Description

The study assessed the performance of ADB's country strategies and programs (CSPs) for Cambodia during 1992-2002.

It used a results-based evaluation framework, which allowed for an integrated evaluation at various levels:

• at the strategic level, the performance of the country strategies was assessed in terms of responsiveness of their strategic objectives to the country's socioeconomic issues, national development strategies, and ADB's corporate strategies to determine how well the country strategies were formulated

• at the program/sector levels, the performance of the country programs was assessed in terms of
  1. responsiveness of the design of the country programs to the country strategies' objectives,
  2. coherence of the country programs, and
  3. effectiveness of the county programs (both lending and nonlending) in achieving sector outcomes to determine how well the country programs have put the country strategies into practice

The study found the overall performance of the Cambodia CSP to be successful, based on the combined ratings of the following:

• at the strategic level, the combined three periods of the country strategies were found to be relevant (rather than highly relevant) because while the 1992 and 1995 country strategies were highly responsive to the situations at that time, the 2000 Country Strategy did not explicitly recognize governance and the role of other growth-driven sectors (in addition to agriculture) in its priority areas;

• at the program/sector levels:
  1. in terms of responsiveness, the design of the lending and nonlending programs was found to be relevant to the country strategies' objectives;
  2. in terms of coherence, the country programs were found to be loosely structured, with resources spreading thinly in 10 sectors/subsectors; and
  3. in terms of effectiveness, the country programs were found to be generally successful in achieving sector-level outcomes; and
  4. successful rating of ADB's performance in terms of client orientation and timely responses to the country's needs.

Recommendations

There is a need

• for a targets-driven/results-based CSP to internalize the Millennium Development Goals;
• for a more focused and coherent program;
• to increase the role of economic, thematic, and sector work to explore Cambodia's potential in other growth-driven sectors to enhance competitiveness.
• to identify a new priority area in the next CSP to allow sustainable economic growth to be achieved not only through agriculture, but also through private sector development in other potential sectors;
• to identify governance as a priority area in the next CSP;
• for a broader design of institutional capacity building;
• for a well-integrated Greater Mekong Subregional Program with the CSP;
• to optimize the role of nongovernment organizations;
• to improve aid coordination and mobilize additional resources; and
• to improve knowledge management.

Contents

• Executive Summary
• Maps
• Introduction
• Evaluation Framework and Methodology
• Evaluation of Country Strategy: Responsiveness
• Evaluation of Country Assistance Programs: Responsiveness
• Evaluation of Country Assistance Programs: Effectiveness
• Evaluation of Country Assistance Programs: Portfolio and Stakeholder Performance
• Summary Evaluation Results and Rating
• Conclusions
• Appendixes