donors to contribute towards strong public services in the land sector.

GRET land research

This research aims to build a better understanding of rural households’ existing practices for accessing land and how transactions are managed, formally or informally. In May 2016 GRET presented the results of a 2015 survey on land access practices and issues in the Yangon peri-urban area of Htantabin Township. The workshop, ‘Building awareness on Yangon’s peri-urban and urban land issues and perspectives for action’ was attended by a large number of government officials, NGOs, and experts working on urban/ peri-urban planning in Myanmar.

GRET has expanded the research to the peri-urban areas of Hakha, Chin State. Data has been collected, but results of this research are not yet available and the project has expanded to peri-urban Mandalay.

Land Core Group (LCG)

LCG initiated a new LIFT project to build and expand on their existing work on inclusive land policy dialogue, awareness raising of smallholders’ land rights, coordination of land sector CSOs, engaging private companies who invest in land, and conducting land research.

LCG has been building up its capacities and human resource to manage this project and other funding. In addition to their work on the NLUP and the land assessment, they have organised workshops and launched new reports on customary land tenure and contract farming. There is still a lot of misunderstanding about these two concepts within civil society, which is preventing constructive engagement between local CSOs and the private sector. LCG will try to overcome these misunderstandings through workshops engaging CSOs, the private sector and other relevant stakeholders.

LCG organised a national dialogue about local communities’ land and resources access rights in areas defined for conservation. They have also been training trainers from six CSOs on land law awareness and these CSOs led in passing the training along to 226 communities.

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Support for improved nutrition and gender equality cuts through all LIFT’s programmes and policy engagement. This is critical to empowering women and girls and helping them reach their economic and social potential, so they are healthier, educated and have access to safe jobs. LIFT’s policy engagement in nutrition focuses on improving nutrition for children, girls and women including using cash transfers, starting at conception and through the first 1,000 days of a child’s life to prevent stunted growth. State Councellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has also signaled that nutrition is a priority for the Government.

LIFT is helping to coordinate the efforts of development partners to influence this window of opportunity, and push for a high-level coordination on nutrition. Countries that have reduced stunting have done so by putting in place high level coordination structures that incentivise inter-ministerial cooperation. In early 2016, LIFT became an active member of the UN Network on Nutrition and Food Security (UNNN) and, as a member of the UNNN, the FMO is an active member of the Scaling up Nutrition (SUN) movement.

The causes of stunting are complex and LIFT continues to make a significant contribution to the understanding of the causes of undernutrition in all the major agro-ecological zones of Myanmar. In March 2016, LIFT published two new LEARN analytical reports on under-nutrition in Myanmar. Part 1 is a critical review of the literature regarding nutrition and Part 2 is a secondary analysis of LIFT’s Household Survey data. Seventy people attended the launch workshop, including representatives from 23 LIFT IPs, four donor representatives and the head of the National Nutrition Centre. The documents have been widely distributed and are available on the LIFT website.

In June 2016, the LIFT-funded PATH project, which is introducing fortified rice in Myanmar, received approval from the Myanmar Food and Drug Authority for the fortified kernels as well as for three Yangon fortified rice production facilities. In March 2016, the project was successful in establishing the government-led Rice Fortification Working Group under the National Rice Fortification Policy.

Nutrition

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6. Fund Management

6.1 LIFT governance Government inclusion on the LIFT Fund Board

In 2015, LIFT established the government-chaired Senior Consultation Group in order to increase the role of government in the governance of LIFT without providing them formal decision-making authority in the selection of projects for LIFT funding. The Senior Consultation Group, which is comprised of representatives from the government, implementing partners, civil society and the private sector, served as an advisory body and ‘sounding board’ for the Fund Board.

In March 2016, after the election of the new NLD-led government, the donors to LIFT agreed to go a step further and invited the newly-formed Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation to join the Fund Board. The government accepted the invitation and assigned the Department of Planning within the ministry to perform the role of Fund Board member. The first meeting with government representation is planned for September 2016. The government’s participation in the LIFT Fund Board eliminates the primary function of the Senior Consultation Group and alternative mechanisms for getting civil society and private sector input to the Fund Board are being considered.

The Donor Consortium meeting for 2016 will take place in October 2016. The selection of Fund Board and Donor Consortium chairs will be on the agenda.

Framework agreement with the Ministry of Agriculture

On 9 February 2016, UNOPS signed a framework agreement with the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation. The agreement, which identifies broad areas of collaboration between LIFT and the Ministry, had been in negotiation for over one year, and was an important step in articulating the respective roles and responsibilities between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Planning, which is the official government host for LIFT.

Policy on restricted contributions

Despite significant new contributions in recent years from existing donors to LIFT, nearly all of LIFT’s funding has been allocated to programmes (see section 5.6 for details). Therefore, at the beginning of the year, the Fund Board explored options for encouraging new donors to join LIFT in order to: i) provide new resources for programming; and, ii) achieve more balance in donor contributions. In March, the Fund Board endorsed the principle of accepting restricted financial contributions under certain conditions. A formal policy on restricted financial contributions was subsequently approved by the Donor Consortium.

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6.2 Allocation of LIFT fundsDuring the reporting period, LIFT signed 14 new grant agreements for a total of USD 23 million, mainly under the Delta 3, Uplands, and Dry Zone programmes. These were all a result of calls for proposals that were launched in 2015. Eight of these grants were signed with local organisations. Five projects ended, including the one implemented by the Food Security Working Group (FSWG), which received a new grant in December 2015 to ensure the continuation of this strategic partnership. At the end of June 2016, LIFT had 63 on-going projects, a significant increase from the 35 projects that were on-going at the same point last year.

Table 18: Project Status by Funding Window

The Fund Board continued to monitor closely the allocation of LIFT funding across its portfolio of geographic and thematic programmes. In both the March and May meetings of the Fund Board, decisions were taken to ensure LIFT has flexibility to address priorities of the new government in as much as those priorities are in line with LIFT’s strategy and further the achievement of LIFT’s desired outcomes. The table below reflects the current allocation of funds across LIFT’s geographic and thematic programmes.

Funding Windows

Contracts signed Projects finishedOngoing projects

Contract amendments

Up to end 2015

First half 2016

Up to end 2015

First half 2016

As of Dec

2014as of Dec

2015

A B C D E=A+B-C-D G H

Delta 1 22 0 22 0 0 31 0

Countrywide 19 0 18 0 1 47 0

Delta 2 10 0 10 0 0 25 0

Other (Direct & QSEM)

3 0 2 0 1 6 0

Learning & Innovation

27 0 8 5 14 40 6

Financial Inclusion

14 1 4 0 11 9 0

Rakhine 10 1 4 0 7 6 0

Dry Zone 7 4 2 0 9 3 0

Delta 3 5 3 0 0 8 0 0

Upland 4 4 4 0 4 0 0

Private Sector 2 0 0 0 2 0 0

Migration 1 1 0 0 2 0 1

Civil Society 3 0 0 0 3 0 0

Flood Response 3 0 2 0 1 2 0

Grand Total 130 14 76 5 63 169 7

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Table 19: Grants signed January to June 2016

Sr. Name of IP Project title Project period

Funding window

Amount (USD)

1 Link Emergency Aid & Development (LEAD)

Supporting landless household livelihoods and food security through alternative income generation activities

6 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018 Delta 3 407,305

2 Metta Development Foundation

Promotion of farmer-managed schemes for inclusive growth and sustainable development

7 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Mar 2019 Delta 3 803,942

3 Radanar Ayar Integrated agribusiness and rural development

6 Apr 2016 ~ 28 Feb 2019 Delta 3 729,281

4 UN-HABITAT A short step from improved WASH to healthier communities

15 Jan 2016 ~31 Dec 2018 Dry Zone 4,400,000

5Myanmar Professional Social Workers Association (MPSWA)

Improved nutritional status of venerable community through self-help potential

7 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018 Dry Zone 782,432

6Golden Plain Livelihood Dev’t Services Co-operative

Restoring unproductive soil to get sustainable yield by green manuring & modified cropping system

9 May 2016 ~ 31 Oct 2018 Dry Zone 729,636

7 Pact Global Microfinance (PGMF)

Cash transfer support for the Legacy Project

17 Jun 2016 ~ 30 Nov 2018 Dry Zone 1,824,631

8 Cordaid Foundation Technical assistance to LIFT/Cordaid partner MFIs

15 Mar 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018

Financial Inclusion 1,000,000

9 International Labour Organisation (ILO)

Development of internal and international labour migration governance

1 Feb 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018 Migration 1,999,754

10 Danish Refugee Council (DRC)

Vocational training and livelihood opportunities for in camp and out of camp youth

15 Jun 2016 ~ 31 May 2018 Rakhine 2,648,223

11 Catholic Relief Services (CRS)

Productive agriculture through community engagement

7 Jun 2016 ~ 31 May 2019 Uplands 1,813,203

12Choklei Organisation for Rural & Agricultural Dev’t (CORAD)

