Semiannual Progress Report

September 2008

Semiannual Progress Report to the Government of Japan on the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) for the Period Ending 30 June 2008

ABBREVIATIONS GOJ – Government of Japan JFPR – Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction LOA – letter of agreement

NOTE

(i) In this report, "$" refers to US dollars unless otherwise stated.

CONTENTS Page

A. GOJ Contributions 1 B. GOJ Approvals; Net Uncommitted Balance 1 C. LOA Signing 2 D. Disbursement 2 E. Completed and Cancelled Projects 3 F. Monitoring and Evaluation 3 G. Outreach and Visibility 4

ATTACHMENTS

1. Attachment (i) GOJ Contributions 6 2. Attachment (ii) List of Projects Approved by GOJ and ADB from 7

January to June 2008 3. Attachment (iii) Financial Status of Grant as of 30 June 2008 8 4. Attachment (iv) Management Response to SES Recommendations 9 5. Attachment (v) Table of OCO Actions on SES Recommendations 13 6. Attachment (vi) Powerpoint Presentation on JFPR 9025-SRI 16 7. Attachment (vii) Remarks of VP KM-SD Ursula Schaefer-Preuss 25

during JFPR Series Meeting of 25 April 2008 8. Attachment (viii) ADB Today Announcements 26 9. Attachment (ix) Newspaper Supplement on JFPR 9116-SRI 28

Project Launch 10. Attachment (x) Photo-Documentation of Some Key JFPR Events 29

from January to June 2008

1. Pursuant to paragraph 3 subpara. 2(12) of the Arrangement Letter dated 24 May 2000 establishing the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR), and the 2005 Directional Guidance Paper, paragraph 12, we are pleased to submit herewith a progress report on the implementation of JFPR for the period 01 January to 30 June 2008. A. GOJ Contributions

2. The total contribution from the Government of Japan (GOJ) as of 30 June 2008 remained at $360.4 million. The last contribution made to the Fund was on 24 March 2006, in the amount of $15,479,614.78 (¥ 1,824,350,000.00) [Attachment (i)]. B. GOJ Approvals; Net Uncommitted Balance

3. Six (6) projects totaling $9.28 million were approved by GOJ during the first semester of 2008. ADB, on the other hand, approved five projects with a total amount of $9.22 million, of which four projects were approved by GOJ in 2007 [Attachment (ii)]. As of the end of June 2008, a total of 113 grant proposals (with a total amount of $283.81 million) had been approved by the Government of Japan. Of these, 108 grant proposals (with a total amount of $275.53 million) had been approved by ADB. 4. Based on the statement on the “Status of Grant” prepared by the Controller’s Department [Attachment (iii)], the “uncommitted balance available for new commitments” as of 30 June 2008 was $157.22 million. This takes into account the total amount of effective grants (i.e., grants whose Letters of Agreement had been signed), as well as grants that had been approved by ADB but that were not yet effective, less the five projects that have been cancelled so far. This also takes into account income from investments as well as administrative expenses. Deducting from this amount the five grant proposals that have been approved by GOJ which are awaiting ADB approval ($8.28 million), the net uncommitted balance is $148.94 million. 5. As of 30 June 2008, of the five (5) proposals still awaiting GOJ approval, two (2) were submitted in June 2007, one (1) in September 2007, one (1) in March 2008 and one (1) in June 2008. A strong pipeline of over 40 projects projects for the remainder of 2008 and 2009 shows continued strong interest of regional departments in JFPR.

