Greater Mekong Subregion Flood and Drought Risk Management and Mitigation Project 

Executing agency capacity to undertake large and complex irrigation projects can easily be overestimated, and relatively minor issues can delay both startup and/or effectiveness and implementation. In this case, overall implementation was made considerably more complex by the major civil works redesign which impacted procurement and safeguards requirements. Delays in recruiting consultants and getting the Ministry of Economy and Finance to agree to including price revisions in consultants' contract delayed loan effectiveness, in turn startup and implementation.