* chart above shows number of families reached  by LIFT (cumulative)

LIFT is successfully reducing the number of rural people living in poverty and hunger in Myanmar,  according to results presented in the LIFT Annual Report 2014 which was published on-line today.  There are two versions of the report this year:  a full report in English and Myanmar and a highlights version in English and Myanmar.

The report provides a comprehensive overview of LIFT’s work in Myanmar during 2014,  with insight to the changing operating context and updates on pro-poor policy developments in LIFT’s areas of focus. 

“With this Annual Report, LIFT is effectively half way through its mandate to 2018, and its results have exceeded a number of headline targets," says Steve Dowall, LIFT’s Lead Technical Officer. “The results lay excellent groundwork for the establishment of the four large new programmes launching in 2015 that will significantly grow the scale of LIFT’s impact in the coming  years,” he adds.

2014 marked LIFT’s fifth year of operation in Myanmar and its fifth year of growth in terms of the number of active projects and their cumulative geographic coverage. LIFT is now active in 157 of the country’s 330 townships. By the end of the year, LIFT had reached 628,500 rural families— or roughly five per cent of Myanmar’s population.

 

  •     About 1.1 million people have increased their food security
  •     More than half a million people have experienced an increase in agricultural production
  •     Nearly 300,000 people have participated in LIFT-funded training

In 2014, the Fund updated its strategic direction, providing more scope to improve the prospects of rural poor people within the changing context.

Notable advances are seen in the area of financial inclusion – both in terms of increasing access to finance for rural poor people, and assisting the development of a regulatory framework. At the end of the year, 216,000 microfinance clients had accessed LIFT-funded credit, and LIFT had provided institutional support to 15 microfinance organisations that provide financial services to 728,000 people, or 60 per cent of all microfinance clients in Myanmar.

The Myanmar language version of the report will be available shortly. Hard copies of the reports can be obtained at the Fund Management Office.