SUVA, FIJI (28 September 2023) — Systematic and objective monitoring, evaluation, and learning from projects and programs are critical for Pacific developing member countries to achieve their development goals, panelists at a seminar organized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said.
Speaking at the event “Supporting Development Projects in Fiji and the Pacific”, ADB Independent Evaluation Department Deputy Director General Sona Shrestha said: “Over the years, support from international finance institutions has expanded steadily in terms of financing and numbers of projects. Translating increased development assistance to the region into better results for the people of the Pacific will require stronger focus on project design, implementation capacity, and early identification and mitigation of risks.”
Pacific countries face unique development challenges and opportunities. Achieving the development aspirations of the region while addressing the key risks will require significant resources and support. Major partners have been scaling up and diversifying their development support. Support from ADB and the World Bank, for example, has expanded in terms of financing, numbers of projects, and modalities. Their Pacific portfolios now exceed $3 billion each. Grant resources from concessional windows such as the Asian Development Fund and International Development Association and from Australia and other bilateral partners have also grown.
“ADB is working closely with our Pacific partners to strengthen project implementation in ways that recognize the unique constraints that they face,” said ADB’s Pacific Subregional Office Regional Director Aaron Batten. “This includes more resources for project design quality and readiness, building capacity on project management and working closely with development partners to focus available resources on larger and more impactful programs.”
Evaluations show that delivering projects and programs successfully and sustainably continues to be a major challenge in the Pacific. This raises important questions for governments, development partners, and regional organizations on how these operations can be better designed and implemented to deliver results.
Speaking from the governments perspective, Fiji Permanent Secretary of Finance Shiri Gounder highlighted the importance of organizational capacity, project readiness, and policy-based loans to support reforms and institutional constraints. The panel discussed what stakeholders can do differently and better to improve development results toward the aspirations of the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent recently adopted by leaders of the region.
About Independent Evaluation at ADB
ADB's Independent Evaluation, reporting to the Board of Directors through the Development Effectiveness Committee, contributes to development effectiveness by providing feedback on ADB's policies, strategies, operations, and special concerns in Asia and the Pacific.
