The Federal Government of Nigeria has officially appealed to the World Bank for a deadline extension of the $100 million Nigeria for Women Project (NFWP).
The request, outlined in a letter dated January 23, 2024, proposes to push the project’s deadline from March 29, 2024, to June 30, 2024, marking a second restructuring attempt to ensure the completion of its objectives.
A document released on Monday and obtained from the World Bank read:
The NFWP, originally approved on June 27, 2018, via an International Development Association (IDA) credit of $100 million, has been primarily designed to foster improved livelihoods for women across various states of Nigeria by engaging them in meaningful economic activities and business ventures.
The project aims to equip women with the necessary skills and resources to engage in sustainable economic activities, enhancing their contributions to household incomes and community development. The project is structured around four main components:
The document added:
Despite a substantial disbursement of $87.34 million as of March 11, 2024, the project still has undisbursed funds amounting to $7.04 million, primarily allocated for livelihood activities under Component 2 of the project.
The rationale for this extension is to allow sufficient time for the completion of these activities, which have faced significant delays due to a variety of challenges, including capacity constraints and inflationary pressures. The delays are notably attributed to the lengthy procurement processes for necessary equipment and the rising costs associated with these procurements.
To date, the project has made notable achievements under its four main components. Component 1 has successfully exceeded its target by mobilizing over 1,091,045 beneficiaries through various community-level activities.
This includes the formation and strengthening of WAGs, which have collectively saved N5 billion and received over N3.1 billion in loans to support entrepreneurial activities.
However, progress under Component 2, the Livelihoods Program, has been slower than anticipated. The component aims to support individual and collective business initiatives but has been hindered by implementation and financial management challenges.
For instance, the Livelihood Collectives, expected to provide women with access to larger market opportunities, are still in the preliminary stages of development.
Despite these hurdles, the World Bank and project coordinators remain optimistic. The midline Impact Evaluation suggests that while the project may not meet all its ambitious targets, it has had a positive and statistically significant impact on several important metrics, such as female labor force participation and income diversification.
Moreover, the extension is expected to solidify these gains by allowing for the completion of all pending activities, including the final disbursements of individual grants and the establishment of necessary infrastructures for the Livelihood Collectives.
As the project moves towards its revised closing date, the focus remains on ensuring that all logistical and financial processes are aligned to meet the extended timeline.
This includes the signing of all pending contracts related to the Livelihood Collectives by April 30, 2024, and the completion of these contracts by the proposed new deadline, experts say.
This includes the signing of all pending contracts related to the Livelihood Collectives by April 30, 2024, and the completion of these contracts by the proposed new deadline, experts say.