Niger economic policy reform program (NEPRP) : preliminary program impact evaluation

Preliminary impact evaluation covers the period 1988-8/95 against a PACD of 6/96. The NEPRP is a successful broad-based experimental reform program. In applying a flexible sector grant approach to a combination of economic and political constraints, this program represented "cutting edge" approaches to development assistance in West Africa in the late 1980s. The focus on obligation of funds using conditionalities at a strategic objective level (reduction of marketing costs such as taxes and illegal payments) with sector performance measured by customer surveys, represents an experiment in reengineering the delivery of USAID development assistance. The reforms supported by the NEPRP fall into five categories: (1) elimination of export taxes and export quotas on agro-pastoral products; (2) reduction of domestic illegal payments to public officials on the roads by traders and transporters of agro-pastoral exports (rent seeking); (3) regional market development through promotion of trade relationships between Niger and its West African neighbors, Nigeria in particular; (4) improvement or simplification of transport and trading sector regulations and elimination of monopolies; and (5) public dissemination of agro-pastoral market information. Of these five categories, only the first two, which are interdependent, have had people-level impact. Conditions precedent (CPs) in both these reform areas were met and led to significant short-term impact while contributing to an environment for long-term sustainable growth and regional trade relationships in West Africa. Regional trade promotion included various initial contacts, bridge building, and meaningful exchanges. However, given the preliminary nature of these contacts and exchanges, it is impossible to attribute any impact directly to these initiatives. There is no evidence of improvement or simplification of transport and trading sector regulations or elimination of monopolies due to program support. Limited impact in this sector can partly be explained by the temporary surplus trucking capacity and a focus on regulations that are not a binding constraint on sector performance or supply of transportation services in the short term. Dissemination of agro-pastoral market information, possibly a critical component of sustainability, has been weak. Dissemination of information to support elimination of the export tax and illegal payments appears to have been a critical component of success. However, dissemination of agro-pastoral price and market information in radio programs, Chamber of Commerce bulletins, or printed reports meets the legal requirements of the CPs, but not their spirit. Price information is disseminated for too short a duration, too long a time after the data are collected, and during a season when the information is not expected to have any measurable impact. Copies of agricultural sector studies were not duplicated to make material broadly available to the private sector in Niger. Unions directly involved with the reforms supported by NEPRP appeared to be unaware of the existence of the USAID program. (Author abstract, modified)