Stakeholders are launching phase 4 of the PAPRiz project. The Rice Productivity Improvement Project (PAPRIZ), implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty in collaboration with the Ministry of Industrialization and Private Sector Development, with support from JICA, is now entering its fourth phase. It aims notably to develop the entire rice value chain to strengthen national production in both quantity and quality. Spanning five years, the Alaotra Mangoro and Boeny regions constitute its main intervention areas. Stakeholders launched this new stage to sustain the achievements of the first three phases of the PAPRIZ project in Madagascar. By way of illustration, producer skills have been strengthened and high-performing cultivation techniques have been disseminated nationally. To achieve this objective of strengthening national rice production, improving the quality of rice for the domestic market is among the project's priority axes. Next comes the strengthening of producer organizations, which is equally important, by facilitating their connection with agricultural input suppliers and processors, not forgetting market access for selling their harvests.
Human Capital Development
This new project resulting from Japanese-Malagasy cooperation also works to strengthen financial management, commercial skills and cooperative governance. Subsequently, it will place significant emphasis on managing hydro-agricultural infrastructure. Water Users Associations will benefit, among other things, from support aimed at improving the management and maintenance of these infrastructures, while strengthening their capacity to cope with climate change effects. Human capital development constitutes another priority axis within the PAPRIZ 4 implementation framework, by collaborating with training institutions such as EFTA, CAFPA and universities, notably ESSA at the University of Antananarivo. The objective is to strengthen the skills of actors working throughout the rice value chain.
Women's Inclusion
Furthermore, the project will pay particular attention to women's inclusion. This notably involves promoting their participation within cooperatives and Water Users Associations while strengthening their access to responsibilities, especially in decision-making, and improving their access to financing, particularly through the Agricultural Development Fund (FDA). Through these various interventions, PAPRIZ 4 thus aims to consolidate the achievements of previous phases and contribute to a more productive, better organized and more resilient rice sector, enabling the achievement of food self-sufficiency.