Emergency projects such as this one tend to be difficult to administer and implement and difficult for ADB to properly guide and oversee. This is because speed is of the essence to restore normal activity, and subprojects tend to be spread over large geographical areas. As such, ADB has to depend not only on review mission diligence but also on consultants and the government agencies involved. ADB’s procedures, while fully adequate for non-emergency projects, tend to slow the implementation of emergency projects such as this one, so due diligence is sometimes truncated. As a result, subprojects were undertaken that do not meet requirements or necessary approvals. The social infrastructure projects under this project are cases in point. Prior to due diligence approval, works were undertaken and retro-financed after due diligence approval. Also, three of the new schools, while probably needed, did not meet subproject selection criteria. ADB may wish to review its procedures for such projects so that such compromising activities can be avoided. The PCR makes related observations about such projects.
Emergency Rehabilitation Project [Loan 2045-KGZ]