Revelations by the ADB

An Asian Development Bank (ADB) document has revealed that one of every four ongoing projects it is financing in Pakistan has been facing hitches in implementation as various problems ranging from poor governance to outright inefficiency persist. The document has revealed that out of $4.5 billion worth of 25 schemes, six valuing $1.8 billion have been declared either ‘problematic’ or ‘potential ones in the making’, highlighting the sort of confidence exuded by the government’s performance so far. The faults lie mainly in the administration’s inability to execute and move ahead with the projects, crippled further by inefficient management and handling of micro-steps that signify progress. Such feedback from international lenders and financial institutions is hardly a new phenomenon as reports of gross incompetence and failure to efficiently utilise project-lending has often been the case with Pakistan, made worse by the country’s failure to recover and compensate for time lost. As a result, the cost of projects has often escalated with allegations of corruption then taking the front seat.



Pakistan’s bureaucracy remains one of its weakest links. The many so-called managers tasked to complete projects tend to be political appointees, and those who are competent, are not entirely free from the clutches of interference from political bosses. The country has often been either subject to a shortage of funds or plagued by inefficient management of these. The case of the $1.5 billion Jamshoro power project is one of those faced with slow implementation. The poor quality of the progress that has been made signals the need for accountability and an overhaul of the way governments function in this country. Regardless of whatever claims authorities make, progress in the power sector has been slow. Various deals in the sector may have been signed, however, when it comes to sorting out deep-rooted issues within the country and its systems, Pakistan remains a victim, redeemed only by either external debt or the very few who still work for its betterment. That number, however, has been drastically decreasing. The ADB feels the country will be unable to complete the projects by June this year, and we agree with that projection.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 4^th, 2016.

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