ROAD SECTOR PROGRAMME SUPPORT PHASE 2 (RSPS 2)

Transcription

1 Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Danida Reformulated Sector Programme Support Document For the Second Phase ROAD SECTOR PROGRAMME SUPPORT PHASE 2 (RSPS 2) ZAMBIA This report contains restricted information and is for official use only. Ref. No.104.Zam June 2009

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION NATIONAL SECTOR CONTEXT SIGNIFICANCE OF ROAD SECTOR SECTOR POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES SECTOR INSTITUTIONAL SET-UP SECTOR INVESTMENT PLAN DONOR SUPPORT SECTOR REFORMS CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES AND PRIORITY THEMES Environment Human Rights and Democracy Gender Equality HIV/AIDS AGREED ASSISTANCE DEVELOPMENT AND IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVES OF RSPS OVERALL STRATEGY FOR RSPS CAPACITY BUILDING OBJECTIVES OF RSPS 2 COMPONENTS COHERENCE BETWEEN COMPONENTS MEASURES TO ADDRESS POVERTY REDUCTION CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES & PRIORITY THEMES COMPONENTS ELABORATION OF THE COMPONENTS SUPPORT FOR REHABILITATION OF MAIN ROADS SUPPORT TO DISTRICTS INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT OTHER AREAS OF SUPPORT Financial Support Monitoring and Reviews Unallocated BUDGET MANAGEMENT AND ORGANISATION PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT COMPONENT MANAGEMENT FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & PROCUREMENT GENERAL ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS BY NRFA PROCUREMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT AND UNALLOCATED BUDGETS MONITORING, REPORTING REVIEWS & EVALUATIONS... 28

3 8.1 ROAD SECTOR MONITORING AND EVALUATION RSPS 2 MONITORING AND REPORTING REVIEWS ASSESSMENT OF KEY ASSUMPTIONS AND RISKS ASSUMPTIONS RISK ASSESSMENT IMPLEMENTATION PLAN ANNEX 1: OUTPUT-BASED BUDGETS ANNEX 2: ROADSIP II MONITORING AND EVALUATION KEY INDICATORS 35 ANNEX 3: GENDER & HIV/AIDS MANAGEMENT PLAN ANNEX 4: ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT PLAN VOLUME II: COMPONENT DESCRIPTION DOCUMENTS

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5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This document describes phase 2 of the Zambia Road Sector Programme Support (RSPS 2). RSPS 2 builds on the lessons learned during RSPS 1 ( ) and supports the national sector programme, ROADSIP II ( ). The overall goal of ROADSIP II is the promotion of equitable economic growth and better living conditions in Zambia by bringing about a sustainable improvement in the condition of transport infrastructure. The road sector has undergone significant restructuring and reform in conformity with the Transport Sector Policy, which was launched in RSPS 2 will contribute to this reform process, particularly in the areas of capacity building, improving the core network to maintainable standard and strengthening the management of the district and community level road network. The original support aimed at assisting the Road Development Agency in improving and bringing under regular maintenance the strategic main road network by contributing to improvement of the link between Mongu and Sesheke in Western Province and in a network approach, to improve the adjacent district roads and community access tracks. At the time of formulation of RSPS 2, the road section from Senanga to Sesheke could not be confirmed as a priority in the ROADSIP II. The Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) suggested however that the proposed link would become part of an international corridor from the Zambian Copperbelt to Namibia and the port of Walvis Bay. Danida financed a feasibility study, which showed that the international transport corridor would be economically feasible only if the whole corridor is upgraded to bituminous standard and a bridge connection across the Zambezi is established. Subsequently, GRZ had to secure financing for the whole corridor. GRZ has not secured financing for the whole corridor and rehabilitation of Senanga Sesheke is therefore not economically feasible. Also, the Mid-term review of the ROADSIP II has yet to confirm that the road from Senanga to Sesheke is a priority. Consequently, it has not been possible to implement RSPS 2 as planned and a reformulation was required. In an attempt to look into alternative projects, RDA proposed to expand the geographical focus area of RSPS 2 to include Luapula Province, which is one of the poorest in Zambia. Alternative projects have been identified. A Reformulation Consultant visited Zambia in January 2009 and made a proposal for changes, which was appraised by the Joint Sector Review of RSPS 2 in March In that process, it was recommended to reformulate the RSPS 2 along the lines presented in this document. The interim report of the mid-term review of the ROADSIP II of April 2009 indicates that the funds available will be insufficient to maintain the core road network of 40,000 km. Thus the situation calls for reconsideration of the prioritisation of the road sector interventions and RSPS 2 will have an increased emphasis on periodic maintenance of i

