Ex-post evaluation of Sindh Union Council and Community Economic Strengthening Support (SUCCESS) programme

SUCCESS was an EU-funded programme in Sindh (2015–2022) that worked through Rural Support Programmes and policy assistance to reduce rural poverty. It scaled up a women-led three-tier structure of community organisations in eight districts and combined social mobilisation with grants, skills, insurance and local infrastructure. The ex post evaluation applies OECD criteria and draws on documents, field visits and interviews with beneficiaries, community leaders, officials and EU staff.

It finds that the community-driven local development model was relevant to EU and provincial policies and that most planned outputs were delivered as intended. Women's organisations became stronger, access to services such as health, education, water and identification improved, and many poor households reported higher incomes. SUCCESS also influenced provincial policy by supporting a Poverty Reduction Strategy and the expansion of the People's Poverty Reduction Programme across rural Sindh.

Yet inflation, floods and weak institutionalisation of community–government linkages limited overall poverty reduction and now endanger income gains, the Community Investment Fund and some infrastructure schemes. The report sets out lessons on social mobilisation, financial inclusion and resilience and recommends updated poverty data, protection for the poorest borrowers, simpler registration and banking for local support organisations and stronger government partnerships.