Rural & Social Policy DPL II

closed

The Second Rural and Social Policy Grant (RSRC-2), which is part of a series of Development Policy Lending operations (DPL), will continue to support the Government of Niger in improving service delivery to the poor and in implementing reforms in public sector management to secure adequate financing in critical sectors of the economy. This RSRC-2 is a one-year budget support operation to be disbursed in two tranches. It will address policy and institutional bottlenecks in public sector management, as well as rural and human development, where it is closely linked to ongoing investment operations. Within a medium-term framework, and building on the previous budget support operation (RSRC-1) as well as ongoing projects in agriculture, education, health, and population (upcoming), this two tranche operation will continue focusing on overcoming policy constraints and institutional bottlenecks in: (i) public sector management; (ii) agricultural growth and rural development; and (iii) human development, including demographic growth and gender issues. The RSRCs have been built around a medium-term results framework which has identified the proposed reforms in the rural and human development areas, as well as subsequent steps to further support the growth agenda. This approach is aligned with the Government's strategy, reflected in the Second Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, which identifies agriculture as the engine of growth of the economy, in the short-and medium-term.