Figure 1: No. of GOJ-Approved Projects (2000–2008)

713

9 8

16

23

913

6

3 3

1

2

0

5

10

15

20

25

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 As ofJune2008

Year

Other Countries Afghanistan

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Figure 2: Amount of GOJ-Approved Projects in $ millions (2000–2008)

22.39 24.34 17.508.22

23.6538.89

18.99 22.759.28

22.0028.00

10.0038.00

0.00

10.00

20.00

30.00

40.00

50.00

60.00

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 As ofJune2008

Year

Other Countries Afghanistan

C. LOA Signing

6. Out of the 108 projects that had been approved by ADB as of 30 June 2008, 103 have become effective, i.e., their Letters of Agreement (LOA) have been signed. Eight (8) projects became effective from January to June 2008. D. Disbursement

7. Total project disbursement during the first half of 2008 amounted to $13.4 million, compared to $13.3 million for the same period during the previous year (Jan-Jun 07) and $19.6 million over the immediate preceding semester (Jul-Dec 2007). This brought total project disbursements to $130.8 million (Fig. 3). The project which registered the highest disbursement during the first semester of 2008 was JFPR 9092-PAK: Immediate Supply to Poor and Vulnerable Households in Inaccessible Areas ($1.5 million). Others were JFPR 9021-IND: Rainwater Harvesting and Slum Development in Rajasthan ($1.0 million); and JFPR 9100-AFG: Rural Business Support ($802.0 thousand). Following closely behind was JFPR 9026-IND: Sustaining Income and Basic Human Needs of Poor in Disaster Prone Areas in Gujarat, with over $695.0 thousand in disbursement for the period.

3

Figure 3: JFPR Disbursement

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Dis

burs

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ion) Annual

Disbursement

CumulativeDisbursement

JFPR = Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction

Note: 2007 figure is projected based on mid-year disbursement

E. Completed and Cancelled Projects

8. As of 30 June 2008, of the 103 projects that had become effective since year 2000, four (4) were completed in 2004, five (5) in 2005, seven (7) in 2006, and fifteen (15) in 2007. Out of these 31 completed projects, nine (9) have submitted Implementation Completion Memoranda (ICM), while the rest are under preparation. The ICMs are used as input for monographs that are being published by OCO to highlight best practices and lessons learned from completed JFPR projects. F. Monitoring and Evaluation

9. During the first semester of 2008, Managing Director Rajat Nag sent Mr. Keith Leonard, OIC OED, ADB Management’s response to the strategic recommendations contained in the Special Evaluation Study on Japan Funds (Attachment iv). For those areas where there is consensus, OCO has taken actions to address the specific recommendations (Attachment v). 10. From 4 to 8 February 2008, JFPR Consultant Ronaldo Oblepias visited Lao PDR as part of JFPR’s portfolio management role to look into the implementation of sample projects across the portfolio, proactively identify and address issues and challenges and cull project and portfolio lessons and good practices which can be disseminated to the RMs and Regional Departments. It was also part of JFPR’s total quality management approach to ensure continuous improvement in terms of policies and procedures through interactions with RMs, project officers who are users of JFPR, and project recipients in order to make the fund more relevant, effective, and efficient. During the Mission, the JFPR Consultant was informed by CD LRM about the Mission’s good relationship with the Japanese Embassy, and the RM’s intention to avail of more JFPR grants. The consultant also met with LRM staff to clarify issues concerning processing and implementation of JFPR grants. Finally, the consultant reviewed the progress of JFPR 9062-LAO: Sustainable Agroforestry Systems for Livelihood Enhancement of Rural Poor and provided inputs to the project officer and the project team on project management, capacity building, knowledge-sharing, and ensuring visibility. 11. From 3 to 4 April 2008, JFPR Coordinator Megumi Araki, together with ED for Japan Masaki Omura visited Malitbog, Bukidnon to look at JFPR 9001-PHI: Supporting the Sustainable Livelihood for the Poor in Southern Philippines. The project is linked to Loan 30552-

4

PHI: Infrastructure for Rural Poverty Enhancement Sector Project (InfRES) Project which is constructing farm-to-market roads in poor provinces in the Philippines. The main objective of the JFPR project was to reduce poverty incidence in targeted areas by providing increased and diversified income generation opportunities for the poor through the development and implementation of sustainable livelihood activities in InfRES Project areas. The mission met with staff of the Regional Officers of the Department of Agriculture, local government officials (Mayor, Vice Mayor, and Municipal Board members), and villagers who received livelihood grants and training assistance from the project. 12. During the meeting with the villagers, Mr. Omura mentioned that he was happy to see the project was so successful and contributing to the improvement of the beneficiaries’ lives and would therefore report these outcomes to the Government of Japan and the Japanese taxpayers. With the anticipated personnel changes in the BOD-Japan, he informed the JFPR Coordinator that OCO will then need to arrange occasions for monitoring and reviewing JFPR projects for the successors so that they will be able to gain first-hand information and understanding of Japan-funded projects in ADB. G. Outreach and Visibility

