The Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) IV will deepen reforms and initiatives aimed at creating a modern functioning private sector in the region. Building on the successes, strengths and lessons learned from phases I, II and III, this regional knowledge and support technical assistance (TA) will continue to support Pacific developing member countries (DMC)s with substantive reform agendas in the key thematic areas of financing growth; business law reform; state-owned enterprises (SOE)s reforms and public-private partnerships (PPP)s; and competition policy and consumer protection frameworks. Economic empowerment of women is proposed to be revitalized as a cross-cutting priority in PSDI IV rather than a stand-alone thematic area.
| Project Name | Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative, Phase IV | ||||
| Project Number | 53072-001 | ||||
| Country | Regional Cook Islands Fiji Micronesia, Federated States of Kiribati Nauru Niue Palau Papua New Guinea Marshall Islands Samoa Solomon Islands Timor-Leste Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu |
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| Project Status | Proposed | ||||
| Project Type / Modality of Assistance | Technical Assistance |
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| Source of Funding / Amount |
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| Strategic Agendas | Inclusive economic growth |
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| Drivers of Change | Gender Equity and Mainstreaming Partnerships Private sector development |
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| Sector / Subsector |
Finance / Finance sector development - Inclusive finance Public sector management / Economic affairs management - Law and judiciary - Reforms of state owned enterprises |
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| Gender Equity and Mainstreaming | Gender equity | ||||
| Description | The Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI) IV will deepen reforms and initiatives aimed at creating a modern functioning private sector in the region. Building on the successes, strengths and lessons learned from phases I, II and III, this regional knowledge and support technical assistance (TA) will continue to support Pacific developing member countries (DMC)s with substantive reform agendas in the key thematic areas of financing growth; business law reform; state-owned enterprises (SOE)s reforms and public-private partnerships (PPP)s; and competition policy and consumer protection frameworks. Economic empowerment of women is proposed to be revitalized as a cross-cutting priority in PSDI IV rather than a stand-alone thematic area. The proposed new phase of PSDI is consistent with ADB's Strategy 2030, which recognizes the development challenges facing the DMCs including small island developing states, and outlines ADB's approach towards improving the business environment in these countries to help attract private sector investment and generate growth. The TA is in line with the priorities of ADB's Pacific Approach 2016-2020 and is included in the Pacific Regional Operations Business Plan, 2019-2021. PSDI has been operating successfully for past 12 years. This long-term arrangement has helped deliver positive outcomes, resulting in demands for further assistance with an expanded focus. Proposed PSDI IV will deliver on these demands and a new thematic area, aimed at supporting advocacy and reforms efforts by the Pacific regional organizations will be introduced together with labour mobility, as an additional cross-cutting priority. | ||||
| Project Rationale and Linkage to Country/Regional Strategy | Development challenges continue to prevent the private sector from harnessing economic integration opportunities, resulting in _speed-limits_ to growth in the Pacific. Financial markets are underdeveloped, constraining finance opportunities to potential investors, entrepreneurs and viable businesses. In Pacific, foreign investment promises to be an imperative source of capital that stimulates economic development, creates employment opportunities and develops human capital resources however, rigid and slowly evolving business laws and regulations makes modern commerce difficult barriers to entry, anti-competitive behavior, regulatory capture and poor decision making are common challenges. SOEs, which are amongst the largest commercial entities in most Pacific DMCs providing essential services are inefficient resulting in high cost of doing business, low or negative rate of return on public investments and comparatively low contribution to economic growth. Many Pacific DMCs are small island developing states and dispersion and distance to markets limits economies of scope and scale. These countries are challenged with promoting competition and obtaining efficiency gains through economies of scale, leading to weak competition and consumer protection frameworks. Tourism, a key economic sector for many Pacific DMCs is continuously challenged with competition from other markets, low visitor arrivals, lack of effective marketing platforms and low rate of local participation in the supply chains. Women in the Pacific are vulnerable to wide range of gender related issues including inequality in accessing employment, wages and ownership of assets. Many barriers to women's empowerment are systemic, rooted to the discriminatory laws, social norms, and customary practices alongside low levels of support, and a lack of awareness on business start-up procedures, limiting their ability to engage in business and economic activities to the same extent as men. | ||||
| Impact | Stronger, sustainable, and inclusive private sector-led growth and employment in Pacific DMCs. | ||||
| Outcome | Policy and legislative reforms in Pacific DMCs to encourage stronger gender inclusive private sector-led growth. | ||||
| Outputs | Access to inclusive business finance improved in participating Pacific DMCs | ||||
| Geographical Location | Cook Islands - Nation-wide; Fiji - Nation-wide; Kiribati - Nation-wide; Marshall Islands - Nation-wide; Micronesia, Federated States of - Nation-wide; Nauru - Nation-wide; Niue - Nation-wide; Palau - Nation-wide; Papua New Guinea - Nation-wide; Samoa - Nation-wide; Solomon Islands - Nation-wide; Timor-Leste - Nation-wide; Tonga - Nation-wide; Tuvalu - Nation-wide; Vanuatu - Nation-wide | ||||
| Summary of Environmental and Social Aspects | |
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| Environmental Aspects | |
| Involuntary Resettlement | |
| Indigenous Peoples | |
| Stakeholder Communication, Participation, and Consultation | |
| During Project Design | |
| During Project Implementation | |
| Responsible ADB Officer | Vimlesh Vikash Bharat |
| Responsible ADB Department | Pacific Department |
| Responsible ADB Division | Pacific Liaison and Coordination Office in Sydney, Australia |
| Executing Agencies |
Asian Development Bank 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550, Philippines |
| Timetable | |
|---|---|
| Concept Clearance | 22 Jul 2019 |
| Fact Finding | - |
| MRM | - |
| Approval | - |
| Last Review Mission | - |
| Last PDS Update | 24 Jul 2019 |
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Tenders
| Tender Title | Type | Status | Posting Date | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Financial Analyst | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 06 Aug 2019 | 12 Aug 2019 |
| Business Environment Team Leader PNG | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 09 Aug 2019 |
| International Business Law and Business Registry Expert | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 09 Aug 2019 |
| Privatization and Public-Private Partnership Expert | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 09 Aug 2019 |
| Senior Financial Sector Expert | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 09 Aug 2019 |
| Gender Specialist | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 09 Aug 2019 |
| Private Sector Development Coordinator PNG | Individual - Consulting | Closed | 03 Aug 2019 | 14 Aug 2019 |
Contracts Awarded
No contracts awarded for this project were found
Procurement Plan
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