Rome — The Kingdom of Swaziland and the United Nations International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) signed an agreement today to finance the Smallholder Market-led Project (SMLP), an initiative that will improve food and nutrition security and increase the incomes of 10,900 households, in particular smallholder farmers living in Lubombo and Shiselweni regions where the drought has been most severe.
The total project investment is US $21.1 million, which includes a $9.6 million IFAD loan and a $500,000 grant. The government of Swaziland will contribute $6.6 million while local private sector companies will contribute an additional $600,000. The Kingdom of Swaziland is seeking cofinancing of $3.8 million from other donors to make up the remainder.
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