Sierra Leone - Second Education Project

Document Of The World Bank FOR OMCIAL USE ONLY Repot No. 5393 PROJECT COMPLETION REPORT SIERRA LEONE SECOND EDUCATION PROJECT (CREDIT 573/EEC CREDIT 52-SL) December 28, 1984 A Projects Department Western Africa Regional Office ThI docnmmeut h a res.icted distnibuom and m y be ued by reLipients dy iu the perfonnce of their ocia duties. its cotets may not edothrise be disclosed widhu World Bank authoriation.  FOR OMCIAL USE ONLY GLOSSARY CDU = Curriculum Development Unit CIDA = Canadian International Development Agency DCEO = Deputy Chief Education Officer EEC = European Economic Community GCE = General Certificate of Education IIEP = Industrial InsUitute of Education Planning IOE = Institute of Education IPAM = Institute of Public Administration and Management IRC = Instructional Resource Cc:vter MOEPU - Planning Unit at the Ministry of Education MPU = Materials Production Unit MMrC = Milton Margai Teachers College NTC = National Training Center PIU = Project Implementation Unit UPU = University Planning Unit I This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization.  PROJECT CGMPLETION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - SECOND EDUCATION PROJECT (CREDIT 573/EEC CREDIT 52-SL) TABLE OF CONTENTS Page No. Preface ........... Basic Data Sheet ......... ii Highlights .--------------..... .-.-.-. iv * I. PROJECT BACKGROUND ................... I Eduatou.... ........... E.... 1................. 1 Objectives.. ...................... ............. 2 Preparation and Appraisal 2 Project Components. 2 II. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION.. N................ ..... 4 Credit Signing, Effectiveness, and Closing 4 Project Management.... .... .. 4 Design en.............. 5 Sites .. 5 Construction ...... _ 5 Furniture, Equipment, and Materials. 6 Maintenance of Facilities ... 7 Covenants ...... ... ........ 7 III. COST AND FIN I NCE ..... 9 Capital Costso ... 9 Disbursements ....10 Recurrent Costs ....10 IV. EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES ........ .. ..11 A. Secondary Schools . 11 B. Technical Teacher Training 13 C. Trade Centers. . .... 14 D. Social Welfare National Training Center (NTC). 15 E. Institute of Education. ........ 17 * F. Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM) ...... ....... 19 G. Educational Planning and Management 20 V. IDA'S PERFORMANCE ........... ...... . 23 VI. OBSERVATIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS, AND LESSONS EEARNED BY IDA ...24 General Assessment..... ... ....... 24 Lessons Learned... 24  Table of Contents (Contd.) Page No. ANNEXES 1. Comparison of Forecast and Actual Implementation - Design and Building Works ................................... 27 2. Comparison of Forecast and Actual Implementation - Furniture and Equipment Procurement .......................... 28 3. Comparison of Forecast and Actual Implementation - Technical Assistance ........................................ 29 4. Implementation Schedule ....................................... 31 5. Comparison of Estim-ted and Actual Number of Student Places and Constructed Area ........................................ 32 6. Compliance with Credit/Loan Agreement CovecLants .... ........... 33 7. Comparison of Estimated and Actual Costs by Project Component.. 35 8. Technical Assistance Program .................................. 36 9. Estimated and Actual Project Costs by Category .... ............ 40 10. Allocation of Cred-it Proceeds ................................. 41 ATTACHMENT I Comments from the Borrower ..................................43 .  PROJECT COMPLETION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - SECOND EDUCATION PROJECT (CREDIT 573/EEC CREDIT 52-SL) PREFACE 1. A completion mission visited Sierra Leone in October 1983 to compare the outcoce of the Second Education Project (Credit 573-SL) with the objectives seecified at appraisal and in the Credit Agreement. The Credit of US$7.25 million was approved by the Board of Executive Directors in July 1975. The Credit was formally closed on December 31, 1982 and, after half a year for finalizing accounts, a sum of US$129,740 remained undisbursed and was cancelled on September 26, 1983, when the Credit Account was closed. 2. A Special Action Credit (EEC Credit 52-SL) of US$1.0 million to support financing of the project was approved on May 30, 1980, with funds contributed by the EEC member states. The funds were fully disbursed in April 1982, and the Credit was then closed. 3. Before the mission's arrival in the field, the Borrower prepared a draft Project Completion Report (PCR), and supplementary studies which examined the project's physical and educational implementation. The report was generally satisfactory with regard to coverage and content. This full IDA Completion Report takes into account the views presented by the Government. 