Implementation Arrangements

Overall management and coordination would be the responsibility of the ARIAS Society, a registered body established by GOA to implement ARIASP, and maintained intact after that project closed in June 2004 specifically to implement the proposed AACP. The Society is chaired by the Agricultural Production Commissioner (APC) and has the active participation of the Commissioners/Secretaries for Agriculture, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Services, Fisheries, Forestry, Sericulture, Public Works, Planning and Development, and Finance. Day-to-day executive control rests with the Project Coordinator (PC), who heads the Society's Project Coordination Unit (PCU) The relevant line Departments of GOA would act as implementing agencies for all project activities falling within their area of responsibility: Departments of Agriculture, AH & Vety Services, Fisheries, Environment and Forests, Sericulture, Public Works Department (PWD) and Assam Agricultural University. Extensive use of NGOs by Departments, wherever farmer interest or community groups are to be formed - following the pattern initiated under ARIASP. To simplify implementation arrangements, one or two lead NGOs would be engaged for each district to handle social mobilization and associated training needed for all project activities in that district. A District AACP Coordination Committee (DACC) would be formed, comprising all implementing agencies active in that district and the Zilla Parashad CEO, chaired by the Deputy Commissioner. The DACC would have responsibility for ensuring (i) participant selection criteria are adhered to consistently by all line Departments; and (ii) at a micro level, the convergence of complementary activities is maximized (eg. development of fishery clusters and milk routes in concert with the roads and markets upgrading program). A State Project Coordination Committee (SPCC) chaired  by the PC and comprising heads of all participating line Departments (Directors/Chief Engineer) would meet monthly to monitor progress of district plan implementation and the performance of DACCs. In addition, the ARIASP Society governing body would review project performance quarterly, and ensure there is effective collaboration between all implementing agencies. An Operations Manual (OM) has been prepared explaining the roles and responsibilities of district offices of line Departments, project NGOs and PCU cells for all project activities, and detailing arrangements for the flow of funds down to implementing units in the field. Selection criteria for participating groups to ensure effective inclusion of vulnerable groups such as marginal farmers, the landless, scheduled castes and tribes, and female headed households have been agreed, and are included in the OM. Implementation capacity would be strengthened by selective collaborations and technical assistance. Collaborations would be made with national and international institutions such as the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), the National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE), the National Institute of Agricultural Marketing (NIAM), the Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI), and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) to support implementation in each of their relevant operational areas. Nationally recruited consultant firms/NGOs would be engaged to support development of a commercially oriented paravet program; undertake project monitoring and evaluation; and internationally recruited firm of consultants as the Engineer to conduct biennial environmental audits of the project the rural roads Upgradation/ rehabilitation. The role of the PCU is to coordinate implementation by line Departments, provide administrative support, and technically backstop line Departments venturing into new operational areas such as marketing, decentralized extension/supply chain development and computerized information systems. Existing PCU posts cover the fiduciary aspects of financial management; procurement; and the safeguard aspects of the environment and social mobilization; complemented by three coordinators (agriculture, livestock and fisheries) to screen expenditure proposals from each line Department and monitor use of project funds. An additional eight posts are planned to coordinate NGO activities more effectively and to support the implementation of new activities planned for AACP: market extension/supply chain development; decentralized, pluralistic extension; rural haats/wholesale markets development; and operationalizing the management information system (MIS) and geographical information system (GIS) developed under ARIASP.

ASSAM RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND AGRICULTURAL SERVICES (ARIAS) SOCIETY