6 main roads in order to preserve infrastructure assets and levels of service. As the geographical coverage of the Main Roads Component will include Luapula Province, the support to districts roads will follow a network approach, essential to secure the full benefits and poverty orientation. The Institutional Component has also been reformulated to correspond with the changes in the other components. Most responsibility for the implementation and management of RSPS 2 will be with the Zambian authorities. The ROADSIP II Steering Committee provides overall coordination. A RSPS2 Coordination Committee has taken over the management responsibilities and is functioning well. Danish funds for RSPS 2 will be disbursed from the Danish Embassy via the Ministry of Finance and National Planning to the National Road Fund Agency (NRFA), which now administers all funds for the road sector. NRFA will be responsible for overall financial management and reporting. Independent audits of RSPS 2 funds will be carried out annually. Harmonisation and alignment of Danish development assistance in the sector will be promoted under RSPS 2 by a strategy of moving gradually away from separate Danish support for discrete activities and towards joint support with GRZ and other sector donors. One of the aims of RSPS 2 will be that any possible future Danish support to the sector could be in the form of sector budget support. Lessons learnt will be fed into the emerging national strategies and guidelines for a national sector programme suitable for sector wide support. RSPS 2 has an overall Danida budget of DKK 400 million and comprises three components with a number of subcomponents. Separate component descriptions have been prepared for each component. They are briefly described below. Support to the Rehabilitation of Main Roads DKK 240 million The Component includes the following: A separate feasibility study was prepared for the first road section from Mongu to Senanga, The study showed that rehabilitation was economically feasible. The works were completed in April The remaining funds will be spent with emphasis on periodic maintenance to maintain the infrastructure assets including: Western Province: M10 Senanga Sesheke road (Spot improvement); M9 Lusaka Mongu trunk road from the western borders of the Kafue National Park (Tetayoyo Gate) to Mongu (Periodic maintenance); Luapula Province: M3 Chembe Mansa (Periodic maintenance); M3/D79 Mansa Nchelenge (Periodic maintenance). In addition, a weighbridge on M9 near Mumbwa has been included. In the case of remaining funds, these are to be allocated to high priority road projects ii

7 under ROADSIP. Support to Districts DKK 70 million The support to districts has three subcomponents: (A) Core district road rehabilitation, (B) Community access improvements and (C) Capacity building. The overall aim of this component is to establish sustainable improvement and management of district level access. The original component was confined to Western Province and linked to the Main Road in a network approach. As the geographical coverage of the Main Roads Component has been expanded to include Luapula Province, the support to districts will follow. The rehabilitation of core roads subcomponent A- will focus on identifying and improving water crossings and finding workable low-cost solutions to improving district roads. The aim will be to balance maximum impact in terms of improving basic access with sustainable solutions to road improvements in difficult soil conditions. Subcomponent B Support for access improvements will aim at reducing bottlenecks through spot improvements to non-core roads, tracks and paths on a community-led, demand-responsive basis. Access improvements will aim to reduce bottlenecks through spot improvements to non-core roads, tracks and paths on a community-led, demandresponsive basis. This support will, initially, be confined to Western Province and, based on lessons learnt expanded to Luapula other provinces over time. Subcomponent C will support and pioneer the establishment of Local Road Authorities in districts in Western and Luapula Provinces. Support to capacity creation within the private sector to improve and maintain the road network through enhancing the capacity of local contractors and consultants is also included. It will be as an important contribution to the Africa Commission s goal of facilitating private sector development and employment creation. Institutional Support DKK 27 million (incl. DKK 9 million for TA) The institutional component comprise of three subcomponents. The first subcomponent provides management support to RDA in relation to overall planning and project management capacity and in two additional areas: (i) further integration of the management of environmental and social issues into RDA, and (ii) the development of national guidelines for the establishment and operation of local road authorities (LRAs) and district facilitation of accessibility improvements at the district and iii

8 community levels. The second subcomponent provide support to the Road Transport and Safety Agency for the development of a national accident information system, the development of national road safety education campaigns for schools & road side communities and for undertaking road safety audits. The third subcomponent will support the establishment of a Social Accounting Matrix for the Transport Sector and an indicator framework. Technical Advisors (DKK 9 million included in component budgets) One International Technical Advisor, supporting both RDA and local Road Authorities, is foreseen for duration of the programme. Local Advisors may be appointed to the two provinces as a supplement. Financial Support DKK 50 million An amount of DKK 50 million was reserved for furthering harmonisation and alignment of development assistance, e.g. through targeted sector budget support to the Local Road Authorities (LRAs), when the conditions for such support have been established. The funding gap of the Road Fund does not permit allocation of funds towards rural and also to some extent, district roads. Sector Budget Support for that should therefore be given priority in the 2009 work plan to be targeted towards LRA's responsible for District and Rural Roads maintenance. Monitoring and Steering DKK 5 million Overall management of the programme will be the responsibility of the RSPS 2 Coordination Committee. The Danish Embassy will participate in this Coordination Committee which will be responsible for monitoring RSPS 2. This will include organising Reviews. An amount of DKK 5 million has been included in RSPS 2 budget to fund consultancy support to Reviews, technical support to the Danish Embassy and programme wide impact monitoring of RSPS 2. Unallocated DKK 8 million The RSPS 2 budget includes an unallocated amount of DKK 8 million for activities or components that cannot be identified at the time of preparation of the programme. iv