Promoting agricultural diversification and economic integration in northern Chin

14 Jun 2016 ~ 31 May 2019 Uplands 2,204,212


Uplands food security and participation in markets

17 Jun 2016 ~ 31 May 2019 Uplands 2,123,168

14Myanmar Institute for Integrated Development (MIID)

Securing positive nutritional outcomes through extension, nutritional education and institutions in rural Chin

14 Jun 2016 ~ 31 May 2019 Uplands 1,675,410

23,141,197

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Table 20: Allocation of LIFT funds by geographic and thematic programme/window

Programme Allocation agreed (USD)

Granted (or nearly so) (USD)

Earmarked (but not grant-

ed) (USD)

Flexible (for new

priorities)

Delta 1 19,553,677 19,553,677 0 0

Delta 2 8,812,583 18,812,583 0 0

Countrywide 39,378,056 39,378,056 0 0

Rakhine 46,000,000 44,521,558 1,478,442 0

Direct grants 2,542,748 2,542,748 0 0

Learning & Innovation 39,173,220 39,173,220 0 0

Civil society 7,294,589 5,294,589 2,000,000 0

Financial inclusion 78,647,556 77,897,556 750,000 0

Flood recovery 3,024,708 3,024,708 0 0

Private sector 6,500,000 2,601,187 3,898,813 0

QSEM and ag diagnostics 5,032,595 5,032,595 0 0

Dry Zone 34,459,521 32,260,021 2,199,500 0

Uplands (incl. conflict) 28,131,850 19,831,850 8,300,000 0

Delta 3 21,000,000 17,864,389 0 3,135,611

Migration 16,474,573 5,974,573 10,500,000 0

Extra nutrition work 2,700,000 0 2,700,000 0

Climate change CAPEX 5,000,000 2,200,000 2,800,000 0

Support to DRD 3,439,192 3,439,192 0 0

Other support to gov’t 8,193,569 0 4,000,000 4,193,569

Research & management ** 51,880,455

Total 385,358,436 339,402,501 38,626,755 7,329,180 TOTAL BUDGET 437,238,891TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS 437,238,891

6.3 Monitoring and evaluation for accountability and learning In the first half of 2016, LIFT continued to refine and implement its new MEAL framework, undertaking several M&E-related studies, and strengthening the M&E capacities of its implementing partners.

Refining and implementing the new MEAL frameworkThis included: • Continuingtodefinethenewlogframeindicators,includingdocumentingeachindicator’sdata sources, collection methods, and calculation procedures. • FurtherarticulatingtheLIFT-levelevaluationquestionsandsub-questions,andidentifyingthedata sources and collection methods needed to answer the questions.• DesigningnewIPreportingformatsandacorrespondingdatabasetomanageIPs’revised monitoring and logframe indicator data.• ConductingaseriesoftrainingsessionswithIPs,threeintheregionsandoneinYangon,toexplain and get feedback on the new reporting formats. Along with the training sessions, LIFT also developed a user’s manual, explaining in detail how IPs are to use the new reporting formats, both in English and Myanmar.

** This includes costs of the LIFT’s large-scale household survey and other research/survey work.

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M&E-related studies and evaluations

Main activities in 2016 were:

• OverseeingtheimplementationoftheLIFT2015HouseholdStudy,whichconsistedof4,800general questionnaires, 1,500 expenditure questionnaires, and the anthropometric measurement of 5,039 children.• LaunchingtheQSEM5andrelatedmigrationstudy,aswellasoverseeingthere-designand implementation of the QSEM 6 study.• Designingaseriesofin-depthoutcomestudiesonvulnerabilityandresilience,incomeandassets, and nutrition. All three studies will consist of an in-depth analysis of relevant household survey data and a complementary qualitative study, conducted in 2016 as a baseline and then again in 2018 as an endline. • Commissioningtwoend-of-projectevaluations,oneoftheLandAdministrationandManagement Project (UN-Habitat) and the other of LEARN.

Strengthened IP M&E systems

Extensive effort went into helping IPs set up their own MEAL systems, including:

• DraftingdetailedguidelinesforIPstodeveloptheirownMEALplans.• AssistingIPstodeveloptheirnewMEALplans,bothdirectlyandthroughseveralseasonedM&E consultants.• ReviewingIPsplanstoconductbaselinestudies.• Assessing10IPs’M&Esystems,includingtheirdatacollectionandmanagementprocedures.

In addition to further building its own and its partners M&E systems, in early 2016 LIFT helped launch the Myanmar Monitoring and Evaluation Association (MMEA). MMEA is a professional association consisting of M&E practitioners from Myanmar NGOs, INGOs, UN organisations, academia, private consulting firms, and government agencies. MMEA’s overall aims are to:

• PromoteastrongerM&Eculturewithinthedevelopmentsector• PromoteprofessionaldevelopmentofM&Epractitioners,and• Strengthengovernment’sandotherinstitutions’M&Ecapacity,policiesandsystems

MMEA now has a membership of over 50 individuals, meets on a regular basis, and has organised several M&E capacity development seminars.

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6.4 Knowledge managementContext of LIFT’s knowledge management evolution

LIFT’s updated strategy (2015-2018) focuses on the need to increase its generation and use of robust evidence to improve performance and to influence policy and practice48. This has led to revisions in LIFT’s M&E systems and an increased emphasis on knowledge management (KM).

An external assessment of LIFT’s KM capabilities and options was commissioned in early 201649 and a Knowledge Development Analyst recruited in late April. This has helped LIFT refine its approach to KM and resulted in a draft objective, set of principles, and framework.

LIFT has also explored, trialled and, in some cases, implemented, tools and systems to support LIFT’s KM objectives. A pilot to analyse project narrative reports in order to capture information on LIFT’s priority policy areas is being developed, an inventory of all LIFT publications by focus area has been carried out, and the knowledge sharing section of LIFT’s website has been redesigned.50

LIFT’s draft knowledge management framework

LIFT’s KM objective is to turn LIFT-generated knowledge into action and for this to lead to improvements in internal and external policies and practices. LIFT seeks to achieve this by supporting the development of knowledge in key technical areas and developing processes that encourage reflection, communication and the uptake of knowledge. It takes a people centric approach and focuses on people as the drivers and vehicles for learning; knowledge management is not driven by tools or technology.

Figure 7: LIFT’s draft knowledge management framework51

KM is an ongoing, iterative process and this framework will adapt as LIFT learns and as the support it provides to the Government evolves. All stages involve and are relevant to the whole of LIFT. However, there are key drivers for each of the five stages that take a more prominent role. These are indicated on the framework diagram above.

48. This is clearly stated in the MEAL framework. MEAL framework, February 2016, p.349. Michael Wales, Knowledge Management Assessment, February 2016.50. This redesign is with the website developers and will become live in the second half of 2016.51. This framework has been adapted from the UNOPS KM framework (KM Strategy for IPMG, 2016) and been tailored to LIFT.

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The five stages of knowledge management

a.Development: The intentional or unintentional development of knowledge. This stage recognises that a culture of learning leads to the development of more in-depth and innovative knowledge.

Existing processes and strategies:In 2015, LIFT integrated KM into its strategy and mainstreamed it across programmes. Learning objectives for LIFT and learning questions for programmes and projects were identified through this process. This will lead to greater knowledge development at both programme and project level. LIFT also carries out a number of studies, including the Household Survey, tracker surveys, and QSEM.

New initiatives in 2016:LIFT is proactively seeking opportunities to support the development of knowledge. The FMO is working across units to plan in-depth learning and evaluation studies across key focus areas and policy priorities. These studies will be targeted and will require the input from the new Policy Officer and Programmes. LIFT is also exploring the possibility of developing communities of practice or informal seminars within the FMO to enable further knowledge development.

b.Capture and Store, Refinement and Analysis: ‘Capture and store’ refers to data management; ‘refinement and analysis’ refers to the organisation and assessment of knowledge.

Existing processes and strategiesSince 2010 LIFT has established effective portfolio management and monitoring and evaluation procedures to support the capture, storing, analysis and refinement of information. Project and programme data is maintained by the support team, LIFT’s M&E unit and the programme teams.

New initiatives in 2016:In 2016 complementary initiatives have been set in motion for this KM stage. First, a continually updated inventory of all reports and studies produced under LIFT has been carried out and classified according to LIFT’s priority areas. Second, a system for capturing and storing knowledge embedded within project narrative reports is being developed. It will use qualitative data management software to ensure efficiency. Narrative reports analysis will enable LIFT to better understand where it is generating robust evidence, what that knowledge means, and where the gaps are. A pilot will be implemented in the second half of 2016.

c.Communication, Leveraging and Upscaling: The two-way dialogue and exchange of knowledge and the process of putting knowledge in action to inform policies and practices.