4. The Operations Evaluation Department decided not to audit the project and sent the PCR to the Borrower and its agencies for comment in September 1984. Comments received from the Borrower have been taken into account in finalizing the report and are reproduced as Attachment I to the PCR. 9  - ii - PROJECT COMPLETION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - SECOND EDUCATION PROJECT - (CREDIT 573/EEC CREDIT 52-SL) BASIC DATA SHEET Key Project Data Ezpectation at Item Appraisal Revision Actual Total Project Cost (US$ million) 11.0 - 10.7 Underrun (Z) - - 3% Credit Amount (US$million) 7.3 1.0 a/ 8.3 Amount Disbursed 7.3 - 8.0 b/ Cancelled - - 0.3 c/ Date Physical Components Completed 03/31/80 06/30/82 04/1983 Months Since Credit Signed 44 93 Proportion Completed by Above Date (Z) 100 - 100 Proportion of Time Overrun (Z) - - 66% Institutional Performance Good - Satisfactory Omulative Estimated and Actual D[sbursmts of 1D and CWeOits (Chlendar Years) 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 Appraisal Estimste %US$ 'OOOs) 0.290 2.343 5.466 6.883 7.50 - - - Actual (US$ 'OOOs) 0.114 0.20 1.100 2.615 3.975 5.40 7136 7.950 bJ Actual as I of Appraisal 39 8 20 38 55 - - - Other Project Data Item Original Actual First Mention in Files or Timetable 08/16/72 Government's Application 10/25/74 v Negotiations 05/14/75 05/14/75 Board Approval 07/22/75 07|22/75 Credit Agreement Date 07/29/75 07/29/75 Effective Date 09/8/75 09/8/75 Closing Date 09/30/80 09/26/83 Borrower Sierra Leone Executing Agency Ministry of Finance Fiscal Year of Borrower July-June Follcw-on Project Name Third Education Project Credit Number 1353-SL Acount (US$ million) 20.0 Credit Agreement Date 05/20/83 a/ EEC Special Action Credit 52-SL b/ IDA credit US$7,120,259 and EEC Credit 52-SL US$830,032 c/ US$ 129,741 from Credit 573-SL and US$ 169,918 from EEC Credit 52-SL.  - iii - MISSION DATA Sent IMbuth/ No. of No. of Total Staff- Date of Missions By Year Weeks Persons weeks Report Identif. IDA/Unesco/FAO 01/73 3.0 a/ 4 12.0 05173 Preparation b/ Preappraisal IDA 07/74 4.0 6 24.0 09774 Appraisal IDA 01/75 3.0 4 12.0 06/75 Subtotal 1 Supervision: 1. EC/TED/ARC IDA 10/75 1.7 3 5.1 12/75 2. EC/ED/ARC IDA 06/76 1.9 3 5.7 07/76 3. ARC IDA 08/76 3.6 1 3.6 09176 4. EC IDA 10/76 0.8 1 0.8 12/76 5. EC (2) IDA 12/76 1 2 2.0 01/77 6. EC,ARC IDA 07/77 0.7 2 1.4 09/77 7. ARC IDA 02/78 0.8 1 0.8 07/78 8. EC/EDIARC IDA 10/78 1 .' 3 3.9 12/78 9. ECIARC IDA 03/79 0.9 2 1.8 04/79 10. EC IDA 06/79 1.2 1 1.2 08/79 I1. EC IDA 12/79 0.8 1 0.8 12/79 12. EC/TED/ED IDA 03/80 1.4 3 4.2 05/80 13. EC/ARC IDA 07/80 1.1 2 2.2 07/80 14. ARC IDA 11/80 1.2 1 1.2 12/80 15. ED/ARC IDA 02/81 1.0 2 2.0 04/81 16. EC/ED IDA 09/81 1.4 2 2.8 11/81 17. ED IDA 08/82 1.4 1 1.4 09/82 18. ARC IDA 09/82 1.6 1 1.6 10/82 Subtotal 23.8 32 42.5 Completion: 1. IDA 10/83 2.0 2 4.0 TOTAL 35.8 48 94.5 a/ Approximate b/ No specific preparation mission visited Sierra Leone KEY: EC - Economist ARC - Architect TED Technical Educator ED = General Educator Country Exchange Rates Name of Currency (Abbreviation): Leones (Le.) Year: (-.verage) - Appraisal Year 1975 US$1 Le. 0.83 1976 US$1 -Le. 1.11 1977 US$1 -Le. 1.13 1978 US$1 Le. 1.04 1979 US$1 = Le. 1.05 1980 US$1 = Le. 1.05 1981 USSl = Le. 1.15 1982 US$1 = Le. 1.23 1983 * US$1 Le. 1.25 * Note: From July 1983, the exchange rate was US$1 - Le. 2.50 because of devaluation of the Leone.  - iv - PROJECT CQMPLETION REPORT SIERRA LEONE - SECOND EDUCATION PROJECT (CREDIT 573/EEC CREDIT 52-SL) HIGHLIGHTS Objectives 1. The US$7.25 million IDA Credit and the US$1 million EEC Special Action Credit financed a project designed to improve the efficiency and quality of the Sierra Leonean educational system, and to adapt training efforts to national needs by: (a) broadening the curricula offered, especially to include science and technical pre-vocational and commercial subjects at the lower secondary level; (b) expanding secondary level teacher training programs for practical subjects to satisfy secondary school needs; (c) creating a production capacity at the trade schools; (d) strengthening the training capacity for rural health and community development services; (e) improving the capacity of the Institute of Education in curriculum development, materials support, teacher training, and research; (f) broadening the scope of training opportunities in public administration and management; and (g) strengthening the planning capacities of the University of Sierra Leone and of the Ministry of Education (paras. 