LAHORE
The World Bank has once again restructured Rs 2.96 billion economic revitalisation of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, (ERKF) for the fourth time, following its execrable implementation, documents available with Pakistan Today reveal.
The restructuring entails changes to the scope of the program that became effective in October 2011 under the Multi Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) with a closing of June 30, 2015. The close date was extended up to 2020 with its first restructuring, besides the change of scope.
The KP government has been asked now to address the gaps in the progress reports by providing additional details and updating the safeguards checklists, to ensure that all the activities of the project are adequately covered under the relevant safeguards documents.
Giving the reason for further restrictions, the documents highlight that an increased evidence was needed that would prove that providing job opportunities is an effective response to post-conflict situations as it revitalises the economy, restoring peace and citizen-state trust.
However, the documents mention, shifts in donors’ priorities meant that they were no longer able to provide the expected resources. “Thus the two pipeline programs were dropped, and this AF is being processed instead,” the documents mentioned, adding that the given urgent situation, especially with regard to the repatriation of TDPs, the additional finance that will help expedite the utilisation of resources, thus creating additional and much-needed job opportunities.
With the change of scope, ERKF now will deal with direct resources to the economic sectors identified in the respective growth strategies and development plans of KP and FATA, such as tourism (KP) and marble and agribusiness (FATA).
“On the basis of the lessons learned and inputs received from the TPMA, some of the original PMIs and intermediate outcome indicators for the components are either being revised or dropped and indicator has been revised to allow the client to also capture the investments mobilised from private enterprises by the MGs (Matching Grant),” the restructuring paper added.
The restructuring also revised the progress indicators accordingly. The restructuring entails the reallocation of USD 1.5 million from the component of institution building to foster investment and implementation of regulatory reforms.
Another component of project management support is added since KP did not organise the initially planned road show in the United Kingdom.
The program paper seeks the approval of the Regional Vice President (RVP) of the South Asia Region (SAR) to (i) provide an additional grant in the amount of USD 19 million to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (ERKF).
The document provides a justification for and details of the additional financing (AF) and Level 1 restructuring and ongoing USD 20 million ERKF project. The proposed additional grant would help finance (i) a scale-up of the project’s matching grant (MG) activities in KP and FATA, and (ii) support to the competitive sectors of KP and FATA.
The ERKF project has missed most of its end-targets by providing MGs worth USD 13.2 million to 1,601 (FATA 408, KP1,193) crisis-affected SMEs (including 32 women entrepreneurs) and creating 8,843 direct jobs (including 126 jobs for women) across KP and FATA.
The project supported the provision of public services through private providers by offering MGs to 25 micro-hydropower projects in remote districts of KP that were previously off-grid.
According to the Systematic Operations Risk-rating Tool (SORT), the overall risk to the project is still rated as ‘Substantial’. It says, “The clients will be encouraged to mitigate this by working with local civil society organisations, Women Chambers of Commerce, Women Business Development Center, and other business associations. The environmental and social risks’ rating remains moderate for the AF.
A few gaps were identified during the reviews of the project Progress Reports. However, the team will continue to observe the situation on the ground to take timely action with the support of the management.