13. OCO continues to promote JFPR visibility both within and outside ADB by ensuring media coverage of grant signing activities in the field. These events are attended by Japanese embassy officials, Government officials, as well as the ADB Country Director and Resident Mission staff. These and other important JFPR project milestones are usually featured in ADB Today. The JFPR Website continues to be an important venue for disseminating information on JFPR. 14. The sixth JFPR Series Meeting was held on 24 April 2008 featuring “Lessons from Sri Lanka: Rural Infrastructure Maintenance for Poverty Reduction.” Project Officer Sanath Ranawana of SANS/SARD and Project Director Dr. P.A.S. Ponnamperuma (by videocon from SLRM) gave a presentation on the project’s objectives, accomplishments, and lessons learned [Attachment (vi)]. In attendance were BOD-Japan Alternate Executive Director Atsushi Mizuno, Vice President for KM-SD Ursula Schaefer-Preuss, SARD Director General Kunio Senga, OCO Principal Director Werner Liepach, SLRM Country Director Richard Vokes, OCO Director M. Teresa Kho, representatives from the Philippines’ agriculture and agrarian reform departments, the representative of the Spanish Embassy’s economic and commercial office, and over 40 headquarters staff. 15. In her speech [Attachment (vii)], VP Preuss said that “JFPR has been a valuable resource to ADB over the last eight years, and it will continue to be so in the foreseeable future. I would like to thank the Government of Japan on behalf of ADB’s Senior Management for its strong commitment to assist the region's poorest and most vulnerable in the framework of this important facility. Not only does it help the poor, it also teaches us how to help the poor better. It encourages our staff to innovate; to try new approaches, create new knowledge, to learn.” She then went on to thank Alternate Executive Director Mr. Mizuno (representing Executive Director Masaki Omura) and the Japanese Government for the valuable assistance. She also congratulated OCO, SARD, and SLRM for the joint initiative. 16. As with previous JFPR Series Meetings, this dissemination meeting generated a lot of interest within ADB and other development partners. In particular, the manner by which the project was able to secure and galvanize government support for the Sustainable Maintenance Fund (which would ensure continued funding for operation and maintenance costs for small

5

irrigation works and feeder roads), as well as community support serves as a viable model which could be replicated for ongoing and future ADB projects. 17. Attachment (viii) shows the ADB Today Announcements for January to June 2008, Attachment (ix) is a copy of a newspaper supplement that was released in Sri Lanka to publicize the launch of JFPR 9116-SRI: Improvement of Rural Access Roads and Livelihoods Development for the Poor, while Attachment (x) shows a compilation of photos representing some key events and activities from that period.

6 Attachment (i)

GOJ Contributions for JFPR

Date of Contribution Local Currency (Yen) US Dollar

24-May-00 10,000,000,000.00 92,648,353.18 22-Mar-02 7,900,000,000.00 61,065,161.94 08-Mar-02 11,643,300,000.00 90,000,000.00 24-Mar-03 7,080,000,000.00 59,850,374.06 30-Mar-04 2,584,692,000.00 23,307,561.21 17-Mar-05 1,876,820,000.00 18,012,572.58 24-Mar-06 1,824,350,000.00 15,479,614.78