1.06 and 1.09). Implementation 2. Despite certain difficulties outlined below, implementation was successful when viewed in terms of the regional and country context. This is especially true when considering the serious economic problems which beset Sierra Leone near the end of the implementation period. The Credit was formally closed at the end of December, 1982, 27 months after the Closing Date foreseen at appraisal. The project's objectives for civil works, equipment, and furniture were fully met, although the civil works were completed about 42 months behind schedule, and furniture and equipment were not in place until about 36 and 39 months, respectively, behind schedule. In addition to the original construction program, six pilot primary schools were constructed in selected rural locations as part of preparations for the Third Education Project (Credit 1353-SL). The project's educational objectives were partly met at completion (paras. 2.05, 2.08, 2.09, 2.14, 2.16, 3.03 and 6.01). 3. Technical Assistance. The originally approved project provided for 49 manyears of expert services; five manyears were added during the project's implementation. Forty-nine manyears were actually used. The implementation arrangements were, however, changed substantially during implementation. Local specialists were used more than anticipated, short-term consultants were used rather than resident experts, and project-financed technical assistance was closely coordinated with bilateral assistance. The originally approved fellowship program included 18.5 manyears; this was increased to 21.5 manyears during implementation. Nineteen and a quarter manyears were used. The institutional objectives of the technical assistance program were achieved in most cases. The possible exceptions involve the educational research and planning components (paras. 2.20-2.22).  Outcomes 4. Diversification of Curricula. The broadening of curricula in secondary education, especially at the junior secondary level, to include pre- vocational subjects was a goal implemented with mixed success, although some good curriculum development work was done by local and foreign specialists. Success depended on actions by individual schools. The Government should evaluate the outcome of this component before diversifying the curricula on a nationwide basis (paras. 4.03 and 4.04). 5. The Technical Teacher Training Department of the Milton Margai Teachers College is operating well, but enrollments have been less than expected. The training programs operated by the Ministry of Social Welfare's National Training Center and the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM) are functioning effectively. Local staff gained considerable experience by carrying out project support sector work and project preparation activities (paras. 4.11, 4.12, 4.23, 4.26, 4.41 and 4.44). 6. However, not all project components achieved their original objectives. The production units in the trade schools never became operational. The Research Division in the Institute of Education (IOE) and the Planning Unit of the Ministry of Education (MOEPU) never solved important staffing problems, and were unable to carry out their anticipated work programs (paras. 4.36, 4.51 and 4.53). Project Costs 7. Overall project costs of US$10.7 million were 31% above appraisal estimates in local currency, and 3% lower than appraisal in US dollars. The IDA and EEC credits financed 75%, and the Government funded 25%, of project costs. An amount of US$7.12 million was withdrawn from the original IDA credit of US$7.25 million, and US$0.13 million was cancelled. The total amount withdrawn from the original EEC credit of US$1.00 million, equivalent, was only US$0.83 million, due to fluctuations in the exchange rate of the dollar (para. 3.01). The Government's Performance 8. The Project Implementation Unit, (PIU), which was linked to the Ministry of Finance, performed efficiently. The Unit was staffed by Sierra Leonean nationals who handled the project's implementation well (paras. 2.04-2.05). Lessons Learned 9. Implementation and supervision taught IDA and the Government the following lessons, which should be applied in future projects: (a) The large number of components and the many facets of education and training (para. 1.09) included in this project made implementation difficult. This lesson was applied to the design of the Third Education Project, which was limited to primary education and related services only (para. 6.02);  - vi - (b) Availability of a revolving fund, regularly replenished by the Government, would have had a positive impact on implementation. The Third Education Project therefore includes a Ba-k-financed revolving fund to help alleviate constraints upon the Government's budget (paras. 2.04 and 6.04); (c) The use of local consultants, backed up, when required, by short-term foreign experts, was efficient. (The Bank's acceptance of local cost financing made this arrangement possible.) Cooperation with bilateral agencies for recruitment, training, and financing of experts and fellowships was good also (paras. 