Ex-post Evaluation

1-1 Background of the Project

The Dominican Government and the Government of Japan initiated the Pepper Crop Development Project in 1987, which lasted 10 years. The generation of technologies for the crop of pepper in mountainous zones and the transferences of technologies adapted to the local conditions were achieved. Besides, systems of farm administration using the pepper and other cultures were developed.

Taking into consideration the results reached in the previous Project, the  “Proyecto de Desarrollo Agrícola en Areas de Montañas” (PRODEAM) or Project of Agricultural Development in Mountain Areas initiated in September 1997, with a duration of 5 years and with the intention of establishing systems of farms administration that include pepper cultivation to raise the living standards of small producers in mountainous areas.

1-2 Project Overview

In order to improve economic conditions of small-scale farmers in sloped terrains, the Project (1) developed a farm management system for pepper cultivation and demonstrated farming techniques, (2) organized the farmers` association and established a commercial sales system and (3) improved the training system to extend the techniques to the farmers.

(1) Overall Goal

To improve the living standards of the small farmers in the mountain areas.

(2) Project Purpose

To improve the economy of the small farmers in the areas of execution of the project (Yamasa, Tojín de Cotuí and La Majagua).

(3) Outputs

- Improvement of the agricultural system, including pepper cultivation, and increase of agricultural production.

- Farmers' associations will be organized and systems of marketing for pepper and other crops will be established and managed by the above mentioned associations.

- Improvement in the system of extension and capacity building.

(4) Inputs

Japanese Side:

Dominican Side:

3-1 Summary of Evaluation Results

(1) Impact

The project has kept a positive balance in regards to the top goal. 60% of 649 small-scale producers evaluated showed a significant increase in their incomes and an improvement in their quality of life due to the integration of pepper crop technologies in the management of their plots. In this regard, it is worth highlighting that 70% of the 96 interviewed producers said they felt high levels of satisfaction with the current conditions of their houses. (See table 8)

The social impact of the project is reflected in the operability of the producers' cooperative societies, which have managed to become economically and socially empowered organizations. The distribution of incomes and benefits among the members are done in an equitable way according to each one's level of production.

The main impact highlighted by the small producers refers to the increase of their incomes due to the sale of pepper. The average monthly income of the producers in the three sub-zones of the project was estimated at RD$ 7,204.00. This impact is even more relevant when considering the national economic context. During the same evaluated period, the Dominican Republic suffered due to an increasing recession characterized by a fall in economic activity, shortage of cash flow, fall of the GDP, a severe inflation of 27.45 % during 2003 and of 51.46 % in November, 2004.

The crop technologies have been integrated and validated by the producers in the three evaluated sub-zones models.

In 2002, the Project Directorate designed an action plan with the aim of guaranteeing the sustainability and the impact of PRODEAM after the completion of the Japanese cooperation. Considering the results of this plan as comparison parameters, we see that the projections made to achieve national self-sufficiency of pepper production by 2007 are still far below the expected levels. The results obtained during the period 2002-2004 are 50.5 % less than the expected goals of production according to the above mentioned action plan prepared in 2002.

During the evaluated period only 108 new producers were established and the total sowed area scarcely grew some 21 hectares, far behind the estimated 91 hectares for 2002.

However, the national production of pepper rose from 39.7 tons during 2002 up to 61.2 tons in 2004, the global contribution of the project to the national consumption increased in 7.2 % within this period, these values acquire major importance if we remember that by 1987 in the country there was not established a single pepper plantation. This increment came especially from plantations established before the completion of the Japanese cooperation in August 2002.

When evaluating the impact of the project after the year 2002, a widespread discomfort in the focal groups integrated by producers in the different sub-zones arose. All the groups highlighted that upon the termination of the Japanese cooperation, an unfortunate official management of the project took place in which activities, facilities, and equipment were practically abandoned. This situation created a dislocation of the established scheme of intervention and partly explains the low results of production obtained compared to the projected.

Nevertheless, current authorities showed the evaluation team clear intentions of bringing back the plan designed in 2002 in order to continue offering the assistance and the protection needed by the producers.

(2) Sustainability

The PRODEAM has kept active after the termination of the Japanese cooperation. The intervention of the project in the model zones, has resisted the difficulties related to the political and the economical instability during 2002-2004. The project has shown to be sustainable in the institutional, financial and technical aspects.