9 RSPS 2 LOCATION MAP Nchelenge Senanga Mansa Chembe Bridge Pedicle road Kafue Park Gate Mongu Senanga Sesheke v

10 COVER PAGE Country: Zambia Sector: Roads National Agencies: Road Development Agency; National Road Fund Agency; Road Transport and Safety Agency; Department of Housing and Infrastructure Development; Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis and Research Duration: 5 years Starting Date: 1 st November 2007 Completion Date: 31 th October 2012 Overall Budget: DKK 400 million (including DKK 9 million for Technical Advisors) Details of Components: The Programme comprises three components with a number of subcomponents: Support to the Rehabilitation of Main Roads: Rehabilitation of Mongu Senanga Road and repairs and improvement of selected main roads in Western and Luapula Provinces Support to Districts: (i) Rehabilitation of District and Feeder Road, (ii) Improvements to Community Access, and (iii) Capacity Building Institutional Support: (i) Institutional Support to RDA, (ii) Support to the Road Transport and Safety Agency, and (iii) Support to Social Accounting Matrix and Transport Indicators viii

11 ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS CC CSO Danida DKK DRC EC EIA ESPS GRZ Km LRA M&E MCT MLGH MOFNP MWS NRFA RDA RE RHCP ROADSIP RSPS RTSA SBS TA TOR USD ZIPAR ZMK Coordination Committee Central Statistics Office Danish International Development Assistance Danish Kroner Democratic Republic of Congo European Community Environmental Impact Assessment Environmental Sector Programme Support Government of the Republic of Zambia Kilometre Local Road Authority Monitoring and Evaluation Ministry of Communication and Transport Ministry of Local Government and Housing Ministry of Finance and National Planning Ministry of Works and Supply National Road Fund Agency Roads Development Agency Regional Engineer Refugee-Hosting Communities Programme Road Sector Investment Programme Road Sector Programme Support Road Transport and Safety Agency Sector Budget Support Technical assistance Terms of Reference United States Dollar Zambian Institute for Policy Analysis and Research Zambian Kwacha Exchange rates DKK 1.00 = ZMK 993 USD 1.00 = DKK 5,293 USD 1.00 = ZMK 5,260 Euro 1.00 = DKK 7.47 (Rates of exchange 26 th June 2009 Financial Times, UK) Fiscal Year: January-31 December ix

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13 1. INTRODUCTION The road sector is one of the priority areas for Danish support to Zambia. Danida has been involved in the sector through the repair and rehabilitation of major roads using project assistance since The first phase of a more comprehensive road sector programme support (RSPS), also covering local roads and institutional development, commenced in December 2002 and focused on the Lusaka-Mongu corridor. Based on the positive experience from Phase 1, the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) requested continued Danish support in a phase 2, with a focus on the corridor from Mongu southwards to Sesheke. At the time of formulation of RSPS 2, the road section from Senanga to Sesheke could not be confirmed as a priority in the ROADSIP II. The Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ) suggested however that the proposed link would become part of an international corridor from the Zambian Copperbelt to Namibia and the port of Walvis Bay. Danida financed a feasibility study, which showed that the international transport corridor would be economically feasible only if the whole corridor is upgraded to bituminous standard and if a bridge connection across the Zambezi is established. Subsequently, GRZ had to secure financing for the whole corridor. GRZ has not secured financing for the whole corridor and the connecting access from Mongu to the Copperbelt has not been secured yet, long stretches are earth roads in bad condition and no copper trucks can access Mongu at present unless they first pass by Lusaka. The rehabilitation of Senanga Sesheke is therefore not economically feasible. Also, the Mid-term review of the ROADSIP II has yet to confirm that the road from Senanga to Sesheke is a priority. Consequently, it is not possible to implement RSPS 2 as planned and a reformulation is required. A Reformulation Consultant visited Zambia in January 2009 and made a proposal for changes, which was appraised by the Joint Sector Review of RSPS 2 in March In that process, it was recommended to reformulate the RSPS 2 along the lines presented in this document. 2. NATIONAL SECTOR CONTEXT 2.1 Significance of Road Sector Zambia is a large and landlocked country that is heavily dependent on its road network for both internal and external transport and trade. While most of the population and industry of the country lie in a narrow corridor along the line of rail and the Copperbelt, a significant proportion of the population remains in rural areas. Within the rural areas, the population is widely distributed and provincial and district administrative centres are linked together by long sections of road. Road conditions, therefore, have a major 1