2.19-2.21); - (d) Part of the credit funds allocated for preparing a third education project were used to build six pilot primary schools as prototypes for establishing designs, construction and working methods, and costs for schools in the Third Project. Construction of these prototypes, which was successful, helped the Third Project to an early and efficient start (paras. 2.15 and 6.04); (e) Support for production units attached to trade schools should be reviewed very carefully in the future. The issues of financing and competitiveness with private manufacturers should be studied before appraisal (para. 4.19); (f) The project created Instructional Resource Centers (IRCs) for in- service training of teachers in new buildings located on the sites of existing primary teacher training colleges outside Freetown. The new IRCs were put under the management and leadership of the Director of the IOE in Freetown. This division of responsibility-between the principals of the colleges and the IOE Director-for activities and staff on the same college campuses caused confusion in the management and delayed the start of the IRC's educational activities. We should avoid this type of dual management in future projects (para. 4.30); and (g) The Bank should be flexible when considering Government requests to redesign implementation arrangements for project components because of changed circumstances. This is especially true for technical assistance programs. In this project, the Bank's willingness to finance local operating costs and supplies made possible a much greater use of local specialists than originally anticipated, with beneficial results for the project's institutional development objectives (paras. 2.19 and 6.03).  I. PROJECT BACKGROUND Education 1.01 Sierra Leone's educational system was originally patterned after the British system, with which it maintains close links in terms ^f structure, examinations, and professional qualifications of instructors. The primary course of seven years is followed by a five-year secondary course leading to the GCE Ordinary level. Some schools also offer a two-year Sixth Form program to prepare pupils for the GCE Advanced Levels. Tertiary level education is provided by five teachers colleges, two technical institutes, and the Fourah Bay and Njala branches of the University of Sierra Leone. English is the official language and the language of instruction at all levels. 1.02 About 40% of the school-aged children are enrolled in primary schools, while 85% of the population is illiterate. About 15% of school-aged children are enrolled in secondary schools. Most of them are enrolled in a general education curriculum. About one-third of the students are girls. Less than 1% of the relevant age group are enrolled in third level education. 1.03 The Ministry of Education has overall responsibility for formal education. District Education Committees have been set up to operate the schools within their jurisdictions. An estimated 10% of all students in Sierra Leone are enrolled in private schools, which receive no Government assistance. The University of Sierra Leone and its institutes have autonomous status, but the University's budget is largely dependent upon Government grants. 1.04 Two important exercises wei- undertaken during the r_rst half of the 1970s to study the shortcomings of the educational system, establish policy objectives, and recommend ways of achieving them. First, the Ministry of Education's Planning Unit (the MOEPU) worked closely with the Ministry of Development in designing the educational program of the 1974-1979 National Development Plan. Second, the University of Sierra Leone, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, sponsored an Education Review to help define a long-term pattern of educational development for the country. Although the two proposals differed in some respects, they both supported the overall goals of: (a) more rapid expansion of primary education and related teacher education; (b) deceleration of growth in secondary and university enrollments; and (c) acceleration of growth in vocational and technical enrollments, and greater alignment of the secondary and post-secondary programs with employment needs. 1.05 Based on the planning documents and other information available, Bank staff and Sierra Leonean officials held informal discussions during implementation of the First Project about a possible second education project. A Unesco project identification mission visited the country in January, 1973, to discuss the Government's strategy anid priorities, and to identify areas for possible Bank assistance. The Unesco mission was followed up by a Bank mission to Sierra Leone in Februarv, 1973. Bank staff also participated in the National Education Review Conference held in Freetown in March, 1974.  -2- Objectives 1.06 The Bank and the Government reached an understanding in September, 1974 that the Bank would be willing to support a project with the following objectives: (a) reinforcing the objectives of the First Education Project in order to diversify educational programs at the secondary level. This would improve the employment prospects of vocational and general secondary school graduates and align the programs more closely with real employment needs; (b) strengthening the planning capability of the Ministry of Education and the capacity of the Institute of Education in the areas of curriculum development, materials support, teacher training, and research; and (c) broadening the scope of training opportunities in public administration and management and in training of rural development personnel. Preparation and Appraisal 1.07 A pre-appraisal mission visited Sierra Leone in July, 1974, following which two senior officials of the Ministry of Education spent several weeks in Washington preparing the project with the Bank's assistance. The First Education Project's Implementation Unit, appropriate ministries, and the University also assisted with the preparation. Final preparation of the management and community worker training components was completed during appraisal. 1.08 Appraisal was conducted in January and February, 1975. The appraisal mission investigated whether to include a University college to improve training and strengthen the University's extension service. However, in view of differences of opinion among the Ministries o' Agriculture and Education and the University on the content, location, and management of the training program, the appraisal mission decided not to include this proposed component in the project. The mission instead suggested that the already-proposed assistance to University planning should be used to help identify an investment program for Njala College which would form part of a future education project. Project Components 1.09 The Credit Agreement signed on July 29, 1975, provided for US$7.25 million to finance a project comprising construction of facilities and the provision of furniture, equipment, and materials for: (a) 22 existing secondary schools; (b) a technical teacher training program at the secondary teacher college; (c) improvement of three trade schools;  (d) the National Training Center at the Ministry of Social Welfare; (e) the planning sections of the Ministry of Education; (f) the headquarters of the Institute of Education at Freetown and Instructional Resource Centers at the five primary teacher colleges; and (g) an Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM. The project also provided staff and equipment for the Project Unit, and specialist services and fellowships to start up project institutions (except for (a)), and support educational research, studies on primary education, and the preparation of a University development plan. The project's design followed the then-prevailing pattern: it had multiple objectives and components scattered over various subsectors of formal and non-formal education and training. As a result, project management was complicated and there were delays in implementation.  -4- II. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION Credit Signing, Effectiveness and Closing 2.01 The IDA Credit Agreement was signed on July 29, 1975, for a credit of US$7,250,000. The Project was declared effective on September 8, 1975. The original Closing Date was September 30, 1980, but, since implementation problems had delayed construction, the Association agreed to extend the Closing Date to December 31, 1982 (para. 3.03). 2.02 Because of financial difficulties, the Government, on May 30, 1980, signed a Special Action Credit Agreement for an amount of US$1,000,000 equivalent, contributed by the European Economic Community (EEC). This credit became effective on June 12, 1980, the final disbursements were wade in April 1982, and the credit account was closed on September 26, 1982 (para. 3.03). Project Management 2.03 Project implementation arrangements for the Second Education Project were similar to those for the First Education Project (Cr. 170-SL). The Project Implementation Unit, (PIU), established within the Ministry of Finance, was responsible for monitoring implementation progress and coordinating communications with IDA. The PIU also handled all physical implementation (procurement and contract administration), and financial and accounting matters. Responsibility for the implementation of software (preparation of equipment specifications and terms of reference and supervision specialists), was established according to the normal supervision procedures within the ministry responsible for each project item. 2.04 The PIU was staffed by well-qualified Sierra Leoneans. It performed with great efficiency and responsibility, despite occasional funding problems and country-wide economic problems, which resulted in constraints on the Government's budget, balance-of-payment deficits, and import controls. The existence of a well-managed revolving fund, regularly replenished by the Government, would have greatly facilitated implementation. Only towards the end of the project, when budget constraints became severe and replenishment slow, was implementation hampered. Therefore, while the PIU had some problems with accounting and procuring equipment, it can take credit for an implementation successful in a regional and country context, despite being carried out under difficult conditions. 