Existing processes and strategies:LIFT has built a strong communications team and established systems for effective external communication via its website, social media, launches and events. Programmes have also established strong relationships with their IPs. Furthermore, LIFT’s governance structures, the strategic input of the Fund Board and reporting procedures facilitate internal reflection and learning within LIFT. Its policy work has also led to the leveraging of LIFT knowledge at the government level, such as the upscaling of the village and township development planning programme with the MoALI.

New initiatives in 2016:LIFT has identified areas for improved communication and leveraging knowledge, though planning for implementation in these areas remains in early stages.

• AphysicalanddigitallearninglibraryhasbeenestablishedattheLIFTofficetohelpshareand communicate LIFT’s knowledge more widely. • Thewebsiteredesigncategorisedpublicationsbyfocusareaandincreasedaccessibility.These online spaces will in time host other sources and types of knowledge such as podcasts and videos. • LIFTisworkingtoincreaseFMOinteractionwithIPsandincreasedownwardaccountabilityvia website feedback forms, field trips focused on learning and additional interactive workshops. • TheLIFTAnnualForumwithgovernmenthasbeendesignedandlogisticsarenowbeingplanned.It will provide an important opportunity for both the LIFT FMO and IPs to work with government. • LIFT is pursuing high impact policy initiatives such as the establishment of a Policy Research Unit

within the MoALI.

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6.5 CommunicationsLaunch of new programmes

The LIFT communications unit has played a major role in supporting the launch of three new programmes over the past six months. This has been through providing necessary visibility items, a LIFT learning corner showcasing key studies and publications, and information packages for stakeholders at each event. To facilitate better understanding of new programmes and policy areas, the unit also developed one page briefs for each programme and policy notes on nutrition, MCCTs and rural finance. These are shared on the website as well as shared with government at meetings.

Publications

In the last six months there were five new LIFT publications including the LIFT Annual Report 2015. Two versions of the Annual Report 2015 were delivered – full version and highlights version – in both English and Myanmar. These are available in printed version and can be downloaded from the website.

The other major publications in the first half of 2016 were: i) Analysis of Farm Production Economics; ii) Undernutrition in Myanmar: Part 1: A Critical Review of Literature; iii) Undernutrition in Myanmar: Part 2: A secondary analysis of LIFT 2013 Household Survey Data; iv) Learning Together in the Ayeyarwady Delta. Summaries of all these documents are available in the annex to this report.

LIFT studies were delivered to 12 libraries.

Website

Over 40 articles and four blogs have been posted on the website since January, covering latest news, best practices and events. There are also 10 stories featuring #LIFTPeople, which are provided by our implementing partners. The website hits an average of around 200 sessions per day. The site is closely monitored and updated accordingly on a monthly basis. In June it was determined that the website’s publications and guidelines page needed to be restructured in order to facilitate a better learning environment for users. The publications page is being re-organised by focus/thematic areas: climate change adaptation, financial inclusion, gender, inclusive value chains, migration, nutrition, security of land tenure, social protection and strengthening civil society.

Social media

As Facebook is still the main communication platform in Myanmar, LIFT uses it to promote its activities to stakeholders. Twitter focuses more on an international audience as well as an option to link with other implementing partners. Collective campaigns; #LIFTLearning, #LIFTPeople, #LIFTDonorProfiles are all still active. In the past six months two new ‘hashtags’ have been introduced; #LIFTingLives for flood response/resilience stories, and #LIFTFeatureofthemonth, introducing LIFT’s vibrant team (including IPs) to attain a much better understanding of how individuals contribute to development and pro-poor policy in Myanmar.

Most social media posts are for directing audiences to materials posted on the website and sharing partner posts. In the past six months, www.facebook.com/liftfund was boosted by the following:

• Launchofthreenewprogrammes,Delta3,theDryZoneandTatLanPhase2.Communications presented the visibility guidelines and LIFT’s communications platforms to IPs at the events. A LIFT learning corner at each event drew much attention, with relevant studies disseminated. • AustraliacontributedanadditionalUSD7.5millioninApril.PressreleaseonAustraliaadditional funding was shared on Relief Web, MITV, OCHA sites in May.• LaunchoftheLIFTLearningCornerinJune.Thepostreached20,584people.TheLearningCorner holds hard copies of more than 100 LIFT and partner reports. These are organised by focus areas, and selected study datasets are available on the Learning Corner computer.• IncooperationwithSavetheChildrenandtheDeltaprogramme,thecommunicationsteam facilitated a joyful and informative event launching the Bright Sun MCCT project in Labutta in June. The event brought with it attention from local and national media on LIFT’s MCCT and nutrition activities. Related news and articles were published through MITV, MRTV, MRTV-4, Farmers

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Journal, Myanmar Times, Modern and 7 Days. For this event the communications team met with Myanmar award winning celebrity, Eaindra Kyaw Zin, to create a video and hold a photo shoot to show her support for the importance of mother and child nutrition. The video was displayed at the event and MCCT t-shirts printed with Eaindra’s photo endorsing her support message for mother and child nutrition - “building blocks for better lives” in Myanmar language. • Asaresultofthestepsabove,TheLIFTFacebookpagehit10,000‘likes’inJune.

Communicating nutrition

As there has been a key focus on nutrition within the newly launched projects over the past six months it has required the communications team to provide material that helps communicate behaviour change and the nutrition elements within LIFT programmes. This has been done through the design of nutrition and MCCT policy one-pagers in both English and Myanmar language, the publication of a nutrition blog written by LIFT nutrition consultant, and the creation of a nutrition podcast. Members of the communications team went to Insein Market in Yangon to interview three women (a grandmother, a mother and a pregnant woman) about their eating habits within the first 1,000 days and made a podcast based on those interviews. All these materials were shared at the June MCCT launch in Labutta. These materials can be used for nutrition-focused launches and can also be presented to government.

‘What is LIFT’ video

Filming the ‘What is LIFT’ video took place in Bogale in April and is in post-production. The video gives a broad overview of LIFT’s work and illustrates the new LIFT strategy and policy focus areas. The audience for this video will be donors and other stakeholders and it is expected to be released in Q3 .

Media relations and coverage

LIFT continues to have a good relationship with the press and extends invites for all major events and launches. News on LIFT’s programme and project launches have been featured in Myanmar press over the past six months. These include; MITV, MRTV (TV and radio), MRTV-4, Farmers Journal, The Myanmar Times, Kumudra/Modern, 7

Days News and 7 Days Daily.

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6.6 FinanceAs of 30 June 2016, the cumulative donor contributions to LIFT were as follows:

Table 21: Cumulative Donor Contributions up to 30 June 2016 (USD)

Donor Signed Commitments*

Contributions Jan-Jun' 16

Funds already received

Contribution per cent

Australia 26,049,576 1,222,459 19,790,833 6

Denmark 9,991,566 - 9,991,566 3

European Union 132,029,875 29,419,454 93,886,681 30

France 1,319,800 - 1,319,800 0.4

Ireland 842,580 - 842,580 0.3

Italy 852,040 - 852,040 0.3

Luxembourg 1,101,375 433,839 433,839 0.1

Mitsubishi 200,000 - 200,000 0.1

Netherlands 2,950,000 - 2,950,000 1.0

New Zealand 809,650 - 809,650 0.3

Sweden 2,725,776 - 2,725,776 0.9

Switzerland 18,310,993 2,608,133 16,254,973 5

UK 221,874,170 20,510,000 154,106,350 50

USA 10,600,000 - 4,900,000 2

UNDP/ PGMF 5,221,101 603,061 1,222,807 0.4

Total contributions 434,878,503 54,796,947 310,286,897 100

Interest earned 1,164,941 1,164,941

Grand total 436,043,443 54,796,947 311,451,837

* Commitments may vary slightly from 2015 figures due to changes in exchange rates.