14 influence on all aspects of life in Zambia, and they have significant effects on the rural poor, particularly those living in the more remote rural areas. There is a strong correlation between geographic isolation and poverty and roads play a vital role in improving access to important social and economic services. High levels of poverty continue to be associated with the more remote provinces such as Western (83%) and Luapula (79%), with the lowest levels found in more urbanised provinces such as Lusaka (48%) and Copperbelt (56%) (Fifth National Development Plan, FNDP, 2006). Transport and construction contribute about 13% towards Zambia s Gross Domestic Product with roads being the dominant transport sub-sector. However, the main contribution of roads to the economy is a catalyst for development and facilitator in the provision of socio-economic infrastructure and for other services aimed at stimulating growth in the four priority areas of agriculture, mining, manufacturing and tourism. The foundations of the economy are the primary sectors of agriculture and mining, which are both heavily dependent on land transport links for their success. Mineral deposits are of no economic value unless they can be transported to the market. Agriculture also has great potential for enhancing economic growth and reducing poverty, although poor transport infrastructure is a significant bottleneck to agricultural development and to Zambia s economic progress in general. Tourism is a growing sector, which is also dependent on good road links. Zambia has a total road network length of 67,671 kilometres of which 37,000 km are gazetted and the remainder are ungazetted feeder, national park and estate roads. Currently, a reclassification of the network is being carried out as the previous classification has been found to be out of date and no longer appropriate. However, within the overall road network, a total of 40,113 kilometres has already been identified and designated as the core road network. Zambia has been hard hit by the global economic crisis, as the price of its main export commodity has fallen dramatically and a substantial depreciation of the ZMK against the USD has occurred. The consequence on the transport sector is that the expenditure ceilings for investments and maintenance will be reduced as Government revenues in general and the revenue from the fuel levy being the main source for maintenance expenditures will decline. This situation calls for a reconsideration on how the road sector interventions are prioritised a likely outcome of which would be increased emphasis on periodic maintenance in order to preserve the infrastructure assets. The transport sector remains essential for diversification of the economy in terms of reduced transport time and costs, but also in terms of employment generation especially if labour-based methodologies are introduced at a larger scale than has been the case so far. The reformulation has taken note of the current macroeconomic situation, which is likely to persist for some years. 2

15 2.2 Sector Policies and Programmes Overall development policy in Zambia is guided by the Fifth National Development Plan ( ), which succeeded the previous Poverty Reduction Programme. This links growth with equity and social protection through promoting broad-based wealth and job creation. The fourth and final goal of the Plan is particularly relevant to the road sector: Long periods of neglect in infrastructure maintenance due, in part, to the curtailment of development budgets in the interest of fiscal balance, have resulted in the country s characteristic deterioration of its transport networks. It is in this regard that, as one of its priorities in this Plan, the major transport arteries that connect the countryside to the market are focused upon so as to ensure basic minimum connectivity for moving poor people s income-yielding commodities over long distances. (Fifth National Development Plan, 2006). Given that rural areas, where approximately 80% of the population live, produce more than 90% of Zambia s staple crop (maize), improving connectivity is vital for the country s growth and food security (ROADSIP II Bankable Document). In the early 1990s, the Government of Zambia embarked on a programme of reform to reverse the decline in the state of the country s road network. Following the international guidelines of the World Bank-led Road Maintenance Initiative, the preservation of the road network was accorded top priority. A core network, defined in the ROADSIP II Bankable Document as the bare minimum road network that Zambia requires to be maintained continuously and on sustainable basis to realise the potential in the country for poverty alleviation and economic growth, was identified. Funding for the maintenance of the core network was secured by establishing a Road Fund under the management of a National Road Board. Based on the success of these changes, the Government launched a ten-year Road Sector Investment Programme (ROADSIP) in 1997 with the broad aim of restoring Zambia s road network to a standard adequate to support the country s development needs and putting in place the capacity and resources required to sustain the improved network. The first phase of this national sector programme was completed and a second phase, ROADSIP II, commenced in ROADSIP I concentrated on the rehabilitation of roads rather than maintenance. ROADSIP II takes into account periodic and routine maintenance of those roads, which have been recently rehabilitated and of those still in fair to good condition. One of the main targets of ROADSIP II is to place all roads in good and fair condition under regular routine maintenance in order to preserve the investment. Due to the scale of the task to be undertaken, the period for ROADSIP II was extended up to The overall development of the sector is guided by the Transport Sector Policy, which was launched in May This policy sets directions for the development of the road sector through strengthening coordination and streamlining management. 3

