World Bank to fund Peren, Tuensang’s rural poor

Close on the heels of the Asian Development Bank’s Rs. 285 Crore for the development of Nagaland’s capital Kohima, the State has been selected with three other North Eastern States to receive assistance from the World Bank for over $ 144 million under a project designed to create employment opportunities for the ‘poorest of the poor’ in the rural areas. Nagaland, with Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura has been selected for ambitious North East Rural Livelihood Project (NERLP) to be implemented through the Development of North East Region (DoNER).
Nagaland among States selected for $ 144 million employment project 
The Union Minister of State (Independent charge) for DoNER Paban Singh Ghatowar told the Lok Sabha September 6 that the World Bank would aid the DoNER in implementing the NERLP in eight selected districts of the four NE States with ‘soft loan assistance.’
The project, earmarked a total of $ 144.4 million (Rs. 683.2 crore), is for five years starting from the fiscal 2010-2011 and would create self-employment opportunities for the tribal and poor living in rural and remote areas of the selected states. The project would be implemented in two districts of Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim and three districts in Tripura. Updated records obtained by The Morung Express mentioned the districts: Aizawl and Lunglei (Mizoram), Peren and Tuensang (Nagaland), South, West and 15 Panchayat wards of East District (Sikkim) and West and North Districts (Tripura).
Union Minister Ghatowar said the duration of the project is five years, commencing from 2011. The total estimated cost of the project is Rs. 683.2 crore (US $ 144.4 million). The World Bank will contribute Rs. 614.8 crore (US $ 130 million) as IDA soft loan and Ministry of DoNER will contribute Rs. 68.4 crore (US $ 14.4 million) from its budget allocation, the Minister told the Lok Sabha.
He explained further that the World Bank has provided an advance for Project Preparatory Facility (PPF) of US $ 1.215 million to finance expenditures required for preparation of the project.
More records obtained by this daily show the magnitude of the North East Rural Livelihood Project. According to the executive summery of the DoNER’s final draft report ‘Environmental Assessment’ of the NERLP, May 2011, the consolidated budget for Environmental Management Framework and Safeguards is Rs. 4,35,85,000 (four crore thirty five lakhs eighty five thousand) or 43.58 million.
Further, in its ‘Social and Tribal Assessment report’, also of May 2011, the DoNER said it has now taken up the NERLP project to assist the rural poor and vulnerable groups including women in improving their livelihood. A Regional Project Implementation Plan in this regard has been prepared to initiate livelihood projects in a sustainable manner, the DoNER report said.
The NE ministry envisages that the project would assist more than 1, 50, 000 households of the ‘poorest of the poor, women-led households, physically challenged and the underprivileged’ in the targeted areas of the four states ‘to come out of poverty’ through employment opportunities. The project covers 1,849 villages in 58 blocks in Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim and Tripura, the DoNER stated in the report.
The NERLP project has four components for its five year implementation – social empowerment, economic empowerment, partnership development of the targeted areas and project management.



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