The sustainability of the project during this period is linked to the technical and institutional strengthening of the producers in the 3 sub-zone models during the Japanese cooperation. During the period 2002-2004, the cooperatives of producers have managed to obtain an increase of RD$ 9,907,788.37 through the marketing of pepper. These incomes have motivated new producers who are initiating their sowings following the project scheme.

The extension scheme supported by guide producers that transmit their experiences to new producers has facilitated the training and the extension of the sowed areas. However, this model of extension should have been complemented by the direct and permanent intervention of the technical personnel of the PRODEAM.

Another aspect that has promoted the sustainability of the project is tied to the diversification of the production in the plots of the small producers, which has guaranteed multiple income sources.

The three most important threats of the sustainability of the project are the following: a) fragility of the administration of the Dominican State, b) commercial approach of cooperatives neglecting the cooperation among producers for productive aspects, and c) The lack of a good integrated system of research-extension.

3-2 Factors that have promoted project

Issues promoting the impact of the project.

a) Existence of cooperatives and producers associations.

b) Work with farmers of small scale production to raise the social impact of the project and at the same time to provoke a high positive impact in the environment through reducing pressure on the forest.

Issues promoting the sustainability of the project

a) Official policies of research from Secretaria de Estado de Agricultura (SEA), Instituto Agrario Dominicano (IAD) and Instituto Dominicano de Investigaciones Agropecuarias y Forestales (IDIAF) on extension and diffusion to facilitate to producers the productive process and the marketing.

c) Official policy to support the national production through the articulation of negotiation spaces among importers and producers. An import regulation policy is needed to regulate the import in order to assure the sales of local production. The producers are small-scale farmers with very fragile economies and need certain support to secure the marketing of their product.

3-3 Factors that have inhibited project

Issues inhibiting the impact of the project.

a) New sowed areas are mainly incorporated due to direct actions of established producers and some producers that have become motivated in the 3 sub-zones, rather than initiatives from PRODEAM. The project also has a high administrative charge for the Instituto Agrario Dominicano (IAD) and Secretaria de Estado de Agricultura (SEA). During the period 2003-2004, evident changes in the official approach of the project were registered. Some of the specialized technicians who were directing the project were withdrawn and the direction of the project went to non-qualified personnel. Consequently, an extension plan of the sowed areas, which includes the promotion of the crop at national level, could not yet being developed.

Issues that inhibit the sustainability

a) The disarticulated policies between research and capacity building prevent the program from spreading and expanding successfully to other regions of the country, as well as the introduction and validation of other alternative crops. The consultant could not state an adequate link between the processes of research and capacity building to face the problems of the crop at farm level. Through the Instituto Dominicano de Investigaciones Agropecuarias y Forestales (IDIAF), at their facilities at Mata Larga and San Francisco de Macorís, follow up is given to the research process, but there is not a direct linkage with the capacity building program. Nevertheless, the researchers of IDIAF have established direct contact with the producers through the cooperatives societies and have even supported researches related to the marketing of the product.

3-4 Conclusion

Though the national production of pepper covers only 20 % of the demand, the project has not managed to extend the impact to other zones of the country, due to the fact that it has limited promotion and studies of technical and economic validation in other regions have not been made.

The impact of the project in the social aspect is reflected in the operability of the producers' cooperative societies, which have managed to become economically and socially empowered organizations. The distribution of the incomes and benefits of the cooperatives are distributed to the associates in an equitable form according to the level of production of each member. In fact, the sustainability of the project during the period 2002-2004 was linked to the technical and institutional strengthening received by the producers of the 3 sub-zones models during the Japanese cooperation.

The technologies of the crop of pepper have been integrated and validated by the producers of the three evaluated sub-zones models.

The principal impact highlighted by the small-scale producers is the increase of their incomes by the sale of pepper, especially in an economic context characterized by a strong recession.

The system of farm administration, which proposes the diversification of the production in the plots of the small-scale producers also promotes the sustainability since this system avoids monoculture and allows a better managing of the market, assuring multiple sources of revenue.

