2017 Regional Annual Report
MESSAGE FROM REGIONAL MANAGER
I am proud to present the 2017 Annual Report of ICCO Cooperation South and Central Asia. 2017 has been a year of partnership and growth. The successful results of activities for the reporting year indicated that ICCO confidently continues its work aimed at implementing largescale innovative and strategic projects, maintaining reliable and efficient work in developing countries, supporting and empowering communities. In 2017, our regional strategy continued to focus on what needs to be done most to sustain inclusive growth at a high rate. In addition to ensuring people know about and stand up for their rights, we also work to empower people economically. We successfully supported private sector development and innovation, including climate-smart investments, greater financial inclusion through our partnership with Truvalu Enterprises, and strengthened governance at both local and national levels through collaboration with the public sector. Globally, as ICCO moves towards becoming more data informed and evidence-based, our region is constantly striving to benefit from expertise and lessons learned through our monitoring, evaluation, and learning initiatives across all programs. A team of over 91 people worked diligently to stretch ourselves beyond what we thought we could do. The year of 2017 became productive for our region in achievement of the performance indicators in implementation of projects, building our own and partner capacities, and ensuring resource mobilization for steady operations of all country offices in Bangladesh, Central Asia, India, Nepal, and Pakistan. Our assigned tasks cannot be performed without a strong and close-knit team of professionals and without the support of our partner network. We are proud of our successes so far and remain committed to our mission and core values. My team and I look forward to another year, as we set ourselves a new benchmark for growth and build our work to empower thousands more across South and Central Asia. Pepijn Trapman Regional Manager South & Central Asia ICCO Cooperation
HIGHLIGHTS OF 2017 € 4,580,135.07 SPENT ON DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
91
EMPLOYEES IN
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COUNTRY OFFICES
145
PARTNER ORGANISATIONS
330,011
PRIMARY STAKEHOLDERS REACHED
3,748
PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SUPPORTED
86,975
PEOPLE WITH IMPROVED INCOME STATUS
135,220
EMPOWERED WOMEN
726,737 HOUSEHOLDS IMPROVED FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION STATUS
21,144 HOUSEHOLD SUPPORTED WITHIN RECOVERY PROJECTS
4,381 FOOD PACKAGES DISTRIBUTED DURING ROHINGYA CRISIS
INDIA
EMPOWERING RURAL POPULATIONS BY CONNECTING THEM TO VIABLE AND SUSTAINABLE VALUE CHAINS AND ACTORS
NEPAL
WORKING TOWARDS IMPROVING THE LIVELIHOODS OF MARGINALIZED PEOPLE THROUGH FOOD SECURITY AND IMPROVED HEALTH
ICCO FOOTPRINT
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CENTRAL ASIA
PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES LEARNING ABOUT RIGHTS OF THEIR CHILDREN IN CENTRAL ASIA
BANGLADESH
PROVIDING HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FOR DISPLACED MYANMAR NATIONALS
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BANGLADESH SALT SOLUTION PROJECT
Salinization is a serious problem in Bangladesh, especially in the Southern delta, where people are vulnerable due to poverty and recurring floods. Poor farmers largely depend on small scale agriculture, but due to the increasing salinization of the soil, this is becoming harder and harder. In 2017, National Postcode Lottery awarded a new project “Salt Solution� to ICCO Cooperation (lead), Salt Farm Texel and CODEC on training 5,000 farmers from vulnerable coastal areas in Bangladesh on the techniques to grow salt tolerant crops.
IN THE NEXT FOUR YEARS, THIS WILL BE DONE THROUGH THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES:
1. Set up of a field station, to grow the selected crops in the local context and to test different techniques of irrigation, fertilization, etc. to develop best practices.
2. Training of initially 200-300 farmers who will apply the most successful methods. Their examples will be promoted among other farmers using video (mobile movies).
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3. Scaling up by training new trainers, who will teach the techniques to producer organizations and communities.
4. ICCO links the farmers to input suppliers (for seeds, fertilizers etc.) and provides micro credit for this.
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5. Lobby and advocacy towards the local government for more sustainable production & consumption and a better connection of small scale farmers to the market.
As a result, degraded land will be productive again. Yields will increase and food security and income of small scale farmers and their families improves.