16 2.3 Sector Institutional Set-up Under the reformed institutional set-up for the roads sub-sector, the three agencies have been established. Each agency is controlled by a Governing Board and reports to a designated parent ministry: Road Development Agency under the Ministry of Works and Supply Road Transport and Safety Agency under the Ministry of Communications and Transport; and National Road Fund Agency under the Ministry of Finance and National Planning. The Boards are appointed by the respective ministers and comprise representatives from the private and public sectors. All three agencies report to the Committee of Ministers on Road Maintenance Initiative. Currently this Council comprises 8 ministers with responsibilities related to, or interests in, the roads sub-sector, including the Ministers of Finance, Works and Supply, Communications and Transport, Local Government and Housing, Agriculture and Cooperatives and Tourism and Environment. After a promising start, the road sector reforms appear to have been delayed one reason being the capacity constraints encountered at all administrative levels. There seem also to be a current process where the workload is concentrated at the higher levels of the administration as opposed to a process that delegates and optimises division of labour. 4

17 2.4 Sector Investment Plan ROADSIP II is the framework for maintenance and investments in the road sector. The total budget over ten years is around Euro 1.2 billion. The funding for the road sector comes from a variety of sources. The Annual disbursement in 2006 under ROADSIP II to the roads sector was approximately Euro 70 million, of which one fourth was from the fuel levy, one fifth from regular GRZ funds and the remaining from donor funds. EU is by far the biggest donor, contributing over a third of the total disbursement followed by OPEC and Danida. The funds available for maintenance cover about 30 per cent of the projected maintenance needs of the core road network. The plans in the ROADSIP II Bankable Document indicate that the maintenance gap should be closed by 2013 provided that: (1) donors continue assisting to clear backlog maintenance, (2) The National Road Fund Agency (NRFA) receives all revenues collected for road maintenance and (3) Government budgets are spent. The current financial crisis has, however, impacted negatively on the Zambian economy and the consumption of fuel has gone down and thus reduced the amount of fuel levy collected. 2.5 Donor Support The road sub-sector has received continued strong support from a number of donors, notably World Bank, European Union, African Development Bank, KfW, NORAD, JICA and Danida. Coordination between donors within the sector is generally good. Most sector donors have expressed their intention to work towards greater harmonisation of support with government systems. A Joint Assistance Strategy is under development by the Ministry of Finance and National Planning in dialogue with the donor partners. The dialogue between the GRZ and cooperation partners has lately been affected by capacity constraints in GRZ. Regular sessions have been disrupted, e.g. the Joint Donor Forum Mission (JDFM) in October 2008 and the non-participation of the cooperation partners in the Road Sector Investment Programme (ROADSIP II) Steering Committee meetings. 2.6 Sector Reforms The road sector in Zambia has undergone fundamental reforms aimed at improving the efficiency of the sector. In 2002 a new Transport Policy was adopted. This led to the legislation establishing the three agencies described above. Responsibility for all roads was brought under one Road Development Agency (RDA) and all funding for the sector was brought under NRFA. A third Agency, the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA), was established to be responsible for implementation of policies on road transport and traffic management and their enforcement. With the establishment of these agencies, the fragmented funding and management of the 5

18 road sector that prevailed previously was reversed. However, such far-reaching changes have taken time to implement. Establishment of the Governing Boards was only accomplished in The reform process has happened swiftly thereafter and by end , the majority of planned posts were filled with competent staff. In that respect the reform process is complete and the institutions exist. However, these institutions are still young in terms of organisational development and the staff is new. They are working well, while needing some time to develop their own corporate culture, systems and procedures. Many of the procedures are currently similar to the original parent organisation procedures and a lot of the staff appointed from outside the parent organisation still has to become familiar with the systems. All across the agencies and organisations, concerted efforts are under way to speed up this assimilation process. The Local Government Authorities (LGAs), i.e. district, municipal and city councils were appointed as Local Road Authorities (LRAs) in early This decision ensured the administrative consistency between the Public Roads Act, 2002 and local governance. A draft Circular on the Management of Rural and Urban Roads delineating the roles and responsibilities of the LRAs was issued on 24 April A draft Model Agreement for the cooperation between RDA and the LRAs remains to be finalised and to be agreed; resulting in being the formal basis for RDA s interaction with the LRAs. It is unfortunate that the Model Agreement cannot be finalised. Most district councils do not have qualified engineers and technicians leaving the councils with limited means to undertake the road management responsibilities assigned to them. Since the funding of RDA s operational costs for its administration is already constrained, there are limited prospects in the short to medium-term for LRAs to access operational funds from RDA for road management tasks. A very limited amount of NRFA funds have so far been channelled through the LRAs. The combined effect of limited technical and financial resources severely constrains the effective establishment of the LRAs. 2.7 Cross-cutting Issues and Priority Themes Environment Zambia is well endowed with diverse natural resources. There are large areas reserved for wildlife conservation and significant forest and water resources. The management of these resources is important for the economy of the country in both the short and the long-term. Although environmental degradation has not yet generally proved a widespread problem, there are some worrying signs. For example, the rate of deforestation is very high. Enforcement of regulations in some of the large Game Management Areas is weak. Poaching has led to a decline in game. Fish resources have faced similar over-exploitation. Against this background, the opening up of access to environmentally sensitive rural areas through improved roads represents a potential risk to preservation of the environment. For this reason, wider environmental assessments 6

