WORLD BANK IMPRESSED WITH TRALARD PERFORMANCE IN MUCHINGA

By SIMON MUNTEMBA

THE implementation of the Transforming Landscapes for Resilience and Development (TRALARD) Project in Muchinga Province has impressed the World Bank Group.

The World Bank Mission Task Team Leader, Ngao Mubanga said the TRALARD project was one of the best performing projects in Zambia as it had satisfactory rate in all its risk rating.

Speaking after visiting some TRALARD supported projects in Chama, Mafinga and Isoka Districts, Ms. Mubanga expressed the Bank’s satisfaction with what they found on the ground and the effective manner in which the project was being implemented.

She stated that the Mission Task Team was happy that the project’s desired objectives were being realized.

Ms. Mubanga said this when her team paid a courtesy call on the Muchinga Deputy Permanent Secretary (DPS) Reverend Mathews Chilekwa at the Provincial Administration Office in Chinsali.

“I must mention that from the bank’s side, this project (TRALARD) is one of the best performing projects in the sense that it has a satisfactory rate in all its risk ratings.  So, for us we want to continue looking at it as an example because it is not just about the investments from the World Bank, but ensuring that what is being learnt from this project is transferred to other activities.

So there is a lot of learning from there. The standards that are set on this projects are also adopted on other programmes, and for us that is very encouraging, “Ms Mubanga said.

She said the team was particularly happy with social and economic resilience seen in the project’s implementing districts as they were supporting the World Bank Group’s vision of ending poverty and shared prosperity.

“This project looks at trying to build the climate, social and economic resilience, and in all the sites that we have visited in Muchinga Province, we can see these attributes,” she added.

The World Bank Mission Task team leader also expressed happiness with the quality of works done on the resilience infrastructures, adding that “they are commendable”.

World Bank Group Senior Forestry Specialist, Tuukka Castren also expressed the bank’s satisfaction with the implementation of the TRALARD Project in the region.

“From the bank’s side, we are very impressed with what is happening on the ground. Personally, this is my first visit to the project, and I was really impressed to hear personal experiences from the community members on how the project has improved their livelihoods,” Mr Castren said.

He said it was heart-warming to see how the income generated from their chicken business were helping beneficiaries to take their children to school, and transform their lives, thereby reducing reliance on unsustainable use of natural resources.

Mr Castren however said that there was a need to ensure that the projects were sustained by the community members who are beneficiaries.

“The challenge that we have in the next two years is to look at how the communities will sustain these investments way beyond the project period,” he said.

Speaking earlier, Acting National Coordinator for the TRALARD Project, John Katongo Banda commended the provincial administration through the DPS for the sound leadership in ensuring that the project succeeded in the region.

Mr. Banda said the team was impressed with what they saw when they visited the project implementing districts.

 “It was quite impressive, in terms of what we saw. For example, in Chama, we saw some group members that have expanded beyond fish farming to establish small shops from the resources they are generating from those investments.

That is quite encouraging for us, as a project because once the communities start having alternative livelihoods, it means there is a bit of relief on the natural resources that can be unsustainably harvested,” Mr Banda said.

He added, “So it was encouraging to see such linkages between what the project has invested and how they are tying in to natural resource management.”

He further noted with happiness that construction of some crossing points under the TRALARD project were completed and providing connections for communities not only to access the social services, but also access to markets for agricultural produce by subsistence farmers.

“The crossing points are critical in that they provide access to markets. But beyond markets, it was gratifying to note that other benefits are being seen in terms of ease of access to schools and clinics, he said.

Mr Banda further said the team visited the bulking centres which were constructed to ease the marketing of farm produce and improve storage problems.

“We also visited bulking centres which are very critical in that once produce is bulked in volume that are attractive to the private sector, then we may have access to well-structured markets,” he said.

Mr Banda further informed the DPS that the team was also impressed with what they saw on the ground in Isoka District where youthful members of Kolelanji Poultry and Milling Projects had initially started with 25 chickens early this year but managed to build up the stock to over 200 chickens.

He said such developments were speaking to the core objective of the mission.

The mission, he said, intends to gauge the progress we are making in terms of meeting the project development objective. So, we were able to check from sites that we visited in terms of the progress we are making.

Meanwhile, the Muchinga DPS) who welcomed the World Bank Mission Task Team was impressed with the Bank’s expression of satisfaction with the implementation of the TRALARD supported projects in the region.

Rev. Chilekwa acknowledged that the TRALARD project had transformed people’s lives and contributed to mitigation and adaptation to the effects of climate change in the province.

He, however, appealed to the World Bank through the Zambian Government to consider expanding its support in his district and others that were excluded from the TRALARD Project catchment areas because they were also grappling with the effects of climate change.

The World Bank Mission Task team, led by Ms. Mubanga, is conducting visits to the TRALARD Project implementing districts with the primary objective of engaging with community members who are the recipients of project benefits.

These interactions are aimed at gathering valuable insights and feedback from the beneficiaries to ensure the effective and sustainable implementation of the project.