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THEMATIC AREAS
FOOD SECURITY AND SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION OVERVIEW ICCO envisions a world in which poor and marginalized women, men and youth living in lower and middle income countries lead secure, sustainable, just and dignified lives, which we want to realize through focusing on the two interrelated principles of ‘Securing Sustainable Livelihoods’ and ‘Justice and Dignity for All’. Within this framework of the project we strive towards a world without hunger, where every person is food secure in an economic, social and ecologically sustainable way, based on resilient food systems and sustainable consumption. This forms the bases for reaching the Sustainable Development Goal 2 - Zero Hunger as well as the realization of the Right to Adequate Food for all. Our focus is on sustainable production of a variety of nutritious and safe food and nutritious diets. For this vibrant (local) food systems will be promoted, to secure availability of food at local level, income generation, access and proper utilization of food, especially for small-scale producers and Base-ofthe-Pyramid consumers.
LINK TO SDGS
REGIONAL (KEY) DATA •
1,897 households of subsistence and food insecure farmers reached in 2017
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379 households increased their food availability for a whole year
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379 households doubled their income
CASE STUDY – PROJECT MILIP IN NEPAL Mugu is one of the remotest districts in Far-Western Nepal and ranks 67 out of 75 nationally in HDI outcome (less than 0.4). The scattered settlements in Mugu are serviced by very limited health services and characterized by low rates of employment, migration, poor maternal health and child nutrition. ICCO and its co-implementing partner International Fellowship Nepal (INF) have been persistently working towards improving the livelihood of the marginalized people through integrated programs on food security and improved health in the 3 VDCs of Mugu’s Khatyad belt since 2007. Project MILIP (Mugu Integrated Livelihoods Project), funded by Kerk In Actie, was a continuation of this effort with the specific aim to increase the income generation opportunities of 22,161 HHs of Mugu so that they become economically independent thereby improving their food and nutrition status. MILIP was implemented between July 2014-July 2017 through the adoption of Group Action Process (GAP). The application of a combination of intervention strategies in close coordination with the target groups enabled ICCO and INF to improve food and nutrition security at community, household and individual level. By the end of 2017, 115 Self Help Groups (SHGs) had been formed in 4 VDCs of Mugu, of which 90% had the capacity to lead the SHGs on their own. Of a total 1897 HHs reached by the project, 20% had doubled their income with 57% of SHG members benefitting from different vocational trainings. 20% extended their food security to a whole year, 20% extended their food security to six months and 65% started consuming green vegetables as part of their staple diet. Maternal and child health also improved in the project period with 90% of pregnant women attending the health post for ANC check-ups, 30% of postnatal mothers attending the PHC for PNC checkups, 95% of deliveries were done in health posts and 30% reduction in home deliveries in cattle shed was achieved. MILIP –II has been extended by a further two years until 2019 and will support the SHGs’ entrepreneurship development for sustained livelihood opportunities.
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ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OVERVIEW We empower communities by connecting them to viable and sustainable value chains and actors. Equality throughout these value chains is the key to success. We therefore recognize the important role of local entrepreneurs as drivers of economic activities. We collaborate with larger private companies, rural advisory service providers, and financial institutions, in order to improve their service delivery to our target groups.
REGIONAL (KEY) DATA 3000 Households benefited
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Reduced firewood consumption by
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900 households led to savings of EUR 47730 92 % of the households adopted the technology Reduction in CO2 emissions was nearly 890 tonnes
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Reduced cooking time by approximately
ICCO’s strategic partner ICCo entered into a contract with Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE) and Oil India to implement a project on clean energy with focus on reducing carbon emissions. Through this partnership, the organizations introduced fuel efficient cookstoves with chimney in 3,000 HHs across 6 tea garden areas of Assam. These tea estate workers depend heavily on wood as their main source of fuel with an average household using around 300 kgs of firewood every month. The inefficient cooking practices thus expose the women and children to dangerous Green House Gases (GHG).The project converted traditional cookstoves in 3,000 HHs to fuel efficient cookstoves, reducing the community’s dependency on firewood and creating a smoke free environment for the families.
LINK TO SDGS
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CASE STUDY – CLEAN ENERGY IN INDIA
2 hours
The project also promoted entrepreneurship development among the unemployed youth in the community: a total of 20 clean energy entrepreneurs were identified and received training on the preparation, maintenance and use of these cook stoves. These individuals will act as service providers and do the job of refortification and minor repairs of breakages.