Table 22: LIFT Expenditure (2016)

Activity Budget Actual Jan-Jun

Forecast Jul-Dec

Projection 2016

Under / (Over)

per cent

Support to partners

75,043,176 22,806,379 34,175,706 56,982,085 18,061,091 24

Grants to IPs 71,193,652 22,468,927 28,550,419 51,019,346 20,174,306 28

Countrywide 966,372 514,511 396,688 911,199 55,173

Delta 2 577,331 107,019 394,440 501,459 75,872

Rakhine 2,755,688 1,001,662 1,362,706 2,364,368 391,320

Learning & Inva’tion

7,485,941 3,281,013 3,630,007 6,911,020 574,921

Financial Inclusion

18,615,228 8,988,724 10,411,682 19,400,406 -785,178

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Private Sector 2,508,938 276,387 0 276,387 2,232,551

QSEM (+ studies) 150,000 - 350,000 350,000 -200,000

Dry Zone 10,342,040 3,122,274 4,096,239 7,218,513 3,123,527

Uplands 12,155,973 1,576,438 3,613,860 5,190,298 6,965,675

Delta 3 4,833,190 2,103,397 2,487,099 4,590,496 242,694

Migration 6,802,951 1,497,502 1,807,698 3,305,200 3,497,751

Climate 4,000,000 - - - 4,000,000

Non-grant support

3,849,524 337,452 5,625,287 5,962,739 (2,113,215) (55)

Research 1,998,680 810,972 1,169,416 1,980,388 18,292 1

Operation of the FMO

5,226,312 1,767,786 2,635,932 4,403,718 822,594 16

Support to Fund Board

80,860 16,265 9,320 25,585 55,275 68

Facilities & admin

1,402,189 429,158 796,301 1,225,459 176,730 13

Total 83,751,217 25,830,560 38,786,675 64,617,235 19,133,982 23

From Table 22, the projected expenditure on LIFT for 2016 is expected to be 23 per cent lower than originally budgeted. This is almost all due to project under-expenditure in grant payments to partners. The main projected variances are as follows:

• Uplandsgrants:TheoverallgrantsizeoftheUplandswindowwasreducedby60percentfromthe initial allocation. • DryZonegrants:TheSavetheChildren(LEGACYproject)wasreducedfromUSD8mtoUSD5m with a lower amount for year 1. The pump irrigation project was delayed due to wanting to discuss this project with the new government.• Privatesectorgrants:ThesizeofthePRIMEgrantisexpectedtobereducedsignificantly.• Migrationcallforproposals:FromtheinititialCfPonly3grantswereawarded.AnewCfPwillbe posted in September, but will only result in grants payments in 2017.

Audits

The annual audit of the LIFT FMO for the year 2015 was carried out in May this year. The audit firm provided an overall assessment of the operational and internal control systems that are in place for the management of LIFT funding. The auditors gave a satisfactory rating overall, as well as satisfactory on the various functional areas that were in the scope of the audit, such as project management, finance, procurement, HR and general administration. LIFT received an unqualified audit opinion on the Financial Statements as of 31 December 2015.

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87

6. ANNEXES

1. Active projects

2. Projects signed and projects closed

3. Policy activity summary chart

4. Summary of main studies, reports

Annex 1: Active projectsTable 23: All active LIFT projects

Sr. Name of IP Fund Short description / Title

Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

1 GRET Learning and Innovation

Understanding rural land issues to engage comprehensive policy dialogue in Myanmar (LAND Project)

23-May-13 22-Dec-16 581,136

2 ActionAid-Social Policy and Poverty Research Group (SPPRG)

Learning and Innovation

Inclusive Livelihoods and Social Protection Research Project 9-Oct-12 30-Sep-16 471,770

3 WFP Learning and Innovation

Vulnerability, Analysis and Mapping in Myanmar

8-Feb-12 30-Sep-16 1,844,531

4 PACT (MARC) Financial Inclusion

Myanmar Access to Rural Credit through Institutional Strengthening (MARC)

16-Jul-12 15-Jul-17 7,327,324

5 ActionAid-Social Economic Development Network for Regional Development (SEDN)


Social Economic Development Network for Regional Development 8-Mar-13 7-Mar-17 1,312,936

6 UNCDF-MicroLead

Financial Inclusion

Support to Savings-Led Microfinance Market Leaders to Enter Myanmar (MicroLead Expansion Programme)

31-Oct-12 30-Dec-17 7,006,262

7 IFC Financial Inclusion

Capacity building for Inclusive Financial Sector

1-Jul-14 30-Jun-18 3,619,552

8 PATH Learning and Innovation

Introduction of Fortified Rice in Myanmar” Project

1-Oct-13 31-Mar-17 2,499,000

9 GRET Financial Inclusion

Creating of a microfinance institution in the Dry Zone, Myanmar

1-Dec-13 30-Nov-16 2,582,362

10 TAG Learning and Innovation

Plan Bee: Introduction and Expansion of Modern Beekeeping and Honey Production in Shan State

23-Oct-13 31-Mar-17 1,169,915

88


Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

11 UNESCAP Country Wide

Integrated Rural Economic and Social Development Programme for Livelihoods Improvement in the Dry Zone of Myanmar

1-Jan-14 31-Dec-16 1,104,905

12 Entrepreneurship & Innovation Research Group (IERG) - University of Sydney


Grassroots Entrepreneurship Education and Pro-Poor Enterprise Development

16-Dec-13 15-Dec-16 2,007,290

13 Terre des Hommes


Soilless Horticulture and Other Water-saving Innovative Technologies for Landless and Marginal Farmers

1-Feb-14 31-Jan-17 1,318,519

14 World Bank QSEM Qualitative Social and Economic Monitoring Advisory Services

30-Mar-12 31-Dec-18 3,932,595

15 HelpAge Learning and Innovation

Strengthening the Ministry of Social Welfare to fulfil its Role in Expanding Social Protection

1-Apr-14 31-Mar-17 2,094,862

16 Mercy Corps (in partnership with Swiss Contact)


Making Vegetable Markets Work for Poor 17-Jun-14 10-Jun-17 4,000,000

17 UNESCO Learning and Innovation

Communication for Sustained Livelihood and Food Security

1-Dec-14 30-Nov-17 1,500,000

18 ICRAF (World Agroforestry Centre)


Agroforestry Alternatives to Shifting Cultivation in Myanmar

22-Oct-14 21-Oct-18 599,896

19 Lodestar Company Ltd./SPPRG

Dry Zone Community Based Social Protection System Efficacy and Efficiency of Pilot

3-Jun-15 2-Jun-18 879,287

20 Michigan State University


Agri-food Value Chain Development in Myanmar: Implications for Livelihoods of the Rural Poor

1-Jul-15 30-Jun-18 2,199,178

21 FAO Livestock Dry Zone Improving Farmer Livelihoods in the Dry Zone through Improved Livestock Health, Productivity and Marketing

30-Nov-15 31-Dec-18 4,400,000

89


Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

22 World Fish Learning and Innovation

Promoting sustainable growth of aquaculture in Myanmar to improve food security and income for communities in the Ayeyarwady Delta and Central Dry Zone (MYFish-Culture- MYFC)

21-Sep-15 31-Dec-18 3,284,592

23 PGMF Financial Inclusion

Myanmar Access to Financial Inclusion (MAFIN) Project

1-Sep-15 31-Aug-17 1,700,000

24 Proximity Designs

Financial Inclusion

Financial Inclusion—Moving Ahead 1-Oct-15 30-Jun-18 5,097,164

25 World Vision International Myanmar

Financial Inclusion

Financial Inclusion For Uplands Project 12-Nov-15 31-Dec-18 4,500,000

26 Yoma Bank Financial Inclusion

Yoma Bank Agri-Business Finance Program (Yoma Bank AFP)

18-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 18,070,000

27 GRET Financial Inclusion

Expanding Rural Financial Markets by Institutionalizing Chin MFI

14-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 1,320,176

28 Save the Children Delta 3 Bright SUN: Building Resilience, Synergy 11-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 3,253,390

29 World Vision International Myanmar

Delta 3 Growing Livelihood in Bogale Project 9-Sep-15 31-Dec-18 1,560,138

30 Mercy Corps Delta 3 Linking Labutta to Markets (LLM) Increasing Incomes through Agriculture, Skills, & Employment

1-Oct-15 30-Sep-18 4,338,197

31 International Organisation of Migration (IOM)

Delta 3 Migration as a livelihood diversificaton strategy in the Delta (MILDAS)

15-Dec-15 31-Aug-18 749,100.00

32 Welthungerhilfe Delta 3 Delta Rural Intensification for Sustainable Economic Development- Delta RISE

1-Oct-15 30-Sep-18 3,896,564

33 Radanar Ayar Private Sector Engagement

Food Safety Project (Heineken) 20-Nov-15 31-May-17 216,325

90


Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

34

IRC Rakhine Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Programme Phase II

23-Nov-15 31-Dec-18 10,500,000

35 CARE Rakhine M&E and Learning for Tat Lan Phase II 4-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 964,463

36

Save the Children Rakhine Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Programme Phase II

8-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 10,300,000

37

CARE Rakhine Supporting the food security, resilience and social cohesion of households and communities in Rathedaung Township

10-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 3,519,147

38

Oxfam GB Rakhine Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Programme Phase II

4-Dec-15 28-Feb-17 935,076

39

Better Life Organisation (BLO)

Rakhine Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Programme Phase II

11-Dec-15 28-Feb-17 1,016,902

40

Gender Equality Network (GEN)

Civil Society Deepening Commitment to Gender Equality in Myanmar

1-Jan-16 31-Dec-18 1,972,165

41

Land Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

Civil Society Fostering equitable access and control over land and related natural resources in Myanmar

1-Jan-16 31-Dec-18 1,699,466

42

Food Security Working Group (FSWG)

Civil Society Harnessing Resources and Partnerships to Achieve Food Security in Myanmar (Phase 2)

1-Jan-16 31-Dec-18 1,622,958

43

International Fertiliser Development Centre (IFDC)