19 (e.g. Strategic Environmental Assessment) are expected to be required in connection with major road network developments. In 1990 the Government introduced the Environmental Protection and Pollution Control Act. This created the Environmental Council of Zambia that is empowered to establish inspectorates to monitor and enforce environmental protection measures. Under the Act, regulations were introduced in 1997 requiring Environmental Impact Assessments to be made for all new projects. Within the framework of these regulations, the appropriate line ministry is responsible for developing specific sector guidelines and regulations. Within the road sector, environmental impact procedures are generally well established. However, the understanding of good environmental management practices by implementers of road works is still weak. Overall, much remains to be done to bring the policies and strategies that have been formulated to effective implementation on the ground Human Rights and Democracy Zambia has made considerable progress over the last decade in the transition from a oneparty state to plural politics. Although the Government is committed to a fully decentralised system of governance, economic and political power currently remains centralised. The slow pace of decentralisation is one of the major governance issues that remain to be resolved. This has impacted on the road sector reform process. The most recent major reforms in the sector pay little attention to devolution and, in the absence of strong local government, have resorted to a more centralised control of the road system. The introduction of LRAs provides an opportunity to reverse this trend Gender Equality Attaining gender equality in development is a major objective of the Government of Zambia. Gender mainstreaming activities are guided by the National Gender Policy and the Strategic Plan of Action ( ). The Strategic Plan incorporates the provisions of various international conventions to which Zambia has subscribed. Despite some advances, progress on gender mainstreaming in development activities has been less than anticipated and gender focal points in ministries have been less effective than expected. Despite concerted efforts by different stakeholders to push the government to increase the budget allocation to the Gender Unit, it continues to be under-funded. In order to elevate the importance of gender issues and give fresh impetus to mainstreaming gender equality, the Government has created a new Ministry of Women s Affairs, which will take up all functions and the coordinating role previously undertaken by the Gender Unit under the President s Office. The national gender policy includes a specific section on Transport and Communication and includes a commitment to reduce the constraints women face in transport and 7

20 communication in their daily lives. Household studies in rural Zambia and other parts of sub-saharan Africa show that women generally spend significantly more time than men on transport. However, this is predominantly for carrying out tasks in connection with domestic and farming duties which take place within a kilometre radius of the village. By contrast, men are mostly responsible for the longer journeys in connection with marketing and carrying out other business outside the home. The conclusion is that interventions aimed at improving transport infrastructure in the locality of the village may benefit women more than men. For this reason, the Government of Zambia is attempting to balance investment in the economically important main road network with interventions to improve the rural transport situation at village level. In the transport sector, like in other sectors, a gender focal point has been established in the Ministry of Communications and Transport, but this initiative has been largely ineffective due to a lack of resources, lack of capacity in gender skills and the absence of strong management. RDA has addressed some gender issues in the roads sector through its environmental unit, which has recently been strengthened by an EU funded Social Development Advisor. Efforts to develop monitoring and evaluation tools for gender mainstreaming are being considered by the RDA Social Development Advisor as one of the priority areas HIV/AIDS Zambia is one of the countries most seriously affected by the AIDS pandemic in Africa. After a sustained programme of campaigns and large and small initiatives throughout the country over the last decade, the prevalence rate is now in gradual decline. However, due to time lag and demographic factors, the number of deaths per year due to HIV/AIDS is expected to continue to rise to a peak of about 113,000 in Already a total of more than 750,000 people in Zambia have died from HIV/AIDS. It is estimated that this will rise to nearly 1.8 million by Based on World Bank estimates, Zambia s GDP growth is likely to be about 1% lower than it would have been without HIV/AIDS. There has been a growing realisation that the HIV/AIDS pandemic is of particular relevance to the transport sector in general and the roads sub-sector in particular. Truck and bus drivers as well as those involved in road construction are vulnerable to the disease since they are regularly working away from their home environment. The highest incidence of HIV/AIDS infection in Zambia occurs along the corridors with the most intense transport activity. A number of NGOs in Zambia are addressing the HIV/AIDS issue and they have focused their efforts on the overnight transport stops and border areas, where commercial sex activity is high. Recent studies have also shown that HIV/AIDS does not affect all people equally. The imbalances between men and women in terms of risks and vulnerability have become evident, as the differences in the rates of infection have grown. Gender inequality and the role of power in sexual relations, especially women s lack of economic empowerment, are important factors that are being 8