Total 42,909,162,000.00 360,363,637.75

Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction

GOJ and ADB Grant Approvals - January to June 2008

Attachm

ent (ii) 7

Grant

No. DMC Name Grant

($mn) Grant Type

Project Officer Division GOJ Approval

ADB Approval

Sector

1 9122 FSM Weno Water Supply Well Remediation

0.98 P Stephen Blaik PAHQ 20-May-08 Water Supply, Sanitation and Waste Management

2 9117 LAO Alternative Livelihood for Upland Ethnic Groups in Houaphanh Province

1.82 P Sisavanh Phanouvong

LRM 02-Nov-07 13-Feb-08 Multisector

3 9121 MON Community-Based Local Road Upgrading and Maintenance in the Western Region of Mongolia

2.00 P Lakshman Athukorala

EATC 20-May-08 Transport and Communication

4 9118 PHI Developing Microinsurance 1.00 CB Eiichi Sasaki SEGF 08-Jan-08 15-Feb-08 Finance 5 9116 SRI Improvement of Rural

Access Roads and Livelihood Development for the Poor

2.00 P K. M. Tilakaratne SLRM 02-Nov-07 21-Jan-08 Multisector

6 9123 VIE Demand Driven Skills Training for Poverty Reduction in the Cuu Long (Mekong) River Delta

1.30 P Yasushi Hirosato SESS 20-May-08 Education

7 9120 VIE Livelihood Improvement of Vulnerable Ethnic Minority Communities Affected by Hydropower Projects in Vu Gia River Basin, Quang Nam Province, Viet Nam

2.50 P Pradeep Perera SEID 11-Apr-07 26-Jun-08 Health, Nutrition, and Social Protection

8 9119 VIE Community-Based Early Childhood Care and Development

1.90 P Barbara Lochmann SESS 07-Sep-07 19-Feb-08 Health, Nutrition and Social Protection

9 MON Poverty Reduction through Community-Based Natural Resource Management in the Onon River Basin

2.00 P Christopher Edmonds

EAAE 08-Jan-08 Agriculture and Natural Resources

10 MON Water Point Establishment and Extension Stations for Poor Herding Families

2.00 P Christopher Edmonds

EAAE 08-Jan-08 Water Supply, Sanitation and Waste Management

Legend: Approved by GOJ from Jan-Jun 2008 Total ADB Approvals from Jan-Jun 2008 $9.22m Total GOJ Approvals from Jan-Jun 2008 $9.28m

CB = Capacity Building P= Project

8 Attachment (iii)

Statement 1ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK

ADMINISTRATOR FOR JAPAN FUND FOR POVERTY REDUCTION (JFPR)FROM THE GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN

STATUS OF GRANTAs of 30 June 2008

(Amounts in US dollar)

TOTAL CONTRIBUTION 360,363,637.75 a/

INCOME FROM INVESTMENTS 65,764,298.89

INTEREST EARNED ON BANK ACCOUNT 418,177.69OTHER INCOME/(LOSSES) (25,882.99)

TOTAL AMOUNT AVAILABLE 426,520,231.34EXPENSES Project Expenditures (130,806,320.24) Administrative Expenses Salaries & Benefits (330,000.00) Staff Consultants (1,859,056.81) Business Travel (1,120,303.48) Other Contractual Services (38,408.45) Special Activity - Workshop (8,562.50) Other Administrative Expenses (8,205.29) External Auditor's Fiscal Services (8,000.00) Representation - Headquarters (81.81) (3,372,618.34) Financial expenses (6,011.74) (134,184,950.32)

CONTRIBUTIONS AND REVENUE IN EXCESS OF EXPENSES 292,335,281.02

TRANSLATION ADJUSTMENTS (504,714.19)

NET ASSETS AFTER TRANSLATION ADJUSTMENTS 291,830,566.83 b/

Less: Outstanding Commitments (130,714,661.00) UNCOMMITTED BALANCE 161,115,905.83

Less: TAs Approved But Not Yet Effective

9119/VIE: Community-Based Early Childhood Care and Development (1,900,000.00)9120/VIE: Livelihood Improvement of Vulnerable Ethnic Minority Communities (2,000,000.00) (3,900,000.00) UNCOMMITTED BALANCE AVAILABLE FOR NEW COMMITMENTS 157,215,905.83

a/ Represents the US dollar equivalent of contributions committed.b/ Represented by: Cash in bank 4,645,866.00 Investments 278,769,430.87 Accrued interest 540,721.25 Advances 7,978,156.46 Interfund receivable 41.85