Dry Zone Dry Zone Agro-Input and Farm Services Project 2-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 4,460,000

44

Save the Children Dry Zone LEGACY: Learning, Evidence Generation, and Advocacy for Catalysing Policy

11-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 4,942,842

45

UN-HABITAT Dry Zone A short step from improved WASH to healthier communities

15-Jan-16 31-Dec-18 4,400,000

46 HelpAge Dry Zone Dry Zone Social Protection Project 17-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 4,200,000

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Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

47

International Organisation of Migration (IOM)

Migration Capitalizing human mobility for poerty alleviation and inclusive development in Myanmar (CHIME)

1-Jan-16 31-Dec-18 1,999,217

48

International Labour Organisation (ILO)

Migration Development of Internal and International Labour Migration Governance

1-Feb-16 31-Dec-18 1,999,754

49PGMF Financial

InclusionRakhine Access to Financial Inclusion (RAFIN)

14-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 8,323,497

50PRIME Private

Sector Engagement

Water for Livelihoods & Smallholder Prosperity

14-Dec-15 31-Dec-18 5,884,862

51

Vision Fund International

Flood Response

Flood Impact and Rehabilitation Proposal in Hinthada , Pathein, Sagaing, Hpa-An

11-Dec-15 31-Jul-16 500,000

52 Cordaid Foundation

Financial Inclusion

Technical Assistance (TA) to LIFT/Cordaid partner MFIs

15-Mar-16 31-Dec-18 1,000,000

53 Link Emergency Aid & Development (LEAD)

Delta 3 Supporting landless households livelihoods and food security through alternative income generation activities in Pyinsalu Sub-Township

6-Apr-16 31-Dec-18 407,305


Delta 3 Promotion of Farmer-Managed Schemes for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development

7-Apr-16 31-Mar-19 803,942

55 Radanar Ayar Delta 3 Integrated Agribusiness and Rural Development (IARD) Project

6-Apr-16 28-Feb-19 729,281

56 MPSWA Dry Zone Improved Nutritional Status of venerable community through Self-help Potential

7-Apr-16 31-Dec-18 782,432

57 Golden Plain Livelihood Development Services Co-operative Ltd.

Dry Zone Restoring Unproductive Soil to Get Sustainable Yield by Green Manuring & Modified Cropping System in Dry Zone

9-May-16 31-Oct-18 729,636

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Start Date End Date

Contracted Amount

(USD) Current

58 DRC Rakhine Vocational Training and Livelihood Oppertunities for in Camp and out of Camp Youth in Rakhine State

15-Jun-16 31-May-18 2,648,223

59 PGMF Dry Zone Cash Transfer Support for the Legacy Project (CTSL)

17-Jun-16 30-Nov-18 1,824,631

60 Catholic Relief Services (CRS)

Uplands Productive Agriculture through Community Engagement (PACE)

7-Jun-16 31-May-19 1,813,203

61 Choklei Organisation for Rural and Agricultural Development (CORAD)

Uplands Promoting Agricultural Diversification and Economic Integration in Northern Chin State

14-Jun-16 31-May-19 2,204,212


Uplands Uplands Food Security and Participation in Markets (UFS-PM)

17-Jun-16 31-May-19 2,123,168

63 Myanmar Institute for Integrated Development (MIID)

Uplands Securing Positive Nutritional Outcomes through Agriculture Extension, Nutritional Education and Institution Building in Rural Chin State

14-Jun-16 31-May-19 1,675,410

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Annex 2: Projects signed and projects closed

Table 25: Grants closed since Annual Report 2015 (up to end of June 2016)

Sr. Name of IP Funding mechanism

Project end date Project Title

1 UN-HABITAT Learning and innovation 29-Feb-16 Land Administration and Management Programme

(LAMP), Myanmar

2 Radanar Ayar Learning and innovation 10-Jan-16 Socio-Economic and Environmental Development

in Bogalay (SEED)

3FSWG (Food Security Working Group)

Learning and innovation 31-Jan-16 Harnessing Resources and Partnerships to achieve

Food Security in Myanmar

4 Save the Children-LEARN

Learning and innovation 30-Apr-16 Leveraging Essential Nutrition Actions to Reduce

Malnutrition (LEARN)

5 FAO-NAPA Learning and innovation 30-Jun-16

Formulation and operationalization of a National Action Plan for Poverty Alleviation and Rural Development through Agriculture (“NAPA”)

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Table 24: Grants signed since Annual Report 2015 (up to end of June 2016)

Sr. Name of IP Funding mechanism Amount Project Period Project Title

1 Cordaid Foundation

Financial Inclusion USD 1,000,000

15 March 2016 ~ 31 December 2018

Technical Assistance (TA) to LIFT/Cordaid partner mfi's

2DRC (Danish Refugee Council)

Rakhine USD 2,648,223 15 June 2016 ~ 31 May 2018

Vocational Training and Liveli-hood Oppertunities for in Camp and out of Camp Youth in Rakhine State

3

ILO (International Labour Organisation)

Migration USD 1,999,754 1 Feb 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018

Development of Internal and International Labour Migration Governance

4 UN-HABITAT Dry Zone USD 4,400,000 15 Jan 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018

A short step from improved WASH to healthier communities

5

MPSWA (Myanmar Professional Social Workers Association)

Dry Zone USD 782,432 7 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018

Improved Nutritional Status of venerable community through Self-help Potential

6

Golden Plain Livelihood Development Services Co-operative Ltd.

Dry Zone USD 729,636 9 May 2016 ~ 31 Oct 2018

Restoring Unproductive Soil to Get Sustainable Yield by Green Manuring & Modified Cropping System in Dry Zone

7 PGMF Dry Zone USD 1,824,631 17 June 2016 ~ 30 Nov 2018

Cash Transfer Support for the Legacy Project (CTSL)

8

LEAD (Link Emergency Aid & Development)

Delta 3 USD 407,305 6 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Dec 2018

Supporting landless households livelihoods and food security through alternative income generation activities in Pyinsalu Sub-Township

9Metta Development Foundation

Delta 3 USD 803,942 7 Apr 2016 ~ 31 Mar 2019

Promotion of Farmer-Managed Schemes for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development

10 Radanar Ayar Delta 3 USD 729,281 6 Apr 2016 ~ 28 Feb 2019

Integrated Agribusiness and Rural Development (IARD) Project

11CRS (Catholic Relief Services)

Uplands USD 1,813,203 7 June 2016 ~ 31 May 2019

Productive Agriculture through Community Engagement (PACE)

12

CORAD (Choklei Organization for Rural and Agricultural Development)


Promoting Agricultural Diversification and Economic Integration in Northern Chin State

13Metta Development Foundation


Uplands Food Security and Participation in Markets (UFS-PM)

14

MIID (Myanmar Institute for Integrated Development)


Securing Positive Nutritional Outcomes through Agriculture Extension, Nutritional Education and Institution Building in Rural Chin State

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Annex 3: Policy activity summary chart

Policy Issue & LIFT Partners Description

Nutrition

Implementer: SC

Collaborators: MOHS, GAD, 3MDG

Policy Issue: MCCT for 1000 Days Window

Maternal and Child Cash Transfers is a high-priority intervention for LIFT. MCCT is prioritised in the draft Myanmar National Action Plan for Food And Nutrition Security (MNAPFNS) 2016–2025 and State Counselor Daw Aung San Su Kyi has highlighted the need to promote better nutrition, especially among the younger generation.

The Bright SUN Project delivers Maternal and Child Cash Transfers (MCCT) of 10,000 MMK/month/child and behaviour change communication (BCC) to mothers throughout the First 1,000 Days, to prevent stunting and wasting in rural areas of Labutta Township in Ayeyarwady.

The project will generate local evidence and learning to inform and influence planning and implementation of MCCT component of the draft MNAPFNS.

MCCT is now active in five rural health centers covering 202 villages. The project attracted interest from MSWRR, which has approached LIFT to discuss collaboration with the Ministry on an MCCT pilot in Chin State.

Implementer: SC

Collaborators: MOHS, GAD, 3MDG


“Tat Lan Sustainable Food Security and Livelihoods Programme Phase II” is conducting an MCCT pilot at 30 randomized villages in Pauktaw, Myebon and Minbya townships in Rakhine. It will finish by the end of 2016 and the findings will contribute to the evidence-base to advocate to the GoUM for national adoption of MCCT.

Implementer: SC

Collaborators: MOHS, GAD, MNMA, PGMF, IPA


LEGACY tests two cash transfer modalities: a) MCCT + light BCC initially in 126 villages, b) MCCT + heavy BCC initially in 122 villages across Yesagyo, Mahlaing and Pakokku townships in the Dry Zone. Evidence from thee pilots combined with evidence from projects in the Delta and Rakhine will be synthesized for a more comprehensive understanding of MCCT.