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RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS OVERVIEW To tackle the huge challenges of worldwide poverty, inequality, climate change and injustice, we need the private sector. This has also been acknowledged by the international community. ICCO’s main focus on moving towards responsible business is to strengthen the contribution of the private sector, creating value for society in the long term (do good)- with our program on Economic Empowerment/Inclusive Value Chains- and diminish negative impacts of private sector on society (do no harm) by respecting human rights throughout its entire value chain as an integral part of its business. ICCO aims to achieve positive transformation of existing power relations between governments, private sector and civil society actors in the countries we work in. Our rights-based approach strengthens this power transformation in favor of excluded or marginalized groups. We support people in claiming their rights that are included in national and international legislation and treaties. We support the strengthening of organizations in claiming their rights and we empower them to gain negotiating power vis a vis duty bearers, private sector and other civil society actors. In moving towards responsible business, we link pillar one of our MASP (Securing Sustainable Livelihoods) with pillar two (Justice and Dignity for All). In this program we both focus on the pathways of change contributing to sustainable and inclusive private sector and on respect for human rights, inclusive rule and regulations and civil justice. The other ICCO pathways of change, empowering small-scale producers and workers, achieving food and nutrition security and rights and prevention and transformation of conflicts and violence all directly or indirectly contribute to promoting inclusive business and addressing the root causes of injustice and marginalization.
LINK TO SDGS
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REGIONAL (KEY) DATA •
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Strengthening and increasing the capacity of the member-organizations of National Coalition of Parent Led Organizations in Tajikistan
360 parents of the Children With Disability (CWD) have learned about rights of their children through trainings and consultations
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35 families with CWD have received support for business
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120 women, single mothers of CWDs, received
short-term vocational courses and were supported in their employment •
80 parents were capacitated to write business plan and to start their business
CASE STUDY – INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY FOR ALL IN TAJIKISTAN In January 2016, FSDS initiated a 2-year project «Inclusive Сommunity for all’’ in Tajikistan with the goal to protect the rights of Children with Disability (CWD) in Tajikistan to have equitable and barrier-free access to all public services and opportunities. The project aims to empower local parents associations to advocate and claim the inclusive rights-based development for CwD and community on local and regional level. The project also promotes and supports
parents initiate income generating activities through business skill trainings and provision of micro grants. In addition, the project provides parents with opportunities to participate in vocational training and to develop or improve their skill for the further employment.
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EMERGENCY RESPONSE OVERVIEW Emergency relief is one of the four thematic areas of ICCO Cooperation and ICCO believes in immediate response to an emergency need. Thus, to reach the affected community in shortest possible time ICCO always partners up with a local organizations and makes purchases from local vendors to uplift local economy. During any emergency response, ICCO and Kerk In Actie jointly offer emergency aid.
LINK TO SDGS
ICCO also aims to address Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 13, and 17 through their approaches and activities.
REGIONAL (KEY) DATA Bangladesh Flood Response • •
2,300 households received food support 1,085 households received agriculture input support
CASE STUDY – ROHINGYA CRISIS RESPONSE IN BANGLADESH Bangladesh, one of the world’s poorest nations, has seen a massive influx of Rohingya people fleeing violence and persecution in Myanmar. Violence which began on 25 August 2017 triggered a massive and swift influx resulting in a critical humanitarian emergency. Over 647,000 new Rohingya arrivals are reported as of 07 January 2018, according to UNHCR field reports. The Rohingya population in Cox’s Bazar is highly vulnerable, many having experienced severe trauma, and are now living in extremely difficult conditions. The unprecedented volume of new arrivals have put immense strain on infrastructure, services and the host population, overwhelming existing response capacity. Most who have arrived came with very few possessions. They are now reliant on humanitarian assistance for food, and other life-saving needs. As an immediate humanitarian response to this issue, ICCO Cooperation provided food support and WASH kits to 4381 HHs and 2200 HHs respectively in collaboration with CCDB, WFP and Bangladesh Army. This immediate support was funded by Kerk in Actie (KiA) and the relief was distributed in October 2017 at three different distribution points. The food package included Lentils (4Kgs), Soybean Oil (2L), Sugar (1Kg), and Salt (5Kgs), and the WASH kit included Bucket (20lt.)- 1pc, Mug (2lt.)- 1pc, Bath soap- 1pc and Antiseptic liquid (500ml)- 1pc. Additionally, through the ‘Emergency Assistance to the Rohingya Community in Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh’ project, ICCO/ACT Alliance aims to further extend WASH support to the Rohingya communities by availing 35 latrines, 2220 WASH Kits ( (Bath soap, laundry soap, mug, bucket, tooth brush, tooth paste, 2 pair sandals, and umbrella). We also plan to conduct WASH awareness sessions for 2220 people to ensure we give training alongside assets.
