Food Aid Program Promotes Sound Environmental Management in Cape Verde

Cape Verde suffers from consistent droughts and irrigation difficulties, which lead to topsoil erosion andwater runoff, two primary threats to agriculture. ACDI/VOCA combats these difficulties by using proceeds from the monetization of corn, wheat, rice and beans to support soil and water conservation activities (SWC), the introduction of drip irrigation, and the promotion of the informal private sector.

The monetization of U.S. government donated commodities under the PL 480 program allowed imported food to be purchased utilizing local currency, thus reducing foreign exchange costs. During the course of the 1997-2001 program, the monetized commodities represented approximately 14 percent of total cereals available in Cape Verde and provided the program with $15.2 million in proceeds. Average proceeds from these sales were equivalent to about 122 percent of the total commodity and freight cost to the U.S. government.

In addition to providing badly needed food resources to Cape Verde, the project also supported activities to increase domestic food production. One of the primary objectives of the program was to organize and train democratic watershed associations and assist them in carrying out SWC works. Works were aimed at mitigating environmental degradation and improving agricultural infrastructure, which increased productivity. Construction of SWC structures (including check dams and contour rock wall terraces) on rainfed lands has increased the land area available for cultivation and the moisture retention in the soil. A 1999/2000 study conducted by the National Institute for Agricultural Research and Development (INIDA) estimated that the maize yield increased by 350 kilograms per hectare (kg/ha) on land behind contour rock wall terraces compared with bare slopes. In this same study, bean yields increased by 130 kg/ha, and biomass products (such as straw used as animal feed), increased by 500 kg/ha.

Project resources were also used to contract with associations to build reservoirs for the utilization of drip irrigation, permiting farmers to irrigate their fields more frequently, and therefore be able to switch production from sugar cane and tuber crops to higher value crops such as vegetables. These activities supported a dramatic increase in overall Cape Verdean vegetable production, from 8,225 metric tons (MT) in 1995 to 16,981 MT in 1999. Adoption of ACDI/VOCA-sponsored drip irrigation techniques increased the yields per unit of land. A study conducted in 2000/2001 by the General Directorate of Rural Animation and Cooperative Promotion (DGARP) confirmed previous years’ findings that production levels under drip irrigation are higher both in terms of land area and metric tons of water used.

In implementing the microfinance component of its project, ACDI/VOCA worked with a local bank, Caixa Economica de Cabo Verde (CECV). CECV managed the Drip Irrigation and the Small Business Lending Programs while ACDI/VOCA managed the Microenterprise Training and Lending Program (METLP). This program provided loans to small traders who bought and sold goods such as fruit, vegetables, fish and clothes. Special emphasis was placed on the participation of women and in 2001, 82 percent of the total loans disbursed had been to women. Under this program, targets for both loan disbursement and loan recovery were exceeded. In May of 2001, the program was transferred from ACDI/VOCA to the direct management of CECV, where it still performs well. At the time of transfer, the overall loan repayment rate was 96% percent On time repayment was reported at 97-98 percent.

ACDI/VOCA-sponsored project activities increased household access to food in Cape Verde, meeting or exceeding almost all project targets. Activities under the project increased rural households’ access to food in a number of ways. Most notably, association contracts to conduct SWC works construction provided association members with employment opportunities and therefore, increased income.

As a result of these impacts and achievements, USAID’s Office of Food for Peace awarded ACDI/VOCA a new five-year Title II program beginning January of 2002.