The project will develop recommendations on the most feasible service delivery system and the extent BCC adds value to nutrition outcomes. These efforts support advocacy to the MSWRR and the MOHS in order to adopt a maternity cash transfer for the First 1,000 Days Window as part of national social protection and health policies.

As all these nutrition projects were recently started, no significant policy outcome has been reported yet.

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Implementer: PATH

Collaborators: DOPH, NNC, FDA, DMR, DOA, DAR, MMCWA, MCU, NUDI, PSI, MMBDC

Policy Issue: Rice Fortification Policy Formulation

“Introduction of Fortified Rice in Myanmar” Project has worked to formulate an unprecedented rice fortification policy in Myanmar a way to reduce micronutrient deficiencies. Fortified rice and rice fortification policy development is considered a priority for nutrition based on the draft MNAPFNS 2016–2025 that identifies several food fortification strategies to address micronutrient deficiencies.

During the six months reporting period, the project team has bolstered government engagement and secured critical FDA approval for fortified kernels and several fortified rice production plants. The team also made significant progress on rice fortification policy development.

In February’s Rice Fortification Focal Team Meeting, the project team consulted on drafting rice fortification policy, and decided on a fortified rice commercial launch for the Yangon market. This resulted in the first draft of rice fortification policy, endorsed in March’s RFWG meeting, and the 4 March fortified rice commercial launch.

In the June RFWG Meeting, the project team proposed 1) Landscape Analysis plan and 2) scope of International Consultant to review and finalise the drafted RF policy. The timeline for development of the final draft policy is defined as end of 2016.

One challenge at policy level is limitation of RFWG personnel in decision-making authority for a policy related action from their ministry concerned. The RFWG has been chaired by the Deputy Director General of the DOPH so lower levels such as Director or a Deputy Director from other ministries are delegated to go to the meetings. These level officers provide strong technical feedback but do not have authority to make policy level decisions. Thus, PATH has proposed that the NNC should hold bilateral meetings when seeking decisions for a policy related action.

Social Protection

Implementer: HelpAge International (Myanmar)

Collaborators: Mandalay YMCA, DSW, regional governments

Policy Issue: Building community-based social protection and public social projection systems

The Dry Zone Social Protection Project will build sustainable community-based means of addressing vulnerability, while supporting and influencing the DSW and regional governments to gradually complement community efforts by meeting their obligations and adopting the National Social Protection Strategic Plan. The project team plans to manage cash transfers for old age pension and PwD support together via CSO structures. During the reporting period, Village Development Committees and Social Protection Sub-committees were formed in each target village.

The project took initial steps to engage government in meetings and hold awareness raising events. It will later define and encourage government roles in training, monitoring, accompanying the team, and lessons learned events. It has also conducted two studies to generate learning for the government and NGOs: the first is on existing community-based social protection mechanisms and practices for the most vulnerable (available online) and the second provides a baseline assessment on the state of vulnerability and social projection in the target areas (findings will be provided in the next reporting period).The project is implemented in a total of 180 Dry Zone villages in Pakoku, Yesagyo, Mahlaing, Myingyan, Taungtha and Natogyi Townships.

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Implementer: HelpAge International (Myanmar)

Collaborators: Mandalay YMCA, DSW, regional governments

Policy Issue: Building community-based social protection and public social projection systems

“Strengthening the Ministry of Social Welfare to Fulfil Its Role in Expanding Social Protection” Project works to strengthen the Ministry’s ability to develop sound policy and effective public expenditure in social protection.

Through a focused advocacy brief, the project serves as an active member of the MSWRR-led Social Protection Sub-Sector Working Group, which successfully advocated the government to reach consensuses on (a) establishment of a government inter-ministerial SP committee to be chaired by a Vice President (2) creation of a SP Committee in the Parliament (3) the need to integrate SP priorities in the national development planning process at a high-level SP Forum of parliamentarians and senior government official in May 2016. However, no action has yet been taken on this consensus.

Implementer: SPPRG

Collaborators: DRD, DSW, DSS, The Leprosy Mission Myanmar , ActionAid Myanmar and HelpAge International (Myanmar), Sagaing Regional Government, Shan State Government, PAO, PYN

Policy Issue: Social protection research for evidence-based policy making

Inclusive Livelihoods & Social Protection Research Project built the capacity of key government and non-government stakeholders to gather, analyse and effectively utilise evidence to develop policies for livelihoods, social protection and key social policy issues.

During the reporting period, the project successfully conducted workshops with the government on two major research projects conducted with DRD: 1) Dimensions of Poverty, Vulnerability and Social Protection in rural communities; 2) Poverty Reduction Through Rural Development: the Evergreen Village Project.

The afore-mentioned workshops has led to evidence-based decision- making on key elements of the government’s poverty reduction programme. These experiences have increased the capacity and willingness of DRD to engage in evidence based policy making. The transfer of such knowledge also allowed them more enable to undertake their own research in the future. This had led to requests from other government departments (mainly Co-operatives) to undertake similar research processes to assess their programmes’ effectiveness and to generate evidence for better decision making.

Also, in collaboration with DSS, the project completed a research on migration which has policy implications; the migration research will be published in September 2016, jointly with IOM.

During the reporting period, the project also completed analysis of all available meta-data to produce a summary of all disability research conducted since 2008 in Myanmar. The final report will be published in September 2016.

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Migration

Policy Issue: Policy and legal framework development for both internal and external migration

Implementer: ILO

Collaborators: Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population

The project will project will improve internal and international migration legislation that enable women and and men to migrate safely and migration can better contribute to the future development of Myanmar.

During the five-months since the project began, some progress has been made on adopting key policies.

Briefing papers development for policy advocacy

The project is producing three Briefing Papers on Recruitment, Complaints Mechanisms, and Migrant Welfare systems. Among them, the Briefing Paper on Complaints Mechanism was completed, translated and shared with the CSO/LO Network; the Migration Division, MOLIP; and Parliamentarians.

Capacity building on laws and policies governing overseas migration

To ensure that stakeholders at state and region level are well informed and participate in policy development, two five-day trainings were held for government officials and CSOs in Shan State and Mandalay.

Following an official request from the MOLIP, the project will provide an international legal expert to assist with redrafting the Law Relating to Overseas Employment. The project will also contract a National lawyer to to provide comments on the briefing papers and policy recommendations.

National Plan of Action on International Labour Migration

The project worked with MOLIP to review the implementation of National Plan of Action on Labour Migration Management (2013 – 2017).

During the two day stakeholders meeting organised by the project to share and receive inputs for its work-plan in March, MOLIP shared its activities on the National Plan with all the participants from relevant government departments, UN agencies, CSOs and labour organisations.

Capacity building of constituents to develop evidence based policy

The project, together with the National Democratic Institute, organised two consultation meetings with Parliamentarians: on Labour Migration Management and on Complaints Mechanism briefing paper.

The Parliamentarians who attended sit on a number of relevant committees in the upper and lower house, including the Parliamentary Committee on Local and Overseas employment, international relations committee and Women and Child Committee.

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Food Security

Policy Issue: Improved policy making and implementation for food security

Implementer: FSWG

Harnessing Resources and Partnerships to Achieve Food Security in Myanmar Phase II Project continued support to FSWG: the largest professional network of local/ international NGOs and CBOs working and to collectively improve food security interventions and policies in Myanmar. The project focuses on engaging with policy makers to design and implement effective food security policies.

During the six-month reporting period, the project has had a policy advocacy planning workshop that included the chairman of the Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development special committee, Pyithu Hluttaw. Before the workshop, a series of smallholder inclusive growth model trainings were provided to the FSWG members by experienced agrarian specialists to identify the practical issues for prioritisation.

The trainings covered hire purchase, inventory credit system, quality seed production by participatory guarantee system (PGS), collective sale of rice, organic farming by PGS, cluster development for inclusive growth, Freshwater Fishery Law for eight States and Regions and Fish Farm technology. In additions to understanding of key technical issues, FSWG and its members identified the key factors to advocate for the benefit of smallholders and to include in existing laws and policies after the training.

The planning workshop on 14-15 July saw an agreement on FSWG’s Policy Advocacy Strategy and Action Plan and the following priorities for FSWG:

1. The bylaw of Protection of the Farmer Rights and Enhancement of their Benefits to form farmers’ organisations and farm laborers’ organisations. 2. Fresh-water Fisheries Laws to develop policy guidelines to form fisherman and aquatic labor organisations.3. The Myanmar Marine Fisheries Law to develop policy guidelines in order to form fisherman and aquatic labor organisations and to work implementation for license fishing in salt water. 4. Pesticide law to develop policy guidelines to identify more specific standards and safety of environment and food security5. Microfinance law to add clauses to provide loan not based upon properties andto develop loan policy guidelines for upland crops.6. Village Fire-wood farm and forest governance law to develop village fire-wood farm and forest governance law at Regional level7. Mini dam for irrigation Law to develop mini dam for irrigation law at Regional level8. Investment law to add agricultural Investment and clauses for protection on land ownership for smallholder farmers and to develop policy guidelines to protect the rights of smallholder farmers under contract farming

Policy subgroup within the FSWG was also reformed to increase collaboration with different stakeholders such as parliaments, government departments, and international and local development organisations in policy advocacy arena.

