OUTREACH AND PERFORMANCE OF INTERNATIONAL FUND FORAGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT ON THE LIVELIHOOD IMPROVEMENT OFFAMILY ENTREPRISE PROJECT IN THE NIGER DELTA REGION

Abstract

The study assessed the outreach and performance of IFAD on the Livelihood Improvement of
Family Enterprises Project in the Niger Delta (LIFE ND) Region of Nigeria. This study used
secondary data sourced from the IFAD Supervision Report, 2024. Data were analysed using
percentages and Enterprise Percentage Increase (EPI). The result showed that IFAD LIFEND reached more female (69%) than the male (53%) gender, indicating a deliberate efforts
to empower and increase their participation in economic activities. Moreso, 87% of the
beneficiaries/households were reached with one service or the other at the same time
showing the effort of IFAD LIFE-ND at achieving their goals of enhancing the welfare of
persons and enterprises in the region. Also, there was a moderate (60%) level of performance
on the realization of physical project goals, which can influence the economies of
communities. Moreso, 62% of IFAD LIFE-ND project focused on priority activities that
enhances access to financial services for beneficiaries and their organizations. Furthermore,
the result showed that IFAD had the largest allocation, primarily funding core enterprise
development and project management components. The study therefore recommended that IFAD
LIFE-ND should be focused on the goals of transforming rural enterprises and improving the
socioeconomic wellbeing of people in the region. More so, IFAD LIFE-ND should make more efforts
at reaching more beneficiaries by seeking for improved funding from funding partners. For a more
sustainable and functional infrastructure IFAD LIFE-ND beneficiaries and host communities should
be incorporated in project management and implementation process.