2.05 The PIU worked well with senior MOE officials. However, implementation of the software for the Education Planning Unit and Research components suffered as a result of the deteriorating economic environment. The constraints on the Government's budget during the implementation period caused a reduction in real civil service salaries of nearly 50%. As a result, morale declined, and retaining and recruiting qualified staff became increasingly difficult. Both the Senior Research Officer (in the Institute of Education) and the Deputy Chief Education Officer (in the Ministry of Education's Planning Unit) resigned early in the project and were never replaced, and the project's institutional objectives for components under their jurisdiction were only partly achieved. Despite these problems, implementation, as a whole, can be considered successful when viewed in terms of the regional and country context.  -5 - Design 2.06 At appraisal, it was agreed that locally based architects, engineers, and quantity surveyors would be selected to prepare all design and tender documents. As the Government decided it wanted to deal with only one consulting firm, a consortium was established, and, finally, appointed when its fee of 11.1% of construction costs was agreed upon. 2.07 The consortium started design work in early 1976. Tenders were grouped into seven contract packages according to the project institutions' geographical locations, and awarded in phases. The last tender documents were completed in April, 1979, about one year later than estimated at appraisal. This delay was largely attributable to late completion of the engineering drawings. The consortium's performance was, in general, satisfacZ ry. 2.08 The total area built was about 22% larger than planned at appraisal. The difference is mainly due to a larger circulation area for covered walkways between buildings. The increased area is justified, since weather protection is needed in the rainy climate. The buildings are functional, economical, and designed simply. Most of the buildings have been in operation for several years and provide acceptable, year-round comfort in teaching and dormitory areas. The completion mission observed, however, that during the rainy season the roofs leaked -a problem resulting from faulty construction- and did not sufficiently protect the exterior walls. The water supply has, in many locations, been a major problem, due to limited power for pumping water. Consequently, generators and water wells were provided to schools located in areas without a water supply and electric power from the main. Operating these generators has been a financial burden to the schools. Some of the schools can only afford to use the generators for part of the school day. 2.09 In the context of the studies on the development of primary education and the preparation of a Third Education project, six pilot primary schools were built under this project in order to help experiment with different designs, and to determine cost and working methods as preparation for the construction of about 500 primary school classrooms under the Third Education Project (Cr. 1353-SL). Two basic types of classrooms (square and L-shaped) were built (para. 2.15). Sites 2.10 Adequate land was available for the originally proposed expansion of existing institutions. However, three of the sites, in the Freetown area, were on steeply sloping terrain and, therefore, were expensive to build upon. All sites provided for the six pilot primary schools had reasonably good direct access, except for one site where an access road had to be built. Construction 2.11 Applications for pre-qualification through ICB procedures were received from 17 contractors, of which six were from outside Sierra Leone. Nine contractors, all operating in Sierra Leone, were prequalified for tendering.  -6- 2.12 The contractors' performance for each of the seven contract packages varied. One contractor caused delays through poor management, wbich included weak site organization and a frequent lack of readily available materials. Construction coincided with the unforeseen weakening of the local currency, which occurred in late 1978, and the introduction of import controls. Consequently, materials were frequently in short supply. 2.13 The day-to-day construction supervision was carried out by five qualified clerks-of-works appointed by the PIU. Their supervision of the contractors was, in most cases, satisfactory. Site foremen were stationed on the sites at all times, and had a positive impact on the quality of the construction. 