A study by state think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) shows that the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) Rural Agro-enterprise Partnership for Inclusive Development (RAPID) Growth Project would make significant strides in implementing a matching grant scheme, facilitating private sector participation and capacitating and empowering farmer organizations (FOs) toward rural development.
The study, however, also highlighted areas for improvement amid its challenges.
PIDS senior research fellow Roehlano Briones, lead author of the study titled “Rural Agro-enterprise Partnership for Inclusive Development (RAPID) Growth Project Baseline Survey” said in a recent public webinar that expediting project completion, reconsidering specific components and providing enhanced technical assistance to farmer organizations could optimize the project’s impact.
The RAPID Growth project, launched in 2019, is a multimillion-dollar initiative funded in part by the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
It aims to combat poverty in targeted regions of the Philippines by supporting and strengthening rural enterprises for key agricultural commodities such as coffee, cacao, processed fruits and nuts and coconut. The project aims to create a sustainable foundation for growth by combining direct assistance to enterprises, improving the business environment, and building capacity in the rural sector.
The PIDS, in partnership with DTI, conducted a baseline survey from 2020 to 2021 to measure the project’s impact.
The survey involved over 1,600 households, with half being project beneficiaries and the other half serving as a comparison group.
The data collected provided valuable information on the project’s target population, including socioeconomic characteristics, employment status, household income, enterprise sales, and access to farm-to-market roads.
Briones highlighted the project’s unique matching grant approach during the webinar.
He said that unlike some projects with lenient requirements, the RAPID Growth Project requires cooperatives and FOs to make a significant deposit as part of their contribution.
“This component requires a significant cash counterpart from enterprises, but the DTI helps cooperatives by facilitating loans from rural banks or Landbank,” he said.
The project delegates procurement and construction responsibilities to FOs, empowering them and enhancing their ability to manage economic activities.
This approach helps ensure that the specific needs of enterprises are met. It also involves building infrastructure like farm-to-market roads, improving the business climate, and enhancing value chains through technology upgrades.
Briones said the project provides capacity building through tailored training programs, complementing its focus on empowerment.
He also highlighted the project’s innovative use of private sector involvement, leveraging established companies and business development service providers for support.
Briones also identified areas for improvement such as the slow completion of detailed investment plans (DIPs).