In a project involving several ministries, the choice of the executing agency (or agencies) and the role of each ministry must be carefully assessed and discussed with the government and all concerned ministries. While urban public and environmental health requires mobilization and coordination among several sectors to have a positive impact on health in urban areas, the SDP was targeting many different areas (institutional arrangements at the local government level, municipal financing and management, solid waste management, medical waste management, food safety, and capacity building at both the central and city/local levels). The project was presented as a health project; however, the executing agency was Local Government Division in the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives which was most appropriate to implement policy reforms. LGD was probably less concerned with health-related investments that were, eventually, the responsibility of the urban local bodies. Representatives from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare were members of committees. The institutional arrangements did not seem suitable and coordination was difficult.
Urban Public and Environmental Health Sector Development Program