291,934,216.43 Less: Interfund payable 74,937.08 Accrued expenses 28,712.52 103,649.60

291,830,566.83

Attachment (iv) 9

10 Attachment (iv)

Attachment (iv) 11

12 Attachment (iv)

Attachment (v) 13

Report on Actions Taken in Response to SES Recommendations

Recommendation Management Response Actions JFPR JFPR systems should be moved closer to ADB’s core business practices.

We agree in principle with the recommendation and a number of changes have already been proposed for incorporation in the 2008 JFPR Guidelines. However, we note that JFPR is a specialized grant fund which is designed to pilot innovative poverty reduction approaches and therefore some differentiation may be inevitable and justified.

1. OCO added Concept Clearance to the processing stages of JFPR proposals to align it with ADB’s procedure for other Non-Lending operations. The Concept Clearance template was modified by SPD with inputs from OCO to ensure its applicability to JFPR.

2. The Design and Monitoring Framework

which is a requirement of ADB, as part of its quality assurance framework was added as a requirement for JFPR proposals.

3. The Initial Poverty and Social Assessment

(IPSA) was required as an attachment ot the Concept Paper. The Summary Poverty Reduction and Social Strategy (SPRSS) paper was required as an attachment to the grant proposal during interdepartmental circulation, and as an attachment to the Board Paper. Again, this was to align JFPR with ADB’s requirements.

4. OCO, together with COSO and OIST,

embarked on the development of an online Project Performance Reporting (PPR) system that would put JFPR reporting in line with that for loans. A

14 Attachment (v)

Recommendation Management Response Actions template was developed that would capture GOJ’s reporting requirements for JFPR, while also capturing additional information required by ADB for portfolio management. The system would be completed by September 2008.

Grant size restrictions should be reviewed—while the grants should remain of modest size, the possibility of increasing the maximum grant to $3 million, or even $5 million, with adequate justification, should be considered.

In principle, we agree with the recommendation to increase the maximum size allowable of the JFPR grants provided that the grants will continue to target the poorest and most vulnerable groups. However, considering the pilot-testing nature of JFPR, it should be carefully considered and discussed with the GOJ.

Preliminary discussions were conducted by the JFPR Coordinator with MOF during the first semester of 2008. The response from GOJ however was to maintain the status quo and “proceed with the same principle.”

OCO’s staffing resources should be increased to allow greater input in design, and more frequent monitoring in the field. Closer links with RSDD should be sought.

We agree with the SES recommendation. However, the issue of OCO’s staffing resources for greater involvement in project design and portfolio monitoring has to be reviewed at an ADB-wide level, taking into account the current staff requirements for JFPR. We also note that RSDD participates in reviewing the design of JFPR projects through peer and interdepartmental reviews and at the staff review committee stage.

Actions concerning the recommendation on staffing are still under consideration. However, it is noted that project design reviews have become more stringent, and departments provide more substantive comments during interdepartmental circulation and SRC.

Given the innovative and pilot nature of JFPR projects and their potential for expansion, greater emphasis should be given to learning from JFPR projects and disseminating the findings.

We support the recommendation. We agree that it is desirable to have independent monitoring and evaluation of specific grants and/or TAs, and look forward to having them included in thematic or geographic clusters in OED's

OCO continued with the JFPR Series meetings to share lessons learned. One such meeting was held on 24 April 2008 on “Lessons from Sri Lanka: Rural Infrastructure Maintenance for Poverty Reduction.” The manuscript for “Partnerships for a

Attachment (v) 15

Recommendation Management Response Actions evaluation program. Sharing of lessons

learned from projects is already being done through dissemination meetings in-country as well as at headquarters. A publication series documenting successful JFPR projects will be launched in 2008.

