Evaluation of the Fruit Tree Productivity Project in Morocco: Final Report on the Catalyst Fund Activity

As part of a $697.5 million compact between the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the Government of Morocco that was signed in 2007, MCC funded a $340.5 million project to support the country’s agricultural sector—the Fruit Tree Productivity Project (FTPP). The FTPP comprised several activities that sought to expand the production of selected tree fruit crops—olives, dates, figs, and almonds—and address constraints along these value chains. The Agence de Partenariat pour le Progrès, a public Moroccan entity, implemented the Compact between 2008 and 2013. MCC contracted with Mathematica to evaluate several components of the FTPP.

This report presents the findings from the final evaluation of one of the FTPP activities: the Catalyst Fund activity. This activity partially funded the construction and provision of equipment to 20 modern olive oil processing units run by second-order producer organizations (cooperatives of cooperatives, known as Groupements d’Intérêt Economique, or GIEs). The GIEs were expected to purchase olives from farmers through their cooperatives, crush those olives to produce high-quality olive oil, and sell the oil under the GIE’s brand. Profits from olive oil sales would be returned to farmers, supplementing the initial payment for purchasing their olives and contributing to increasing their incomes. The final evaluation draws on information from a survey of GIE management; qualitative data from interviews or focus groups with GIE management, cooperative leaders, farmers, and other stakeholders; and tests of the quality of the olive oil produced by the GIEs.