Supporting Natural Resources Operations

Closed

As of 17 February 2011, ADB's ongoing Natural Resources Sector Portfolio in Afghanistan comprised 1 OCR loan and 6 grants (3 ADF, 1 DFID, 1 CIDA and 1 JFPR) totaling to $218 million, in four projects. These four projects are (i) Western Basins Water Resources Management (co-finance by CIDA); (ii) Agriculture Market Infrastructure; (iii) Rural Business Support, and (iv) multi-tranche financing facility (MFF- tranche 1) for the Water Resources Development Investment Program (WRDIP) (co-financed by DFID). A JFPR community-based irrigation rehabilitation project was closed in June 2010 and another JFPR project expanded on the earlier project is currently being processed. These projects cover a considerable array of critical constraints within the natural resources sector, focusing on rehabilitation of irrigation system infrastructure, institutional reforms and capacity building, and improvement of rural services. Project implementation, however, is often slow as a result of (i) the poor security situation, (ii) weak capacity of the implementing agencies (IAs), (iii) difficulties to recruit and retain qualified staff, within the IAs, contracted firms, and within ADB. Within the natural resources sector, the Ministry of Energy and Water (MEW), the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) and the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) are IAs for the on-going natural resources projects. IAs do currently not have adequate capacity for the timely implementation of these projects. Project management offices were not able to recruit appropriate staff from the local market during 2010. Most technical and procurement related issues often remain unresolved for substantial time periods resulting in considerable implementation delays. This poses challenges to (i) delivering development impact, (ii) guarantee successful project implementation, and (iii) supervising project progress.The proposed TA will employ a consultant for a total of 18 person-months (to be spread over a 2 year period). The TA's impact is to improve the capacity of IAs to implement natural resources projects, and help the Government to improve implementation efficiency in ADB's Agriculture and Natural Resources sector portfolio. The proposed outcome is an improved performance of ADB's natural resources portfolio, which would be reflected in (i) satisfactory ratings for active projects, (ii) achievement of contract award and disbursement projections, and (iii) due diligence of ADB's pipeline projects. The TA would also assist IAs in reviewing key project documents, including but not limited to (i) preparation of draft RFPs, (ii) preparation of procurement plans, (iii) bidding documents, (iv) bid evaluation, (v) contract negotiations and (vi) subsequent contract administration. The consultant will be recruited by ADB and based in AFRM, and report directly to ADB.The TA will also help ADB's AFRM to provide effective supervision of its natural resources portfolio, increased frequency of project reviews and timely identification and resolution of implementation issues. Currently there is only one National Officer at the Afghanistan Resident Mission (AFRM) involved full-time in supervision and administration of the considerable amount of natural resources projects currently implemented in Afghanistan. The TA will play a critical role to achieving natural resources development results in Afghanistan. The sector division and AFRM will continue to provide oversight, track progress, and maintain close liaison with the Government and coordination of donors.