Bangladesh Rohingya influx Response • •
4,381 households received food support 2,200 households received WASH support
Nepal Flood Response •
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600 households received food support
ICCO puts in much emphasis on psychosocial support and hygiene and our approach to psycho-social counselling is not to dive deep into an individual’s past personal experiences, but encourage them to be active and participate in positive social activities. We also want to encourage community participation (particularly host communities) for comprehensive protection initiatives, through structured communication with communities. For Rohingya crisis response in Cox’s Bazar, ICCO Cooperation partnered with CCDB (a local NGO), and will work in close collaboration
with UNICEF for Child Protection and hygiene. ICCO is partnering with Clowns Without Borders (CWB) to create a program where Clowns without Borders will give performances that focus on WASH messaging for hygiene promotion. CWB in collaboration with ICCO will arrange workshops and trainings for volunteers in child friendly spaces of local partner NGOs to ensure capacity
building. These programs will be carried out in both, the host community and the Rohingya camp. The project aims to ensure humanitarian support for the targeted displaced Myanmar nationals and as of planned will continue till October 2019.
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NEW PROJECTS
FOOD SECURITY PROJECT IN KYRGYZSTAN AND TAJIKISTAN In Kyrgyzstan, strategic partner of ICCO Cooperation, Fair and Sustainable Solutions, was awarded funding for ‘Sustaining Local Food System for a Healthy Diet’ project by Bread for the World. Being highly agrarian and post-Soviet transition countries, both Central Asian states, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, have experienced substantial changes in their food security over the past 25 years. Between 19912000, food availability, economic or even physical access to food was a critical issue. However, during 2010-12, both countries have managed to reduce food insecurity to a larger extent, thus shifting their food security concern from food availability and access to more nutritious food. The overall goal of the project is to support vulnerable groups to improve their nutrition status through advanced and diversified food production as well as improved food infrastructure.
increase knowledge on good nutrition and balanced diet at the household level.
FSDS, along with 3 local partners, will implement this project in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan between 2018-2020, with the aim to improve production and processing of nutritious and diversified food, and
The project will contribute to the Sustainable Development Goal 2 - Zero Hunger (End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture) as well as the National Programmes that address issues of food security, nutrition and potable water.
HAMRO COFFEE IN NEPAL ‘HAMRO COFFEE: Expanding Opportunities for Nepalese Coffee Farmers & Traders’ project is part of the larger ‘Support for Trade and Economic Capacity Building: Trade and Private Sector Development Programme’ launched by EU and the Government of Nepal in September 2014. Jointly envisioned by ICCO Cooperation, CEAPRED and NCPA, the two year HAMRO COFFEE project aims to increase income of smallholders through an improved market driven specialty coffee sector by focus on enhancing the quality and quantity of coffee cherries produced and upgrading primary processing to ensure quality of green beans, leading in the long term to increased demand of unique Nepalese specialty coffee in the domestic and international niche markets. The project aims to remove access barriers from ‘Bean to Cup’ and strengthen linkages across the coffee-value chain. 24
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT ALLIANCE IN INDIA AND BANGLADESH The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the ICCO Consortium are involved in a strategic partnership – Civic Engagement Alliance (CEA). The partnership aims to ensure that in and by this partnership, the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and the civil society at large, both in the ‘Global South’ as well as the overall global context, can contribute to reducing inequality and injustice in societies for fair economic, social and political development. Central in this partnership are the women as (productive) actors in their communities, as well as caretakers and consumers who have specific needs. This partnership is all about countering the worldwide tendency of limited and decreasing political space for CSOs. Strengthening the lobbying and advocacy capacity of CSOs is central in our
Theory of Change (ToC), as described in our application Convening and Convincing. The themes of our Theory of Change are closely related to the Multi Annual Strategic Plan (MASP) of the ICCO Cooperation with two main pillars: Justice and Dignity for All and Sustainable Livelihoods In this context, under the CEA program, four pathways of change have been identified: 1. Enabling environment for CSOs 2. Realizing the right to adequate food and nutrition 3. Small-producer empowerment and inclusive markets 4. Moving towards a sustainable private sector
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TRUVALU ENTERPRISES
WHAT IS TRUVALU.ENTERPRISES? Truvalu.enterprises is an impact-investment company from ICCO Group B.V. in the Netherlands in strong cooperation with Incluvest B.V. to work with pre-growth agri-SMEs in emerging markets, like Bangladesh and India. Through a tailor-made set of investments and business development services, these companies are grown to full business maturity to increase overall social impact. The unique co-entrepreneurship model will strive to improve economic viability of SMEs through technical assistance, training, and the use of financial services.
