Sector Assistance Program Evaluation on Education in Uzbekistan

 
53. 
Project formulation, design, and appraisal.
Lessons identified in the CAPE, the PCRs 
and the TCRs point to some limitations to sound project preparation. They relate to the omission 
of critical inputs in project costing and financing (viz., missing the cost of imported paper in the 
textbook project); or putting riders on the agreed project after it had been negotiated and 
circulated to the Board for consideration, e.g., the Education Sector Development Program 
(ESDP) loan. The limitations may also relate to the failure to link policy loan components 
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The absence of a sector road map can be a critical constraint in an area where the DMC government has no 
clearly articulated strategy, which was not the case in Uzbekistan. Therefore, ADB worked alongside the 
government strategy. ADB was always working with the government to implement programs articulated at the 
highest level with full commitment of resources. It was fast paced support with one project following another aiming 
to achieve the aspirations and goals outlined in NPPT and later in NPBED. With these two programs now 
delivered, the government is planning to take stock of the situation to clearly determine areas for future support.
ADB also plans to support this process with a social sector financing research and development technical 
assistance (RDTA). 

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explicitly with the investment loans under the same project, or to a lack of functional 
coordination between the TAs and the project components. These limitations certainly do not 
take anything away from the commendable role played by ADB’s education projects in 
Uzbekistan, yet they point to the need for a more careful, thorough, and diligent project 
preparation and implementation. This is especially so in a new DMC, where a sound project 
design is critical in ensuring its confidence in ADB assistance and guidance. It is equally 
important that the development partners can put faith in the lead development partner for the 
education sector. Otherwise, such limitations open the door for the skeptics and opponents to 
serve their own vested interests by distracting the stakeholders from the merit of ADB’s 
assistance.