Cleaner City” was completed (Printing would be completed by August 2008). This is the first in a series of publications highlighting project results and lessons learned and will be distributed to development partners as well as within ADB.

16 Attachment (vi)

Attachment (vi) 17

18 Attachment (vi)

Attachment (vi) 19

20 Attachment (vi)

Attachment (vi) 21

22 Attachment (vi)

Attachment (vi) 23

24 Attachment (vi)

Attachment (vii) 25

JFPR Series: Lessons from Sri Lanka - Infrastructure Maintenance to Reduce Rural Poverty

Remarks by Ursula Schaefer-Preuss Vice President, Knowledge Management and Sustainable Development Asian Development Bank 24 April 2008 ADB Headquarters, Mandaluyong City

Dear guests, Thank you. Good morning, everyone.

First of all, I thank you very much for the invitation. This is an excellent opportunity for me to get more detailed information on the work of JFPR on the ground in our partner countries and with the local communities. It is for me refreshing to open a meeting that is not about making new frameworks, plans, or strategies. It is refreshing because today we will talk about very concrete project outcomes, how to improve the lives of poor people.

It is not a large amount being involved ($900,000) compared to the "regular" projects being processed at ADB. But when viewed in terms of the lessons, the knowledge that we can draw and apply to other projects, this project in North Western Sri Lanka may give a big impact.

Allow me for a moment to bring your attention to the recently approved Long Term Strategic Framework (LTSF). The LTSF says that ADB needs to focus on inclusive growth -- fostering high, sustainable growth combined with broader access also for poor people living in small communities to the expanded economic opportunities. I quote: "The region must promote greater access to opportunities by expanding human capacities, especially for the disadvantaged, through investments in education, health, and basic social protection. It must also improve the poor's access to markets and basic productive assets by putting in place sound policies and institutions. Finally, social safety nets must be strengthened to prevent extreme deprivation."

It is a veritable inventory of projects that JFPR has been supporting over the years. Through physical investments it provides and social capital it creates within poor communities, and the lessons that it generates for broader engagement with the poor and disadvantaged, JFPR is indeed and very much at the heart of ADB's long-term strategy.

JFPR has been a valuable resource to ADB over the last eight years, and it will continue to be so in the foreseeable future. I would like to thank the Government of Japan on behalf of ADB's Senior Management for its strong commitment to assist the region's poorest and most vulnerable in the framework of this important facility. Not only does it help the poor, it also teaches us how to help the poor better. It encourages our staff to innovate; to try new approaches, create new knowledge, to learn.

Again, I wish to thank Alternate Executive Director Mr. Mizuno and the Japanese Government for this valuable assistance. I congratulate the Office of Cofinancing Operations, the South Asia Regional Department, and the Sri Lanka Resident Mission for this joint initiative.

Thank you.

Story from ADB: http://www.adb.org/documents/speeches/2008/ms2008024.asp

© 2005 Asian Development Bank

26 Attachment (viii)

2008

Wednesday, 4 June 2008 ADB grant for renewable energy projects in Negros Occidental A P7.4 million 32 kW micro-hydropower plant in sitios Vergara and Magtuod was recently commissioned from a $1.5 million JFPR grant. Another 32 kW hydropower plant costing P7.6 million was launched in Sitio Balea. RENEW Negros is a poverty reduction project supporting renewable energy and livelihood development. Read more. Rita Festin, 1006

Friday, 2 May 2008 JFPR: 2008 Second quarterly submission deadline is Monday, 2 June Send grant proposals and seed money applications to PD, OCO, through your Director. Ensure staff review committee clearance and coordination with the local Japanese Embassy. Check out guidelines and templates in the cofinancing section of the ADB portal. Megumi Araki, 6147 (cofinancing section should link to http://cofinancing.asiandevbank.org/)

Friday, 25 April 2008

VP Schaefer-Preuss lauds JFPR In her opening message at the knowledge sharing session on a rural infrastructure maintenance project in Sri Lanka, the VP thanked the Government of Japan for its commitment to assisting the region's poorest through

the JFPR, and congratulated project officers and staff. SARD led by DG Kunio Senga presented experiences and lessons learned. Megumi Araki, 6147

