ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MNFS&R) on Sunday said that the World Bank (WB) has promised $200 million while Asian Development Bank (ADB) has pledged $150m to Pakistan for its anti-locust operation.
In a statement, the ministry said that the promised WB finance will be considered under Locusts Emergency and Food Security Project (LEAFS). The concept note has been approved by the Economic Affairs Division (EAD).The PC-I has also been prepared and will be submitted in upcoming meeting of Central Development Working Party (CDWP).
The LEAFS is the first federal agricultural project financed by the World Bank in Pakistan. This is a direct response to the consensus that MNFS&R’s policy function and coordination role across provinces should be significantly strengthened. The MNFS&R is responsible for overall project implementation with the support of provincial governments, DPP, NLCC, FAO and NDMA. The project cost envelope is $200m.
The LEAFS will span out its activities in 18 districts/locations (9 in Balochistan, 4 in Punjab, 4 in Sindh and 1 in KPK). The specific project objectives will be: controlling the locust outbreak, mitigating negative social and economic impact associated with locust attack and strengthening the national food security system.
The MNFS&R will take overall coordination role of the project implementation through establishing a Federal Project Steering Committee (FPSC), responsible for approval of annual work plans, monitor/review of financial reporting, third party validation if needed, midcourse corrections in the project and re-allocation of funds.
The LEAFS project will comprise of four main components, including surveillance and control measures to limit the growth and spread of current desert locust populations, while mitigating the risks on human health and environment. Second component is livelihood protection and rehabilitation to provide a robust protection scheme that ensures immediate relief to affected farmers and livestock owners.
Third is early warning preparedness and food security to strengthen national capacity for early warning and early response, linking these efforts to regional (outside of Pakistan) and provincial (domestic) existing locust surveillance and control network . The fourth component is project management, and monitoring and evaluation to support the Project Management Unit’s (PMU) capacity to ensure high quality project implementation.
According to the statement, the primary beneficiaries of the project will be farmers and agricultural labourers of Pakistan who live in areas prone to desert locust infestation. For these groups, the proposed project will prevent locust infestations from damaging their livelihoods and provide compensatory income support opportunities for the affected farmers and agricultural laborers. The MNFS&R will be a major beneficiary due to a strengthened food security and nutrition information system, concluded the statement.