2.14 The construction of the original components started in April, 1977, (about six months behind appraisal estimates), and six contract packages were completed in February, 1982, (about 30 months behind the appraisal estimate). The Shenge Secondary School, which is one of the most remote, and which was included in the last contract package, was completed only in April, 1983. These construction delays can be attributed largely to: (a) late completion of tender documents; (b) managerial site problems of some contractors; (c) roads which were impassable during the rainy season; (d) import restrictions and shortages of building materials; (e) theft of building materials; and (f) lengthy delays by some contractors in repairing defective work. A detailed implementation status table is shown in Annex 1. 2.15 Of the pilot primary schools (para. 2.09), three were built by direct labor ("self-help"), and three were built by small rural contractors. Construction began in March, 1982, and was completed by December, 1982. The bulk of the building materials were procured and delivered to the site through the PIU. An evaluation of the pilot project carried out by the PIU showed that the self-help and cooperation by the villagers was, in most cases, not as enthusiastic as expected, with the exception of limited assistance on site clearing, and could not be relied upon. The report also indicated that with a regular supply of building materials to the sites, the small contractors could construct a 3-classroom school within six months. Square-shaped classrooms (with metal roofs) were about 27% more expensive to build than L-shaped classrooms (with timber roofs). Furniture bids indicated that hardwood furniture cost less than wooden furniture with metal or plastic parts. Also, hardwood furniture is more suitable in remote rural areas, since it can be more easily repaired. It also became clear that a good-sized revolving fund managed by the PIU would be essential for the smooth implementation of the primary school construction program and the use of small local contractors. Furniture, Equipment, and Materials 2.16 The PIU prepared all furniture, equipment, and building material lists and tender documents, and supervised the procurement and distribution of goods to project institutions. The bulk of the furniture was procured through ICB, in five bid packages. Contracts were awarded in February, 1980. One foreign manufacturer won a bid package, while the other four went to local manufacturers (about 70% of the total cost). All equipment, vehicles and materials were procured through ICB, with the exception of items for the pilot primary schools. Equipment and materials were submitted for tendering in five bid packages, and contracts were awarded between April and October, 1980, to  foreign suppliers. Additional equipment contracts were awarded in early 1982. The timing of delivery of furniture and equipment was arranged in order to coincide with the completion of civil works contracts, since the Government did not have storage facilities. The quality and quantity of furniture and equipment was generally satisfactory. The production units of the trade centers appeared, however, to be over-supplied with equipment relative to the floor space (para. 4.18). Few or no books were supplied to the libraries. A detailed implementation status is given in Annex 2. Maintenance of Facilities 2.17 Maintenance of public buildings is the responsibility of the Ministry of Works, but the Ministry's maintenance budget is inadequate even to carry out small repairs. Maintenance of buildings may increasingly become a problem. As the institutions age, the schools are trying to find ways to get funds to carry out the most urgent maintenance, for instance, by earmarking a portion of school fees for maintenance or through help from Parent/Teacher Associations. Schools operated by religious missions use part of their fees for maintenance work, and maintenance of furniture and equipment is the responsibility of the schools. Perhaps this could be a way to arrange for maintenance of the schools under the maintenance jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Works. Covenants 2.18 The Government fulfilled all covenants with the exception of the covenant under Section 2.02(b) regarding the Planning Unit in the Ministry of Education (MOEPU). The MOEPU is operating and has made substantial contributions to the preparation of the Third Education Project, but did not receive staff and budget allocations as specified in the Credit Agreement (para. 4.51). Three covenants, Section 3.06 (requirement for fellowship holders to serve in relevant positions for two years), Section 4.05 (establisbment of tracer systems), and 4.06 (operation of production units) were partly accompl