ISLAMABAD: The World Bank has decided to reduce the duration of a healthcare project in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from three years to one year and curtail its grant from $16 to $10.2 million because of extensive implementation delays.

The project was aimed at improving the availability, accessibility and delivery of primary and secondary healthcare services in six districts of the province.

The grant from the Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) administered by the World Bank was for strengthening healthcare services in the province, particularly in districts affected by militancy. The project was designed to bring improvement in health management.

An implementation report prepared by the World Bank says that the project has been in ‘problem status’ due to ‘extensive implementation delays’, especially in the procurement process of district management contracts.

According to the report, the project was restructured last month. Its objective remains the same, but the scope of work has been reduced due to limited time available for implementation.

One component of the project has been deleted and allocation for the remaining two components has been reduced.

The allocation of $11 million for a component of the project aimed at revitalising health services has been reduced to $8.2 million and the rehabilitation of health infrastructure component of the project has been deleted.

The allocation for establishing a robust monitoring and evaluation system at the district and provincial level has now been slashed to $2 million from the allocated $4 million.

The administrative arrangements of the project have been changed and an independent project management unit has been established in place of the project managed by health sector reform unit. The project management unit has been transferred directly under the administrative control of secretary health and the project coordinator has been given the requisite financial powers.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has recently finalised its comprehensive development strategy based on which a health sector strategy has been prepared.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2014