21 considered in the fight against HIV/AIDS. An HIV/AIDS Policy for the Transport Sector was published in August Interventions in the transport sector are coordinated by a ROADSIP HIV/AIDS Advisor based in the Ministry of Communications and Transport. The RDA s Environmental and Social Management Unit has developed guidelines, manuals and training materials that include HIV/AIDS issues. Obligations on contractors regarding HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention have been included in road works contracts for some years and, based on experience gained; these have recently been updated with a shift in focus to a greater involvement of specialists in HIV/AIDS issues. 3. AGREED ASSISTANCE 3.1 Development and Immediate Objectives of RSPS 2 The Development objective to which RSPS 2 will contribute is unchanged by the reformulation and corresponds with the overall goal of ROADSIP II, which is: Promotion of equitable economic growth and better living conditions in Zambia, by bringing about a sustainable improvement in the condition of transport infrastructure. The primary goal of interventions in the transport sector under Zambia s poverty reduction strategy is to support the economy to grow. The Fifth National Development Plan targets both wealth creation and poverty reduction. The Plan sees transport infrastructure as the catalyst for economic development and social integration. Moreover, studies have confirmed a strong correlation between high poverty levels and remoteness; therefore, improving access to rural areas is expected to contribute significantly to poverty reduction. The stimulation of socio-economic growth will particularly emphasise four key sectors with considerable economic potential Agriculture, Tourism, Mining and Manufacturing. Roads are a key element in the functioning of Zambia s economy in that they facilitate the movement of people and goods for export and import. As the country looks to agriculture to provide an increasing contribution to economic growth, roads provide the vital links to the rural areas and facilitate the provision of health, education and agricultural services. Connecting rural areas not only taps economic potential, but also promotes greater equity between rural and urban areas. Roads also provide links with neighbouring countries, facilitate internal and regional trade, foster urban and rural development, encourage tourism and create employment. The immediate objective of RSPS 2 is to improve the road network and accessibility to specified rural areas and to establish a strong sector management at central and decentralised levels capable of sustaining a maintenance system for paved and unpaved roads in these areas with execution based on private sector contractors. 9

22 Western Province continues to have the highest incidence, depth and severity of poverty in the country but also contains agricultural, livestock and tourist development potential. Luapula is the second poorest province in Zambia; the population density is substantially higher than in Western province and so is the economic potential. Investment here will therefore potentially assist in poverty reduction and economic development. The poverty reduction aspects require a network approach, whereby improvements of main roads are accompanied by improvement of district roads thereby securing the rural population access to the national economy. The district councils of Western Province do not at present have active Works Departments as they have limited qualified staff. Luapula Province is in a better position and most district councils have employed qualified Works Department Chiefs. The activities under the District Roads Component, which are related to capacity creation in district councils, therefore have a better chance of being implemented whereas they are lagging behind in Western Province. 3.2 Overall Strategy for RSPS 2 The basic strategic consideration is to improve the interconnectivity between national roads, district roads and village-level access. This support will continue in adjacent districts in both Western and Luapula Provinces. The global economic crisis has severely affected Zambia as the price of copper has fallen dramatically and the ZMK has depreciated significantly reducing GRZ general revenues substantially, including revenues arising from the fuel levy, the main source of road maintenance funding. The first draft of the mid-term review of the ROADSIP II of April 2009 concluded that the finances available will be insufficient to maintain the core road network of km. Thus the situation calls for reconsideration of prioritisation of road sector interventions and RSPS 2 will have an increased emphasis on periodic maintenance of main roads in order to preserve infrastructure assets and levels of service. Under RSPS 1, successful partnerships in improving local access were built between Provincial Road Engineer s staff at district level, local councils, local communities and road users. Moreover, immediate and significant improvements to access were achieved at reasonable cost through road improvements at various levels. RSPS 2 will continue to build on the lessons learnt from Phase 1, whilst giving greater emphasis to the strategic issues of alignment and harmonisation of development assistance. RSPS 2 will be firmly anchored in the government system. Government structures will continue to be used for implementation. The focus will be on the same broad areas of main roads, district roads and community access. The ability of the Zambian authorities to mobilise resources and set-up effective management structures to maintain the improved infrastructure will continue to be a fundamental precondition for any RSPS 2 investments that extend the maintainable network. 10