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Implementer: UNESCO

Collaborators: MOI, MOALI, YAU, ABCID, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Myanmar Now, Dant Da Lun Management and Consulting Services

Policy Issue: IEC sector development for rural agriculture

“Communication for Sustained Livelihood and Food Security” Project is working closely with the government and private media and partner telecommunications operator to develop the competencies of tri-media (print, broadcast and online) journalists and enhance coverage of rural agricultural development issues that matter to LIFT’s rural beneficiaries. During the reporting period, the project contracted with ABCID to provide technical assistance to MRTV to develop and produce TV and radio broadcast IEC materials. These materials are being co-produced by both MRTV and ABCID now.

As the project selected Thomson Reuters Foundation to establish Myanmar Now in 2015 as the News and Feature Service on Agricultural and Rural Development. Myanmar Now is now successfully disseminating information with numerous awards. Its chief reporter, Ko Swe Win, was awarded the President’s Certificate of Honour in September for his reporting on an abuse case of two underage maids in downtown Yangon.

The project has also established an Editorial Committee/task force with MOI, MOALI, Farmers Channel, YAU, ABCID and Thomson Reuters Foundation to oversee development and production of IEC multimedia materials, news, and features as well as for capacity development.

Implementer: World Fish

Collaborators: DOF, GRET, NAG and PACT

Policy Issue: Aquaculture development

The “Promoting sustainable growth of aquaculture in Myanmar to improve food security and income for communities in the Ayeyarwady Delta and Central Dry Zone” project seeks to promote the sustainable growth of aquaculture in the Ayeyarwady Delta (Delta) and suitable agro-ecological areas in the Central Dry Zone (CDZ). The project will provide evidence of innovation and learning for enhanced policy engagement on Small Scale Aquaculture and the contribution to sustainable agriculture, food security and rural development.

Policy Issue: Livestock sector policy development

Implementer: FAO

Collaborators: LBVD, UVS

For the long-term sustainable development of livestock sector, the “Improving Farmer Livelihoods in the Dry Zone through Improved Livestock Health, Productivity and Marketing” project has identified four specific priority areas with LBVD for policy development at union level:

(1) Policies related to CAHWs. The project has introduced the concept of applying the principles of TVET into the policy discussion on CAHWs.(2) Extension systems and Research/Extension Policy (3) Structure, function and capability of township level LBVD (4) Livestock Breeding and Genetic Improvement

The project was also required to decide on strategic options given the new reality of the shorter-than-planned 3-year project:

1) a “narrow and deep” strategy which focuses resources and results on animal health and CAHW development2) a “broad strategy” that reflects all the areas identified in the design

For now, the project has decided to maintain a broad strategy on the understanding that health, production and marketing are all linked, and that, while the public sector is focused on animal health, smallholder farmers are interested in any aspect that affects their livelihood.

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Inclusive Value Chain

Implementer: Mercy Corps Europe Collaborators:

Swisscontact and East-West Seed International

Policy Issue: vegetable sector development

“Making Vegetable Markets Work for Smallholders for the Poor (MVMW), Implemented in Southern Shan and Rakhine States, Myanmar” project has contributed its technical assistance to the Vegetable Sector Acceleration Task Force (VSAT) to improve the enabling environment for the vegetable sector. The project is supporting the costs of a part-time consultant to serve as the secretary for the VSAT. During the reporting period, VSAT engaged with key stakeholders during a March roundtable event in Naypyidaw and published a Wholesale Market Management report. The report proposed, policy suggestions for improving the management of two under construction wholesale markets in Mandalay and Yangon. The report findings included recommendations to limit retail business in the markets, improve infrastructure around the Mandalay market, implement regulations to improve professionalism (e.g., forbidding child labor), and create new services. These findings will be shared in Nay Pyi Taw in August.

Implementer: LCG

Collaborators: MOI, MOALI, YAU, ABCID, Thomson Reuters Foundation, Myanmar Now, Dant Da Lun Management and Consulting Services

Policy Issue: Land tenure policy

“Fostering equitable access and control over land and related natural resources in Myanmar” project contributed with national advocacy on developing the NLUP, which was approved by U Thein Sein administration in January. It is the first time a policy document has been approved by the government of Myanmar that recognises customary tenure rights of ethnic groups. The project has successfully built relationship with the new government including particularly strong ties with the new Minister for MoNREC, and local administrations in Ayeyarwady Region and Mon State.

LCG conducted two policy events: the National Colloquium on Conservation and Land Tenure workshops and the Contract Farming CSO workshop.

The project also funded and facilitated ASDO-organised farmers and fishermen rural development forum in Ayeyarwady with relevant line ministries to map out key challenges. The project also provided design support and facilitated a Spectrum-organised Form 7 workshop with the Lower House Farmers Affairs Committee in Nay Pyi Taw.

Gender

Implementer: GEN

Collaborators: MSWRR

Policy Issue: Gender equality and women empowerment

“Deepening Commitment to Gender Equality in Myanmar” project has allowed GEN to grow to 128 members including 45 CSO/NNGOs, 42 INGOs and 41 individual technical resource persons in June 2016. The Project seeks to promote gender equality and women empowerment in Myanmar.

During the reporting period, GEN continued to make contributions to the draft Prevention (and Protection) of Violence Against Women Law. GEN conducted briefing sessions with development partners and national stakeholder groups.

Also, a GEN working group led a special meeting on temporary special measures such as quotas with new Parliamentarians to raise awareness about giving women space within governance structures. In addition, the project conducted a focused meeting with the new Minister of MSWRR to inform GEN initiatives and explore opportunities for dialogue, pursue common agendas and offer GEN’s technical skills to the GoUM.

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Financial Inclusion

Implementer: UNCDF

Collaborators: Basix, ACCU, ASA Myanmar ltd.

Policy Issue: Microfinance market development

MicroLead Expansion Myanmar Project supports the three regional market leaders: Basix, ACCU and ASA with demonstrated extensive experience to play a catalytic role driving market development in Myanmar. In so doing, the project aims to attract investors to capitalise or refinance lending portfolios, allowing public institutions to limit their investments to smart subsidies. The project also expects to contribute to improving the regulations.

During the six-month reporting period, the project has produced 3 policy briefs: 1) Organisational structure of the national federation of savings and credit cooperatives 2) Agriculture Value Chain Finance in Myanmar: a role for UNCDF and 3) ASA Microfinance Myanmar Ltd: a successful model.

The project’s outstanding challenge relates to the project exit strategy, which requires a strengthened union of savings and credit cooperatives. Due to the current strategic and operational challenges with Union of Monetary Cooperative Limited (UMCL), options are limited, but the project will work to organise a new national federation of savings and credit cooperatives in which the SCCs organised under this project can affiliate.

Although there is no expressed prohibition in Myanmar Cooperative Law regarding the formation of a national federation, initial discussion with Cooperative Department has favored towards one federation per region. However, in July 2016, the project got a clearance from Cooperative Department to organise secondary level cooperative. All the SCCs under this project will directly affiliate with this secondary level cooperative. This is first time in Myanmar cooperative movement that a secondary level cooperative will cover the whole country as area of operation.

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Annex 4: Summary of main studies, reportsPolicy Issue & LIFT

Partners Description

Learning Together in the Ayeyarwady Delta

Compiled by LIFT FMO,

edited by U Htet Kyu

Purpose: This report shares the experiences of LIFT’s partners in the implementation of their projects during Delta 2. The report presents lessons shared at a series of workshops organised by LIFT in October 2014, focusing on agricultural production and post-harvest loss reduction, integrating farmers in the rice value chain, making income generation activities profitable, organising collective services. Participants also shared their experience of hire-purchase models, market price information and agricultural finance.

Findings: Access to finance has increased considerably in the Delta with LIFT support, along with an increase in MADB loans and the recent expansion of cooperative loans in most villages. Obstacles to smallholder farmers in the rice value chain include limited investment capacity; inadequate access to technology and quality inputs; weak market integration and agricultural services; and little or no space for horizontal linkages and synergies among farmers.

Extension services and the availability of finance are key factors to increasing productivity as farmers move from low to high input-output systems. Contract farming can stimulate access to production factors and has a role in strengthening relationships between farmer groups, rice millers, and input traders. Post-harvest technology and practices play a key role in maintaining seed quality and reducing losses.

Analysis of Farm P r o d u c t i o n Economics

World Bank and Agrifood Consulting International (ACI)

Purpose: This is a national survey to collect key household data related to agricultural production and income for monsoon and summer crops, conducted in late 2013 and mid-2014. This information is intended to form the basis of models to assess household level responses to changing economic conditions and policies.

