Evaluation of Beneficiaries' Participation in a Development Project: A Study of Taraba State, Nigeria
Authors: U. C. Undiandeye; Peter I. Vosanka
Year: 2012

The Fadama II Project Pilot Asset Acquisition Support (PAAS) Component was one of the predominant project activities implemented in Taraba State, Nigeria. The study evaluated the participation of beneficiaries in the PAAS component in the participating LGAs. Primary data were collected using an interview schedule from 183 respondents. These were selected through a multistage sampling technique. The data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. It was found that 51 per cent to 91 per cent of the respondents were between 20 to 29 years of age. About 61.2 per cent was males and 66.7 per cent was married About 31.7 per cent had secondary education and 84. 7 per cent opined that the assets ownership was by their groups. Also, the major sub-projects implemented as respondents ' economic activities indicated that grinding/milling machines, pick-up vans and cooling facilities were implemented by 19.68 per cent, 19.68 per cent and 16.08 per cent of the FRUGs respectively. The results also show that incomes of the respondents who participated in the PAAS component of the Fadama II project increased by 36 per cent. Further, analysis of the Chi-square results shows that a significant relationship existed between the respondents ' participation and effect, such as income, expenditure on family welfare and assets/equipment. The study recommended that PAAS component of the Fadama 11 project be sustainably implemented in all LGAs of the country. The beneficiaries should also be adequately trained to manage the enterprises with a view to alleviating poverty in their families . 1.0 Introduction The National Fadama Development Project (NFDP) is one of the numerous agricultural development projects being implemented in Nigeria. It is a development intervention to enhance food security with the overall purpose of reducing poverty among Fadama farm families in Nigeria (ldoghe and Ovwigho 2003). The first phase of the project (Fadama I) was initiated and implemented between 1992-1998, to address some of the factors that militated against the full realisation of the potential benefits of agricultural production activities in rural areas. Some of these were poor development of rural infrastructure and low investment in irrigation technologies. Studies have shown that the Fadama I project achieved success in facilitating food production, access to production inputs, increased incomes, improved welfare and enhanced living standard of the participating farmers (Abdullahi et al. 2006 and Akinleye et al. 2006). In spite of the success recorded under the Fadama I, lapses such as neglect of downstream activities (processing and preservation) and lack of involvement of stakeholders (Donors, NGOs, beneficiaries) were observed (Federal Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development FMARD, 2003 and Akinleye et al. 2006). This resulted in restricted benefits to only those accruing from crop production. • Department of Agricultural and Extension Services, University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri, Bomo State, Nigeria. E-mail: ucjundiandeye@yahoo.com 79 Undiandeye and Vosanka In order to overcome these constraints, the second phase of the project, Fadama II, came on stream. According to Jibowo (2005), the project is jointly sponsored by the World Bank, the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN), some states and Local Government Areas (LGAs). The project is a major instrument for achieving the government poverty reduction objectives: the main objective of which is to sustainably increase the incomes of Fadama users through expansion of farm and non-farm activities with high value added output (FMARD 2003). To facilitate the achievement of the Fadama II project objectives, five components, namely: (I) Capacity Building; (2) Infrastructure; (3) Advisory Services; (4) Project Management; and (5) Pilot Asset Acquisition Support (PAAS) have been entrenched. The col'bponents centred basically on the welfare and income of rural people (Akinleye et al. 2006). Among these components, the one that is likely to promote the investment habits of rural agrarian communities is the PAAS component. The components major focus is to make grants accessible to beneficiaries in order to acquire productive assets, such as tools, equipment and machines for income generation. This is based on the assumption that the lack of productive assets for poor Fadama resource users is one of the principal constraints to economic development (Project Implementation Manual, PIM, 2003). The FMARD (2003) stressed further that the PAAS component will finance matching grants for the purchase of tools and equipment (such as honey collection equipment; Petrol driven motor pumps, watering cans, cattle husbandry equipment and fishing nets). Only groups will be eligible for the matching grants. They will be required to mobilise financing to pay the 70-75 per cent of the cost of the assets. The beneficiaries who are expected to be among the poorest and the most disadvantage members of the community will be identified by the Fadama Community Associations (FCAs) through an open, transparent and accountable process. The project will then empower them with the resources and the needed training and technical support to properly manage and control these rural econonuc enterprises, established on a sustainable manner for their own development. 2.0 Statement of the Problem Taraba is among the 36 states in Nigeria that participated in the Fadama II project under the sponsorship of the World Bank. An implementation report showing the list of the Fadama II sub-projects indicates that the PAAS is one of the predominant and major project activities executed in the ten LGAs that participated in the project. The beneficiaries were empowered to acquire productive assets, such as irrigation facilities and cooling facilities . This is aimed to establish and operate rural economic enterprises that could enhance their agricultural production activities. These enterprises were supposed to generate income on a sustainable basis to the beneficiaries and to improve their welfare and overall living standard. Much efforts were made by the State Fadama Development Office, SFDO (2007) to sensitise and mobilise the populace at the initial stage of the implementation of the