Community-driven development in IFAD-supported projects

Community-driven development in IFAD-supported projects

The Independent Office of Evaluation of IFAD (IOE) has prepared an evaluation synthesis report on Community-Driven Development (CDD), based on an in-depth review of a representative sample of IFAD projects carried out since 1978.

CDD has played a pivotal role in IFAD’s operations for over 30 years. Indeed, CDD is an important pathway to empower the rural poor – an objective that lies at the heart of Agenda 2030 – and works particularly well within the contexts that IFAD engages in, such as marginal and fragile situations.

The synthesis found that IFAD operations that used a CDD approach performed better than non-CDD projects on several criteria, including effectiveness, gender and sustainability, especially when sufficient time and resources were available for meaningful engagement at local level. The commitment shown by IFAD’s regional divisions was crucial in promoting and enhancing learning on CDD.

CDD remains a relevant approach for IFAD. Moving forward, the Fund should build further on its comparative advantage in CDD, making it visible throughout its strategies and institutional functions and ensuring that appropriate resources and financial instruments are allocated to fully reap the benefits expected of the approach.