OUR OFFER •
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Tailor-made business development services, such as improving financial system, conversion to a LTD. Company, optimization of business operation, etc. The cost of these services will be jointly shared with the entrepreneur. Equity investment between
EUR 50,000 – 250,000. We take an investment stake between •
20-49%.
Minority ownership position and active shareholder involvement in the company, thereby contributing to a strong business development strategy.
CASE STUDY – PRE-INVESTMENT PHASE WITH NATURAL FIBRES IN BANGLADESH Natural Fibres, one of the leading manufacturers of coconut coir, an environmentally-friendly, strong and durable natural fiber, started its operation in Bangladesh in 2001. Once considered as a waste product, the coconut’s outer cover (coir fiber) is now a highly demanded export item because of its unique properties that make it well-suited for nautical, agricultural and industrial uses and as a substitute for jute in product lines such as geotextiles and landscaping. The corky substance between coir fibers in the outside layer of the husk of the coconut (coco pith) is emerging as an important input in horticultural production, increasing domestic and international export demand. The business’s primary product is coir felt mattresses, but they are now looking to expand their operation by moving into the production of coir pith, a product with huge demand in South Korea, Netherlands, Germany, and other European countries. Truvalu.enterprises has been working with the business for the last couple of months and is in an advanced stage of the pre-investment process. By engaging with Truvalu.entreprises, the business has been able to improve its financial management system by incorporating the feedback from our legal and financial due diligence reports. The SME assessment report also revealed important information that helped the entrepreneurs to better understand the gaps in their internal policies and the procedures that need to be followed to streamline their operations.
CROSS-CUTTING AREA: INCLUSION
LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND LINK TO SDGS
CASE STUDY – ACAP INCLUSION FRAMEWORK AND TOOLS ICCO Cooperation uses the ACAP (Accessibility, Communication, Attitude and Participation) Inclusion framework in its work to ensure that all of its projects ensure inclusion of marginalized groups and people with disability across all stages of the project.
ICCO’S APPROACH Gender mainstreaming and inclusion of marginalized communities are at the heart of ICCO’s global programming. The urgency for incorporating inclusion of persons with disabilities together with gender sensitivity came with the realization that, even amongst the most vulnerable communities, persons with disabilities faced multiple marginalization, primarily because they were not considered useful members for engagement by the very society they lived in. ICCO pictures “an inclusive society reducing the risks of conflict and empowering the poor”. The inclusion strategy of South and Central Asia adopts the core values and mission of our regional and country level Multi-Annual Strategic Plan and is continuously evolving towards contributing to organizational twin core principles of securing livelihoods and ensuring justice and dignity. The strategy effectively addresses the six domains of exclusion: ability, gender, age, caste/ ethnicity, economic status and geography.
The main idea behind ACAP as an innovative and revolutionary framework was to achieve “inclusion for all” within development activities, including DRR and emergency relief and response. ACAP was conceived to address complexity and diversity by proposing a simple, non-technical, easy to measure model to encourage all organizations to adopt inclusive approaches in development, disaster preparedness and emergency relief and response, while addressing angles that are usually missed in inclusion, such as attitude Inclusive development does not happen overnight. We hope that by trying the tools offered, other organizations will join us on the path towards inclusion, one step at a time, and will also discover the benefits of this approach..
Strategic Partners:
Member of the