Monday, 21 April 2008 JFPR series: Lessons from Sri Lanka - Infrastructure maintenance to reduce rural poverty Thursday, 10:00, 7217/7218 Listen to how farmers and villagers in northwest Sri Lanka operate community irrigation facilities and fix roads. VP Schaefer-Preuss will give opening remarks. Preregister with Ammie Mistades. See flyer. Megumi Araki, 6147 Monday, 14 April 2008 New guidelines for JSF and JFPR ADB and the Government of Japan have agreed on policy guidelines, operating procedures, and allocations for JSF and JFPR in 2008. JSF has an allocation of $60 million, while JFPR has an allocation of $50 million. Read memos for JSF and JFPR. Download the guidelines from ADB portal's cofinancing tab. Megumi Araki, 6147 Thursday, 10 April 2008

LRM: ADB and Lao PDR sign $2.37 million project on developing private sector and SME and improving alternative livelihood CD Gil-Hong Kim, Vice Minister of Finance Viengthong Siphandon, and representatives of implementing agencies yesterday signed 2 TA agreements. Ambassador of Japan Masaaki Miyashita and senior government officials attended. Read CD's speech. Christopher Hnanguie, 5544

Attachment (viii) 27

2008

Thursday, 3 April 2008 AFRM: Inauguration of ADB-funded North-South Corridor Project

AFRM's CD Craig Steffensen, Mark Prebich, and Gul Ahmed Kamali joined Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Cabinet at a ribbon cutting ceremony in Mazar-i-Sharif City yesterday. The project amounts to $138 million, with $118 million provided by ADB and $20 million from the Government of Japan. Read news release. Khalilullah Hamid, 5535

Tuesday, 18 March 2008 JFPR grant signed for Philippine microinsurance against calamities

Finance Secretary Margarito Teves and Kohei Noda of the Japanese Embassy in Manila signed the agreement. SAGF Director Jaseem Ahmed represented ADB at the signing of the $1 million grant to develop microinsurance, a microfinance service to protect the poor from calamities, and reduce poverty in the country. See news

release. Eiichi Sasaki, 6337

Thursday, 13 March 2008 JFPR: Budget and administrative arrangements for business travel and staff consultants Staff are reminded to get OCO's endorsement prior to undertaking business travel and hiring consultants for JFPR projects and to indicate resource requirements at the ADB-wide budget exercise. See June 2004 memo also available in Cofinancing site. Megumi Araki, 6147

Thursday, 28 February 2008 JFPR: 2008 First quarterly submission deadline on Monday, 3 March Send grant proposals and seed money applications to PD, OCO, through your Director. Ensure staff review committee clearance and coordination with the local Japanese Embassy. Check out the guidelines and templates in the cofinancing section of the ADB portal. Megumi

Araki, 6147 Monday, 4 February 2008 CARM: ADB and Cambodia sign JFPR grant to build community capacity in Tonle Sap Basin

CD Arjun Goswami and Senior Minister Tao Seng Huor, Vice-Chairman, Council for Agricultural and Rural Development, signed a $1.5 million agreement to build community capacity in undertaking poverty reduction initiatives in the Tonle Sap Basin. Sopheap Sao, 5509

Monday, 7 January 2008 Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction and Japan Fund for Information and Communication Technology - Grant status reports JFPR and JFICT GSRs for July to December 2007 are due on 31 January. Download the template and send both the completed Word file and the signed GSR to OCO. Megumi Araki,

6147

28 Attachment (ix)

Attachment (x) 29

Photo-Documentation of Some Key JFPR Events January – June 2008

31 January 2008

CARM: ADB and Cambodia signed JFPR grant for building community capacity in the Tonle Sap Basin CD Arjun Goswami and Senior Minister Tao Seng Huor, Vice-Chairman of the Council for Agricultural and Rural Development, signed a $1.5 million agreement for a JFPR-financed project (JFPR 914-CAM) that aims to raise community capacity for undertaking poverty reduction initiatives in Cambodia's Tonle Sap Basin.

