Evaluation

Ongoing Evaluations
Evaluation of Shanxi Environment Improvement Project in the People's Republic of China

Team Leader: Kapil Thukral , Evaluation Specialist
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This evaluation will assess various aspects of project formulation, design, implementation, and sustainability, as well as the project's socioeconomic, environmental, and institutional impacts. It will review the findings of the project completion report and assess the project's relevance, effectiveness, efficiency in achieving its outputs and objectives, sustainability of the outcomes, and impact. It will also verify key learnings of ADB operations and identify key issues.

After the economic liberalization and reform efforts it initiated in 1978, the economy of the People's Republic of China (PRC) has grown faster than any other in the world, averaging more than 9% annually. However, one of the consequences of the PRC's rapid economic growth has been pollution and environmental degradation—a key cause being the country's heavy reliance on coal. The PRC is the world's second largest energy consumer, and has the highest dependence on coal among the world's top ten energy consuming nations. Reducing energy intensity and improving the environment are among the PRC's greatest challenges, and, because they require structural changes in the economy, progress in this area is likely to be slow.

ADB's Country Partnership Strategy for PRC (2008—2010) is to help it achieve key 11th Five-Year Plan (2006—2010) goals and targets, such as providing clean and renewable energy; reducing energy intensity; reducing pollutants and emissions; promoting best practices, knowledge, and innovation; and promoting good governance. ADB's operational strategy for PRC during the time of project approval—although different owing to the broader objective of supporting power generation and transmission infrastructure to reduce power shortages—also included similar aims, in particular, developing cleaner energy sources such as gas, hydropower, and clean-coal technology in power generation.

The Shanxi Environment Improvement Project, the sixth ADB-funded project to support the Government's environmental protection efforts, targeted Shanxi Province where environmental degradation was more acute. The province is one of PRC's major coal-producing areas, producing about one third of the country's coal, and is also a major coal consumer. The project aimed to improve the ambient air quality of three main cities in Shanxi Province—Taiyuan, Datong, and Yangquan.