23 Implementation of works will support the Zambian Government s strategy of using the local private sector as much as possible. Where local private sector consultants and contractors are considered to be weak, measures will be taken to address this through capacity building under RSPS 2. This will include special provision to continue to promote the use of labour-based methods of construction wherever appropriate. The general RSPS 2 strategy will be to move towards joint support with GRZ and with other sector donors to a common sector programme. The aim will be that by the end of phase 2, any possible future Danish support for the sector could be in the form of sector budget support to an agreed national programme through a Sector Wide Approach with other donors. The specific actions to be taken under RSPS 2 will include: Giving greater responsibility for management of the programme and its components to the Zambian authorities. Giving even greater prominence to capacity building than in Phase 1. Paying particular attention in all components to the need to build strong local systems for effective management of the road network. Continuing to work closely with other donors in the sector to promote strong donor coordination Being pro-active in developing joint systems for funding and management of development assistance. Provision is made in the RSPS 2 budgets for targeted budget support for maintenance activities at district level as a transition towards sector budget support (the RSPS 2 budget includes a provision for financial support for ROADSIP II for this). Joint GRZ and donor reviews will be encouraged to assist in this transition. The RSPS 2 will be process-orientated and detailed interventions will be planned in the course of implementation by the partner organisations and will be integrated into the normal government planning and budgeting cycle. All plans and budgets will be subject to approval by the RSPS 2 Coordination Committee. Each component description sets down clear criteria within which RSPS 2 support will be provided. These have been agreed in advance with the partner organisations and include an assessment of crosscutting issues where appropriate. 3.3 Capacity Building The capacity building elements of RSPS 2 will cover government institutions, the private sector and civil society. RDA will be the lead partner in RSPS 2 and will benefit from capacity building at headquarters, provincial and district levels. This will primarily be on the job training supplemented by short-term training organised under the components. It 11

24 will include some training organised under the Institutional Support Component, particularly in the areas of sector monitoring, road safety, environmental management, gender equality and HIV/AIDS. Within RDA, training will be extended to all staff but with a particular emphasis on the RSPS 2 programme districts. The new Local Road Authorities (LRAs) and the District Councils in the programme areas will be important target groups for capacity development. In accordance with general Danida policy, there will be no topping up of government salaries, payment of additional allowances (beyond normal government rates) to government staff or other potential distortions. There will be support to the development of the private sector through labour-based contractor training at district level. This will create employment and build capacity at district level to carry out road maintenance and smaller road rehabilitation contracts without a high reliance on plant and equipment that is difficult to procure and maintain in rural areas. This is a critical issue, as contracting capacity is limited and faces a number of operational challenges such as scarcity of equipment and limited access to capital and credit. Local consultants will also be included in RSPS 2 training, but with an emphasis on the use of short, problem-solving seminars. The capacity of civil society will be developed through continued support to the establishment of Road User Committees, including relevant short-term training courses, where appropriate. Training will also be provided to community-level transport committees in basic financial management as well as on-the-job training in simple technical aspects of local transport infrastructure improvements. This initiative was successfully piloted towards the end of Phase 1 for community access improvements. A training needs assessment has been carried out and a final report is due to be delivered in July 2009 which includes detailed training programmes for all RSPS2 stakeholders Originally two long-term technical assistance posts were included for a period of two years; after which time a review was required. Following the Joint Annual Review of RSPS 2 undertaken during March 2009, it was agreed that these two Technical Advisor posts should be reduced to one, based at RDA Headquarters in Lusaka. The TA will be responsible for provision of support to RDA and MLGH with regard to institutional support, especially with regard to decentralisation, and to assistance with the implementation of road works in Western and Luapula Provinces. Depending on a needs assessment, the Technical Advisor will be assisted by Local Consultants under the Programme. The technical assistance is primarily to assist with developing the planning, management and monitoring capacities of the RDA and MLGH resulting in an increased capacity for effective management of the road network at National, Provincial and District levels. 12

25 3.4 Objectives of RSPS 2 Components A brief overview of the development and immediate objectives of the RSPS 2 components is given in Table 3.1. More details are contained in the component descriptions. Table 3.1: Development and Immediate Objectives of RSPS 2 Components Component Immediate Objectives Development Objective Support to Main Conservation of road infrastructure assets To support the economic development of Road and service levels on priority main roads Zambia through reducing transport costs Rehabilitation (ROADSIP II) and improving accessibility to economically productive and socially important areas. Support to Districts Institutional Support To ensure cost effective and sustainable management of district and rural roads through securing capacity creation at district, regional and national levels. Management of road sector improved, including development of general road management capacity, environmental management and national guidelines for LRAs. Road Safety improved and a more road safety conscious community built through carrying out priority actions in RTSAs corporate plan; Improved effectiveness of implementation of policies and development programmes for the transport sector, including related infrastructure and services To contribute to the alleviation of poverty through improving access to basic economic and social services. Support the establishment of effective institutions that enable the transport sector to promote national socio-economic development through the provision of a well-maintained, safe and sustainable network delivering net environmental and social benefits. The support to main roads component will continue to contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the national sector programme ROADSIP II. This aims to establish a core network of roads in maintainable condition by 2012 with an associated management structure and flow of resources for its sustainability. The geographical focus will be on Western and Luapula Provinces, which are among the poorest areas of Zambia with a particularly deficient road network. The district component will develop systems and local capacity for improving the many links at district and community level that feed into the main road system. This will help ensure that the benefits and opportunities of improved access are spread to the rural communities. Institutional support will be provided to 13