ADB says projects delayed due to politics, lawlessness
KATHMANDU, NOV 16 -
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Tuesday that implementation of projects funded by it has been slow due to the recent political stalemate and deteriorated law and order situation in the Tarai although implementation has improved after the end of the decade-long civil war.
Making public the implementation status and concerns related to the projects it has funded right before the beginning of the Nepal Portfolio Performance Review (NPPR) meeting, the ADB said that it found a relatively conducive project implementation environment as of June 2011.
“Only two projects including Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and the Melamchi Water Supply Project were indicated to have been affected moderately,” stated the ADB.
However, the ADB said in its report that despite continued improvement in the performance of projects in Nepal in recent years, systemic and overall project implementation and portfolio management issues including quality at entry, human resources, public financial management and public procurement management continued to constrain project implementation. These are the issues donors have been raising at every NPPR meet as well over the last few years.
One of the biggest hurdles the ADB faced in implementing its projects is delay in the start up of the project. “Nepal portfolio (project) consistently experiences start-up delays, which carry over into a broader implementation delays, resulting in inevitable project extension,” stated the ADB report. “Since the ADB is increasing its investment in Nepal with an increased number of new entries of projects every year, it is vital to improve the quality at entry of the projects so that resources are effectively and efficiently utilized.”
There has not been much progress in contract awards as of mid-June with only contracts worth US$ 44.6 million being awarded out of the targeted worth of US$ 246.5 million for 2011. “This figure is 29 percent against the annual target of the portfolio,” said Barry J Hitchcock, country director of Nepal Resident Mission (NRM) of the ADB.
Frequent transfer of project staff has always been a concern of donors, and the ADB has once again raised the issue as a major concern because frequent transfer delays project implementation. At present, the project director and project manager for the Skill for Employment Project and Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women Project have been changed five times since the loan was approved in 2004.
“The project director of the Information and Communication Technology Project has been changed five times since grant approval in 2008,” stated the ADB. In some projects, inadequate staffing has also delayed project implementation, according to the ADB.
The ADB has said that public financial management of projects aided by it has deteriorated. “There has been a serious concern about an increase in the delay of submission of project accounts to the ADB,” it said.
As per the loan and grant agreement with the government, certification and submission of project accounts to the ADB within the stipulated time (for new ADB projects which were approved after 2006, the deadline is within six months from the fiscal year closing) is crucial for sound public financial management.
One of the key concerns of donors has been public procurement management. “The phenomenon of recent years has been that intimidation and collusion/cartel among bidders in Nepal are on the rise at both central and district levels,” the ADB said. “The bidders are blocked because of intimidation and the use of physical force by individuals and groups hired by a few unscrupulous bidders.”
The government has, however, maintained that with the beginning of the e-bidding system, the practice has come down in recent days.
Three projects awarded
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday awarded three projects working in the field providing safe drinking water to rural poor, income generation and sustainable urban development, with the Outstanding Project Management Team Award. Projects winning the award are Community Livestock Development Project (CLDP), Community-based Water Supply and Sanitation Project (CWSSP) and Urban and Environment Improvement Project (UEIP). These projects are under operation with the ADB assistance. Finance Secretary Krishna Hari Baskota presented the awards. “These awards recognise the project teams’ excellent performance, efficiency in implementation and achievement of targets,” said Barry J Hitchcock, country director of ADB for Nepal.
Source: Kantipur
