Report finds 70% of ADB projects in RI unsustainable<\/p>\n
Tony Hotland, Jakarta<\/p>\n
At least 70 percent of Asian Development Bank (ADB) projects
\nin Indonesia are not likely to produce lasting economic or social
\nbenefits, a report distributed on Tuesday by a group of non-
\ngovernmental organizations claims.<\/p>\n
The Manila-based bank has channeled a total of US$16 billion
\ninto Indonesia to finance 260 projects here since 1968.<\/p>\n
"The ADB's operations evaluation office found that half of all
\naudited projects rated successful by the bank were of
\nquestionable sustainability. There's a considerable likelihood
\nthat more than 70 percent of Indonesia's ADB projects will fail
\nto produce lasting economic and social benefits to the country,"
\nthe report by Stephanie Fried of the Environmental Defense
\norganization in Hawaii says.<\/p>\n
According to the United States' Congressional International
\nFinancial Institution Advisory Commission, the report said, a
\nlack of project sustainability is synonymous with project
\nfailure, and sustainability is a much more important indicator of
\nsuccess or failure than what the ADB calls "general success" or
\nwhat the World Bank calls "successful outcomes".<\/p>\n
The ADB rates the projects it supports under the categories of
\n"generally successful", "partially successful", and
\n"unsuccessful".<\/p>\n
The report says that if the ADB projects that are rated
\ngenerally successful were really successful and if this was
\nextrapolated to the $16 billion debt owed by Indonesia to the
\nbank, "this would mean that close to $5.9 billion of Indonesia's
\ndebt load was generated from largely unsuccessful, wasteful or
\nharmful projects."<\/p>\n
Furthermore, projects in Indonesia appraised as generally
\nsuccessful by the bank involve unmonitored resettlement
\ncomponents, projects where record-keeping seems to have been
\nabandoned, projects that are patently unsustainable, and projects
\nthat are so poorly structured that rapid deterioration of project
\ninfrastructure is inevitable, the report said.<\/p>\n
The report was distributed here by a number of local non-
\ngovernmental organizations, including Infid and DebtWatch
\nIndonesia, in response to the ADB's 37th annual meeting in Jeju,
\nSouth Korea, which ended on Monday.<\/p>\n
Selected projects funded by ADB<\/p>\n
1. Nusa Tenggara agricultural development: This US$137 million
\nirrigation project was started in 1992 and completed in 1996. The
\nproject, aimed at draining a total area of 1,440 hectares in
\nKambaniru, Sumba Timur, was judged by the ADB as "generally
\nsuccessful". The project led to the relocation of more than 1,000
\nfamilies and the loss of fertile lands.<\/p>\n
2. Food crop sector program: The $250 million project was aimed
\nat boosting the growth of the country's food crop sector. It was
\nrated by the ADB as only being "partially successful" in a 1997
\nevaluation as some of the funds were used to buy raw materials
\nfor the textile industry.<\/p>\n
3. Health and education project: A $38.4 million project aimed at
\nimproving health services in four provinces, it was judged to be
\n"partially successful" in a 1997 evaluation as it was carried out
\nbased on the mistaken assumption that physical changes in health
\ncenters -- such as the repainting of walls and procurement of
\nkitchen and laundry equipment -- would improve service quality.<\/p>\n
4. Agroindustry project: This $29.5 million project was aimed at
\ndeveloping the agricultural sector. The project was judged by the
\nADB as being unsuccessful in a 1996 evaluation as 90 percent of
\nborrowers defaulted on their loans, which had been channeled
\nthrough the now-defunct Bank Bumi Daya.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/report-finds-70-of-adb-projects-in-ri-unsustainable-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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