Uganda - Fourth Highway Project

 Fourth highway project Report No: ; Type: Report/Evaluation Memorandum ; Country: Uganda; Region: Africa; Sector: Highways; Major Sector: Transportation; ProjectID: P002936 December 29, 1995 Uganda: Fourth Highway Project (Credit 1803-UG) The Implementation Completion Report (ICR) on the Uganda Fourth Highway project (Credit 1803-UG, approved in FY87) was prepared by the Africa Regional Office, with Appendix B contributed by the Borrower. The Credit for US$18 million was approved on May 21, 1987, and closed on December 31, 1994, one year behind the scheduled date. A total of US$17.41 million was disbursed. The project objectives were to: (a) protect investments in roads; (b) help improve maintenance planning and operations of rural feeder roads, and (c) strengthen road institutions responsible for project implementation. The project itself consisted of three components: the rehabilitation of two trunk road sections; a pilot rural road maintenance program (PRRMP); and technical assistance and consulting services to assist the Ministry of Works and Ministry of Local Government in project implementation and transport studies. The project achieved its major physical objectives. Some 84 kms of two high-priority trunk roads were rehabilitated or strengthened. In addition, rehabilitation was completed on 190 kms of rural/feeder roads, nearly double the 108 kms targeted, and routine maintenance was carried out on other such roads. Rates of return for the trunk roads were somewhat lower than appraisal estimates (17 and 60 vs. 30 and 63 percent, respectively) primarily because of lower than expected traffic volume on one of the roads. However, there were delays affecting both physical and technical assistance objectives caused by procurement disagreements, and changing government priorities and policies; only half of the money budgeted for the rural road maintenance program was spent. Moreover, little institutional development occurred. The ICR rates the project's outcome as satisfactory, its sustainability as likely, its institutional development as partial, and the Bank's performance as satisfactory. The Operations Evaluation Department accepts the project outcome rating and the rating of the Bank's performance. However, it rates sustainability as uncertain and institutional development as negligible because of the limited achievements with regard to the PRRMP, the organization of maintenance, and technical assistance. These in turn affect the sustainability of not only the project but also of the rehabilitation of all the country's roads. The main lesson learned from this operation is that a mid-term review and closer supervision would have bared the reasons for the weak implementation performance of the implementing agencies and consultancies in the institutional areas, and could have helped remedy these. The ICR is adequate although it could be more analytic about the project shortcomings in procurement and contracting, or the lack of institutional development. Also, its discussion of the future operation of completed components is sketchy. No audit is planned.