The main challenges for the sustainability of the project are the following:

a) The project needs to stabilize in order to overcome the fragility of the Dominican State administration when changes take place in the governing parties.

b) Prevent cooperative societies from losing their credibility due to exclusive dedication to marketing.

c) It has not been possible to articulate an effective system linking research with capacity building. Each institution is working separately from the other.

3-5. Recommendations

Recommendations for Impact

a) Strengthening the cooperative societies and orientating them towards production and not only to marketing will prevent the associates from feeling that cooperatives only replace the commercial intermediary and will support the complete productive process. This should be implemented by the Extension Department of the Secretary of State of Agriculture, the Directorate of PRODEAM, the Instituto de Desarrollo y Credito Cooperativo (IDECCOP) and the cooperative societies themselves.

b) In spite of the fact that pepper is not one of the crops protected by the country's international free trade negotiations, the producers of this item are smallholders with very fragile economies and need certain support from the state to assure them good marketing of their product. Because of this, the authorities of Secretaria de Estado de Agricultura (SEA) must support marketing that includes:

- Creation of negotiation spaces for the importers and the national producers that allows them to regulate the flow of imports to benefit local production

- Diversification of the format of presentation to add value to the final product and to obtain better prices

c) The expansion plan of the sowed area of pepper with the approach of farm administration systems has to be extended to other mountainous regions of the country. Secretaria de Estado de Agricultura (SEA), Instituto Agrario Dominicano and Instituto Dominicano (IAD) de Investigaciones Agropecuarias y Forestales (IDIAF) must realize technical and economical validation studies to guide a major process of promotion and sowing. Due to the threat represented by the diseases produced by soil fungi to the crop, the researches recommend to distribute the sowed area into small plots inside the same zone, in order to facilitate quarantine. This suggests that pepper's self-sufficiency national production needs to extend the sowed area integrating other new regions to the project.

d) The introduction of new crops with high profitability promoted by the project such as malagueta, cinnamon and other sweet spices must continue. This should be implemented by the Extension Department of the Secretary of State of Agriculture, the Directorate of PRODEAM, and the IDIAF.

Recommendations for Sustainability

a) The Direction of PRODEAM should bring back the initiative to create a national commission of pepper integrated by all the actors of the process to ensure that producers are also included at the strategic level. With this it is suggested that the governmental changes do not have such a direct effect in the development of the project. As new spaces of participation are created to allow the integration of producers and their organizations in the formulation of the strategies for the development and diffusion of the project, it will be possible to guarantee the sustainability of the actions.

b) Instituto Agrario Dominicano (IAD) and Secretaria de Estado de Agricultura (SEA) should set up specific action plans and budget allocations for the execution of the plans of the PRODEAM.

c) Articulate an operative linkage between research and capacity building to endorse that the project could promote itself to other regions of the country with success as well as the introduction and validation of other alternatives crops.

3-6 Lessons learnt

The lessons learnt by this evaluation are related to issues affecting the sustainability of the project.

Concretely, the weaknesses detected at PRODEAM in regards to the integration of producers to the processes of definition of strategies, in the elaboration of specific plans, and in the administrative control of the operations lead JICA to following lessons:

1. JICA must have to prepare an exit plan with enough time before ending its technical cooperation. This exit plan of JICA at the final stage of a long-term technical cooperation project has to assure:

1. The integration of the producers and their organizations to get the best levels of sustainability. In order to get this done inter-institutional agreements of participation must be established.
2. The integration of the producers in the mechanisms of administrative control to guarantee the adequate use of resources and enlarge the impact of the project.

2. JICA should promote inter-institutional agreements among the government and the organizations of the direct beneficiaries for the administrative management of the projects under execution.

Experiences that could be repeated in other projects:

a) Work with farmers of small scale of production to raise the social impact of the project and at the same time to provoke a high positive impact in the environment through reducing pressure on the forest.

b) Perform technological transfers with producers and technicians and promote transfers among equals (from producer to producer).

c) To strengthen the vision of an integral system for mountain agriculture, promote a farm administration system that avoids monoculture and facilitates the marketing of products.

Experiences that should not be repeated in other projects.

a) Disarticulation between the research and capacity building systems to improve the project’s productive practices.

b) To privilege an orientation towards the marketing in the producers' cooperative societies, neglecting the issues of cooperation and the productive aspects.