30 Attachment (x)

4 to 8 February 2008 JFPR Consultant’s (Ronaldo J. Oblepias) Review Mission to Lao (JFPR 9062-LAO: Sustainable Agroforestry Systems for Livelihood Enhancement of Rural Poor)

The project provides good visibility for Japan and ADB, among others, by way of the project logo which prominently shows the Japanese flag and the ADB logo alongside the implementing NGO’s logo. They display the logo on the project office, vehicles, the trading post (pictured) which is being constructed under the project. It is also stenciled on the uniform of project staff.

The trading post will be one of several which will be built under the project. It is located at the side of the Route 3 which connects China to Thailand via Lao PDR. The trading posts will be used by ethnic minorities to sell produce, as well as crafts to people, including tourists, who will be using the highway.

Attachment (x) 31

The mission meets with ethnic minority leaders from different villages to find out how well they understood the project and seek their views on the project’s progress and suggestions on how it could be improved.

Photo shows ADB Water Resources Management Specialist Kenichi Adachi with project staff and consultant as they survey the vicinity of a site where a small irrigation dam is being proposed to be constructed.

32 Attachment (x)

17 March 2008

JFPR 9118-PHI Grant signed for Philippine microinsurance against calamities Signing for the Philippine Government was Finance Secretary Margarito Teves while Mr. Kohei Noda, Financial Attache at the Japanese embassy in Manila, represented the Government of Japan. Mr. Jaseem Ahmed, Director, Governance, Finance, and Trade Division, Southeast Asia Department, represented ADB at the signing ceremony of the US$1,000,000 grant project to support the sound development of microinsurance, a microfinance service to protect the poor from unforeseen calamities and reduce poverty in the country. 2 April 2008

AFRM CD Craig Steffensen, Mark Prebich, and Gul Ahmed Kamali joined Afghan President H.E. Hamid Karzai and his entire Cabinet on a visit to Mazar-i-Sharif city, to participate in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the JFPR-funded North-South Corridor Project (JFPR 9097-AFG). The project’s financing totals $138 million ($118 million from ADB - $78 million loan and $40 million grant - and $20 million grant from the government of Japan).The section of the North-South corridor covers 140 kilometers.

Attachment (x) 33

3- 4 April Mission of ED Masaki Omura and JFPR Coordinator Megumi Araki to Malitbog, Bukidnon

Japanese ED Omura and JFPR Coordinator Araki pose with regional officers of the Department of Agriculture and with local government officials.

The mission poses in front of the village hall with recipients of livelihood and training assistance from JFPR 9001-PHI: Supporting the Sustainable Livelihood for the Poor in Southern Philippines. Below, the pose on a grazing field overlooking pockets of land where they grow bananas.

34 Attachment (x)

10 April 2008

LRM: ADB and Lao Government sign 2 projects totaling $2.37million for Private Sector/SME Development and Alternative Livelihood Improvement (JFPR 9117-LAO) In the photo are CD Gil-Hong Kim, Vice Minister of Finance Mme Viengthong Siphandon and representatives of implementing agencies.

Attachment (x) 35

25 April 2008 JFPR Series Meeting "Lessons from Sri Lanka: Rural Infrastructure Maintenance for Poverty Reduction"

Vice President Ursula Schaefer-Preuss gives her remarks at the start of the dissemination meeting on JFPR 9025-SRI. With her at the presidential table are, from left, JFPR Coordinator Megumi Araki, OCO Principal Director Werner Liepach, SARD Director General Kunio Senga, and Project Officer Sanath Ranawana. The tarpaulins showing the banner on the right were displayed at the ADB front lobby and at the venue on the morning of the JFPR Series meeting.

36 Attachment (x)

JFPR Coordinator Araki shows the audience the souvenir that was given to him by the community when he visited the project in 2007 as a token of appreciation for the assistance that they received from JFPR.