Digital Rural Transformation Project

The development objective of Digital Solutions for Sustainable Development Project for Benin is to improve access to broadband services in targeted rural communities and promote the use of digital solutions to improve efficiency of selected value-chains, financial inclusion and access to markets. This project has five components. 1) The first component, Extending digital connectivity in rural areas, aims to increase the number of individuals, public administration institutions, and businesses that will be able to access both mobile services and the internet in the most climate-vulnerable areas. It has the following three subcomponents: (i) improving the digital enabling environment; (ii) – Supporting the extension of ICT coverage in rural areas using Open Access; and (iii) – Building the metropolitan network of Parakou. 2) The second component, Digital financial inclusion and skills, aims to catalyze the uptake of digital financial services in rural areas, with a focus on women in the agriculture sector. It has the following three subcomponents:(i) : Digitizing the offering of financial institutions; (ii) Digitizing value chain payments and women’s informal saving groups; and (iii) Creating an enabling environment for digital financial services and skills. 3) The third component, Digital solutions for rural development, aims to stimulate the development of digital solutions for the agricultural sector, enabled by the digital infrastructure, financial access and skills supported through the first two components. It has the following three subcomponents: (i) Strengthening the data ecosystem; (ii) Mobilization of the digital ecosystem; and (iii) Climate-smart agriculture and producer organizations. 4) The fourth component, Access to market, aims to tackle physical and logistical problems expressed by smallholder farmers especially women of access to markets and agricultural production zones in project targeted areas. It has the following two subcomponents: (i)...