IFAD Quality Assurance Group (QAG) provided an overview of the IFAD 2015 Grants Policy and of its implementation procedures

1. Financial management workshop for global and regional grants recipients
IFAD Policy for Grant Financing and its
Implementing Procedures
25-27 October 2017
Bangkok, Thailand

2. Approved in April 2015 (EB 2015/114/R.2)
Intention is to make progress on 4 fronts:
• strategic relevance and focus of grant-funded operations;
• effectiveness and impact with more rigorous QE, QA,
supervision and accountability;
• efficiency, reducing transaction costs and number of
grants;
• knowledge generation
Grant Policy overview

3. Goal: to significantly broaden and add value to the support
provided to smallholder farming and rural transformation,
thereby contributing to rural poverty eradication, sustainable
agricultural development, and global food security and
nutrition.
Three basic principles:
(i) contribution to public good related to IFAD's mandate;
(ii) clear added value and a comparative advantage over
loans; and
(iii) not be used as a substitute for IFAD admin resources
Grant Policy: goal & basic principles of grants

4. Grant Policy: objectives of grants
1. Promote innovative, pro-poor approaches and
technologies with the potential to be scaled up for
greater impact;
2. Strengthen partners’ institutional and policy
capacities;
3. Enhance advocacy and policy engagement;
4. Generate and share knowledge for development
impact.
Rural poor people and their organizations
should be squarely positioned at the centre.

5. Grant Policy: type of grants
• Global/Regional vs Country-Specific
- Relevant IFAD staff
- Strategic direction
- Allocations
- Activities
• Small vs Large
- Approval process
- Duration
• Recipient type (private sector)
- Clearance and approval process

6. The grant life-cycle
Inclusion in pipeline
Quality
Enhancement
Quality Assurance
Approval
Implementation
Completion, Closing
& Evaluation
Selection
of
Recipient
Reporting
and KM
Strategic directions
defined

7. Defining the strategic direction of grants
• MTP with three-year thematic clusters 2016-2018 (for G/R grants)
• Annual Strategic Guidance Note with priority areas
MTP Thematic Clusters
for
Global/Regional Grants
2018 Proposed Priority Areas
1. Rural inclusiveness. 1. Access of rural youth and vulnerable rural populations to productive assets, financing,
natural resources and new skills/capacities necessary for engaging in income generating
activities and strengthening their participation in social dynamics.
2. Rural transformation. 2. Advisory and agricultural extension services for small rural producers and their
organizations on production options and technologies, adaptation to climate change,
natural resource management, food losses, rural business management, market access
and others.
3. Better results
measurement through
improved M&E systems.
3. Information Technology and Applications for identifying, monitoring and evaluating
opportunities for small farmers in inclusive value chains.
4. Agricultural research to
generate- facilitate delivery
to smallholder farmers.
4. AR4D to sustainably increase production and productivity for food security, nutrition and
income generation: :
(a) Strengthening capacities of smallholder farmers to adapt to climate change and deal
with the risks associated to it.
(b) Increasing water management efficiency, mainly in arid and semi-arid regions.
(c) Appreciation of local/native varieties and genetic resources, mainly those grown by
smallholders.

8. • Competitive selection encouraged
• Unless recipients are unique in normative, policy or
representational mandates and therefore have no
competitors
• New window for strategic partners. But very stringent
cumulative criteria:
(a) Internationally recognized institutions founded by IFAD or of which IFAD is a
member;
(b) Established networks with competence in global advocacy or policy influence in
which IFAD engages, with a medium-term perspective and high visibility;
(c) Institutions in which IFAD’s influence at the governance level requires
demonstrated ownership and financial contribution;
(d) High potential for collaboration and synergy with IFAD, and for global impact.
Recipient selection

9. Procedures: Implementation
• Changes in the project completion date, budget or project
description require amendment to Grant Agreement
• Disbursement modalities and Reporting requirements
indicated in Grant Agreements
• IFAD staff required to supervise

10. Procedures: Completion / Closing
• Completion Date is the date on which the
implementation of the project is to be completed.
• Within six months of completion (i.e., prior to Grant
Closing Date), grant recipient submits final completion
report – including technical and financial reports
• Grant is closed once final completion report is cleared
by the grant sponsor and FMD

11. Evaluation
• A review is required for any project for which funding is
requested for :
 a follow-up phase
 a recipient having received more than five grants
over the past three years
• IFAD also performing recurrent recipient reviews –
approximately 2-3 a year

12. Procedures: Reporting and KM initiatives
• IFAD website, including also open calls
• Large grants in pipeline presented to EB
• Issues raised at CN screening and QA phase presented to IFAD
management
• Grants approved presented to the EB
• Grant Status Reports prepared by grant sponsors during implementation
and at completion
• Performance of portfolio reported on in the Report on IFAD's
Development Effectiveness (RIDE) presented annually to EB
• Grants overview, success stories and grants approved reported on in the
Annual Report
• Annual Grant Awards for sponsors and Recipients (categories: Design,
Impact on Poverty, Innovation, Knowledge Sharing)

13. Useful reference
• Grants Overview on IFAD website:
https://www.ifad.org/what/operating_model/grants/
overview
• IFAD policies/strategies:
https://www.ifad.org/what/policy_dialogue
• Topics: https://www.ifad.org/topics
• Country pages:
https://www.ifad.org/where/overview

14. Questions and suggestions