his decentralized evaluation was commissioned by the WFP Rwanda Country Office and covered the Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement Programme (LRP). The programme was funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). It was implemented from 2017 to 2019 in four districts (Huye, Gisagara, Nyaruguru and Nyamagabe). The objective of the LRP project was to strengthen farmer cooperatives to promote increased use of locally purchased food.
This endline evaluation followed a baseline assessment conducted in November 2017. The endline data was collected in June 2019. The evaluation served the dual objectives of accountability and learning. It was designed to assess the programme’s relevance, effectiveness and efficiency.
Key recommendations from the evaluation included:
- WFP to prepare a short learning document on LRP’s implementation and results for dissemination and organize a Farm to Market Alliance global evaluation in Rwanda.
- WFP to work with Rwanda Rural Rehabilitation Initiative to prioritize cooperative capacity building activities.
- WFP to continue working with ICCO Terrafina Microfinance to strengthen the access to the finance component of the project.
- WFP to liaise with relevant stakeholders to integrate a climate smart approach.
- WFP to conduct a precise assessment of the different marketing options for small holder farmers.
- WFP to continue to liaise with value chain actors and relevant ministries to continue to strengthen and formalize the maize value chain dialogue platform.