Findings: Myanmar’s farming systems are diversified more than commonly than thought. While during the monsoon season most farms produce paddy, during the cool and dry seasons most farms produce crops other than paddy, mainly beans and pulses, oilseeds, and maize. The analysis reconfirmed that agricultural productivity in Myanmar is low, irrespective of indicator, limiting the sector’s contribution to poverty reduction. Low productivity is a result of multiple factors, many of them associated with the undersupply of quality public services such as research, extension, and rural infrastructure. Redesign of public programmes is needed to shift from exclusive paddy production promotion to broad-based agricultural development support. This is vitally important as paddy is less profitable and costlier to produce that other crops in most areas, especially during the cool and dry seasons.

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The Emergence of Farmer’s Organisations in Myanmar

GRET, FSWG

Purpose: This study aimed at understanding the dynamics of farmers’ organisations in Myanmar.

Findings: The first finding is the lack of clarity and shared understanding on farmers’ organisations in the country. Even the term farmers’ organisation is subject to a variety of perceptions. The report tries to elaborate a definition that takes into account several dimensions of farmers’ organisations including: membership, functions and funding and structuring.

A typology of the farmers’ organisations that have been interviewed during the research is developed, including case studies. The report highlights current trends in the emergence of local farmers’ organisations, and their role in delivering social and economic services to members, despite the lack of recognition and support from other stakeholders (local and national governments, donors and NGOs). Recommendations are given to enhance the role of farmers’ organisations and help themrepresent farmers genuinely. Specific recommendations are directed at the Food Security Working Group.

Vegetable Consumption, Preferences, and Supply Chain

Mercy Corps

Purpose: While organisations were aware that demand for vegetables was increasing, an information gap was to know more about consumers’ preferences for vegetables – how they perceived quality, their buying patterns, eating habits and perceptions towards chemicals and food safety. The research reported here is the first consumer preferences research of Myanmar’s vegetable sector.

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Findings: High importance is placed on the aesthetic quality of vegetables, and less on taste. Shelf-life is important to retailers because it may take them 2-3 days to sell what they buy and they want to be able produce on the second or third day to still “look fresh” and attracting a good price. The key consideration for supply chain actors is to buy vegetables that will transport well and sell quickly at the best price. There is some dissatisfaction among consumers about the cleanliness of wet markets and a shift is underway to more supermarket traffic.

Organically grown vegetables is an appealing idea to consumers, as most want to reduce chemical intake, but the implications of chemical-free/organic growing on end price or on the look and taste of chemical-free produce is not well understood. There are many information gaps and opportunities to educate consumers, retailers and other actors in the supply chain about vegetable quality and safety. Consumers are open to trying new things, but in the vegetable sector they are not used to seeing new varieties or types of vegetables.

Strong relationships with elements of trust and loyalty exist between players in the vegetable supply chain. The players in the supply chain who absorb the most risk are the farmers and the traders who provide inputs to farms and accept the produce to sell on. They risk being left with unsold produce or having to sell produce at too low a price. Wholesalers in urban markets also take risk because they agree to prices before produce arrives in the market and risk having paid too much if a day later, when the produce arrives, another region has flooded the market with the same kind of vegetables and the price drops. Brokers face the least risk in the chain.

Traders, brokers and wholesalers all play roles in setting prices. Risks are minimised by different actors in the supply chain. One way has been through much-improved communication between actors in the vegetable supply chain channels. The mobile phone provides opportunities for organisations seeking to support the sector to reach any of the players in the supply chain with information that may improve how the sector functions. It is a supply-driven market and while there are good communication links between the actors in the chain who are dealing and profiting, the communication link between the household consumer and the supply chain is weak. There appears to be little awareness among consumers of opportunities for them to communicate to suppliers up the chain regarding what they want to see in the vegetable markets where they shop.

Undernutrition in Myanmar: Part 1: A Critical Review of Literature

LEARN (Save the Children)

Purpose: This report is to provide a user-friendly synthesis of current data on the food and nutrition security situation in Myanmar to better understand the linkages between food security, livelihoods, and nutrition in the country as a whole as well as in specific geographic areas that are of interest to LIFT. By analyzing and synthesizing recent primary and secondary data collected on food and nutrition security by different agencies at the national, state/regional, township, and community levels, this report seeks to present a coherent picture of the current situation in Myanmar.

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Findings: This report presents what is known about the immediate determinants of undernutrition and how they are affected by underlying food security, caregiving, and environmental conditions, which are in turn shaped by income poverty, lack of access to capital and basic economic and social conditions. As the purpose of this report is as much to present what is known about food and nutrition security in Myanmar as it is to identify what is not known, the structure of the report is intended to highlight gaps in knowledge and areas for further research. Section 2 presents national level data on the food and nutrition security situation in Myanmar in the past five years. Sections 3, 4 and 5 present data on food and nutrition security from the various agro-ecological zones that are of interest to LIFT, namely the Coastal/Delta, Dry, and Uplands. Each section is organised in the same way, beginning with data on the prevalence of undernutrition in the geographic area, followed by findings on potential causes of undernutrition, organised according to immediate, underlying and basic determinants.

Revitalized Agriculture for Balanced Growth and Resilient Livelihoods: Towards a Rural Development Strategy for Mon State

CESD, IFPRI, MSU

Purpose: The purpose of this report is to provide national-and state-level policymakers, private-sector investors, civil society, and donors with an anlysis of the rural economy of Mon State and pathways to improved prosperity for its population.

Findings: While the Mon State rural economy faces substantial challenges, there is good reason for optimism if the Mon State and Union governments can work together with the private sector, including farmers, to develop a vibrant rural economy that raises rural incomes and improves the welfare of the rural population. Achieving this goal requires the design of a comprehensive rural development strategy for Mon State, which adheres to the following principles: 1) Inclusiveness: clearly understanding the strengths and weaknesses, and the respective role of all stakeholders - government, private sector, and civil society; 2) Decentralization: practicing decentralized decisions-making, bottom-up planning and co-learning; and 3) Sustainability: Balancing short-term gains with long-term growth.

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Undernutrition in Myanmar: Part 2: A secondary analysis of LIFT 2013 Household Survey Data

LEARN (Save the Children)

Purpose: In order to better understand the contributing factors of undernutrition in LIFT programme areas and the links between child nutritional status and independent variables of programmatic importance to LIFT (such as income, livelihoods, food security, and water, sanitation, and hygiene [WASH]), LEARN commissioned a secondary analysis of nutrition-related data from the 2013 LIFT Household Survey. The purpose of this report is to present the findings of this analysis

Findings: Undernutrition affects a significant proportion of children under five in LIFT programme areas. Nearly 4 out of every 10 children are stunted, and about 8 per cent of children are acutely malnourished. Evidence suggests that young children are routinely ill, with about 15 per cent of children reportedly suffering from diarrhea in the past two weeks. At the same time, dietary quality of young children is poor. Only about one-fifth of children 6 to 23 months of age in LIFT programme areas receive an adequately diverse diet.

While the rate of undernutrition in all LIFT programme areas is high, there are some key differences by zone. The Uplands is characterized by high rates of stunting and low levels of wasting. Diarrhea is more common in the Uplands than in the other two zones. Chin State, which is characterized by very high rates of stunting and diarrhea and extremely poor dietary diversity, stands out as being far worse off than other states in the Uplands area.

The Dry Zone is characterized by medium levels of stunting and high levels of wasting. Diarrhea is less prevalent in the Dry Zone than in the Uplands and the Coastal/Delta Zone, though the latter difference was not found to be statistically significant. While about 30 per cent of children 12 to 23 months of age in the Dry Zone have adequate dietary diversity, only about 5 per cent of infants 6 to 11 months had consumed four or more food groups in the previous day.

The Coastal/Delta Zone has roughly the same levels of undernutrition as the Dry Zone. About one-third of children under five are stunted and about 10 per cent are wasted. Diarrhea is less common in the Coastal/Delta Zone than in the Uplands. The diets of infants 6 to 11 months of age in the Coastal/Delta Zone are extremely poor. The prevalence of stunting is higher among older children while the prevalence of wasting is higher among younger children, particularly from 6 to 23 months of age. Growth faltering caused by repeated bouts of illness and acute malnutrition may be a risk factor for stunting later in childhood. This underscores the importance of ensuring good nutrition for children in the critical window from birth to 2 years, as well as for mothers during pregnancy.

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THE LIVELIHOODS AND FOOD SECURITY TRUST FUND

UNOPS Fund Management Office

12(O) Pyi Thu Lane, 7 Mile, Mayangone Township, Yangon, Myanmar

Phone: +95 1 65 7280~87, Fax: +95 1 65 72 79

Email: [email protected]

lift-fund.org | facebook.com/liftfund| twitter.com/liftfund

LIFT is managed by the United Nations Office for Project Services

lift sar 2016 (28nov2016)-final-compressed

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