Evaluation

Ongoing Evaluations
Evaluation of the First Financial Sector Program Loan Cluster in Cambodia

Team Leader: Cheolghee Kim, Principal Evaluation Specialist
Share your views

Cambodia's financial system underwent a rebuilding process from the earlier monobanking system. In 1996, the National Bank of Cambodia was established as the country's central bank. Presently, Cambodia's formal financial system comprises the National Bank of Cambodia, 16 commercial banks and two branches of foreign banks, 7 specialized financial institutions including the Rural Development Bank, 17 licensed and 26 registered microfinance finance institutions, and 6 insurance companies. The predominantly rural nature of the economy, high transaction costs, inability of the real sector to put together bankable projects, and low creditor confidence have been the main factors causing low formal financial intermediation and outreach within the sector, slow development of nonbank financial institutions, and limited range of products and services offered.

Since 2000, ADB undertook a series of major financial sector projects and programs in Cambodia, including the First Financial Sector Program Loan Cluster for three loans totaling $30 million. Nine advisory technical assistance and two project preparatory technical assistance grants supported the sector intervention. The sector assistance focused on promoting rural credit and reforming and developing the financial system that had remained at a rudimentary stage into a sound, market-based one to support resource mobilization for economic growth and address various sector constraints.

This evaluation will assess the relevance, effectiveness, and efficiency in achieving its outputs and objectives, sustainability of the outcomes, and the institutional development and other socioeconomic impacts of the sector program; assess the performance of ADB and the executing agency; and identify key issues and lessons for future ADB operations. The findings of this evaluation will also feed into the sector assistance program evaluation of Cambodia's financial sector planned in mid-2009.