Timelines for policy changes and major reforms should also be realistic, knowing that building understanding and ownership can take time and the passage of legislation can be a lengthy process. Two municipalities declined to participate in the project because of their objection to the transfer of ownership and management of assets to a state government agency.
Road transport projects typically involve a variety of risks during implementation. Formulating appropriate project design and risk assessment during the preparatory phase is critical to minimize start-up and implementation delays. This includes a systematic appraisal of the project’s technical scope and engineering design, project cost and contingencies, environmental and social safeguards, and financial and contractual risks.
Greater consideration of the capacity of the executing agency with respect to their investment planning, coordination, and implementation functions, as well as post-investment operation and maintenance activities, is crucial for a sector lending. Under the project, these factors were not adequately assessed in the sector analysis. This absence of sector analysis likely contributed to the low quality of project implementation and pertinent government agencies’ performance.
Development partners should both
support and take advantage of opportunities that arise when governments are committed to
reform, which should also be recognized in their country programming. the government that came to office in 2018 was strongly reform-minded. Even though
Armenia suffered two exogenous shocks in the form of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and
conflict with a neighboring country, reform commitment did not waver. This contributed strongly
to the ultimate outcome of this program.