The Ministry of Water and Power has criticised Asian Development Bank (ADB) for violating Terms of References (ToRs) agreed to undertake reforms in the water sector, official sources told Business Recorder on Monday.
"The new institutional framework, except National Water Council (NWC), proposed by the ADB consultants, is not in line with the ToRs of the study and thus making such proposal is outside the purview of the consultants," sources in the Ministry said.
They said that ToRs approved by ADB and GoP including formation of NWC, establishment of secretariat for the council and its capacity building has been excluded from the scope of the study, which was not acceptable.
"We have conveyed to the visiting ADB team that the proposal is not workable, and suggested that the consultants should confine themselves to the scope of the study and to the approved ToRs," sources added.
The ADB had approved a grant of Technical Assistance (TA) equivalent to $0.30 million for water sector and irrigation department. According to the approved TA report, the agreement was signed between ADB and GoP on January 18, 2005 under which the Water and Power Ministry was to serve as the executing agency.
The TA comprises two components and the main objective of first component was to develop a Technical Assistance Programme (TAP) in consultation with the government for financing by the ADB to evaluate irrigation rehabilitation and reform experience. It was also aimed at establishing water sector policy cell to assist NWC in implementing and monitoring of the national water policy.
The second component of the TA was to evaluate irrigation rehabilitation and reform experience, primarily under National Drainage Programme (NDP) and ADB and other donors, besides the government, were to formulate future assistance for irrigated agriculture.
The TA findings would generate principles and strategies to assist design and implementation of irrigation rehabilitation and reform for future investment projects, including ADB loans.
The Ministry of Water and Power, being the executing agency of the TA, prepared and processed PC-II in March for implementation. However, the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) in its meeting on April 11, 2005 returned it without approval.
The Planning Commission prepared its own PC-II for the TA and got it approved from the CDWP and took over the implementation of the TA. The Planning Commission also constituted a steering committee under the chairmanship of Member Infrastructure and also appointed, on additional charge basis, the Chief of Water Section as project director of the TA. Consultants were engaged for the TA who prepared an inception report in June 2006.
Sources said that inception report was discussed at a meeting of the steering committee on July 21, 2006 wherein the consultants made a brief presentation and proposed a two-part apex body with National Water Council and Pakistan Water Commission, instead of single body as agreed to between the ADB and GoP in the agreed ToRs of the study.
According to ADB proposal, NWC would be chaired by the Prime Minister, and members would include Chief Ministers, Federal Minister for Water and Power, Minfal, Finance, Local Government and Science and Technology and Deputy Chairman Planning Commission.
The Pakistan Water Commission would be headed by the Deputy Chairman and members would include Federal Secretaries of Water and Power, Minfal, Finance, Local Government, Science and Technology and Provincial Additional Chief Secretaries, Presidents of Federal Chambers of Agriculture, Commerce and Industries and representatives of key research and training organisations.
The PWC would be assisted by two operational units namely, water sector policy analysis centre and national water data and analysis centre to be established in Planning Commission and Ministry of Water and Power respectively.
After evaluating the proposals, the Ministry of Water and Power, has communicated to the ADB and Planning Commission that the inception report does not include the ToRs, saying that it was difficult to assess whether all activities proposed in the ToRs would be undertaken according to the already agreed schedule.
"There is a marked variation among the ToRs of the studies to be undertaken under TA and the work being started by the ADB consultants," sources said, adding that the ministry's concerns have been communicated to the ADB team which recently concluded deliberations with the government.
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