Announcement of the World Bank's Support for an Agricultural Extension Program in Madagascar on May 23, 1995

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The World Bank 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA News Release No. 95/69/AFR Contacts: Eric Chinje (202) 473-4467 (Internet: Echinje@worldbank.org.) Sheela Reddi (202) 473-5091 SUPPORT FOR AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION PROGRAM IN MADAGASCAR The following is information on a project approved by the World Bank's Board. DATE: May 23, 1995 WORLD BANK GROUP SUPPORT: International Development Association (IDA)' credit: SDR 16.2 million (US$25.2 million equivalent). The IDA credit is for 40 years, including 10 years of grace; it carries no interest but has an annual charge of 0.75 percent on the disbursed balance and a variable charge of up to 0.5 percent (currently zero percent) on the undisbursed balance. TOTAL COST: US$36.6 million OTHER PROPOSED FINANCING: Government of Madagascar, US$11.5 million IMPLEMENTING AGENCY: Ministry of Rural Development and Land Reform ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE: December 31, 2000 PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The main objectives of the Agricultural Extension Program Support Project are to increase productivity and farmers' incomes in an environmentally sustainable manner and to rationalize the use of public resources in support of agricultural services. The project will fund actions in support of agricultural extension which is central to the Government's strategy to * reduce poverty and improve the conditions of life in the rural areas; * improve agricultural productivity; * protect the environment by making professional agricultural services available to all levels of the farming community; and * improve the use of scarce public resources. Archives/Records Center, H B1-001 ( 1) 1 IDA (the World Bank's concessionary lending affiliate) credits are denominated in SDRs (Special Drawing Rights), which are valued on the basis of a "basket" of currencies. The US dollar equivalent of the SDR of the IDA credit reflects the exchange rates at the time of the negotiations of the credit.