Impact assessment of Irish Aid funded infrastructure project under Programme 135 II in 2011 & 2012, and development of a monitoring framework in 2013 – 2015

OVERVIEW

Irish Aid provided €29M in budget support to Programme 135 during the period 2007-2010. In 2011 and 2012, as an interim extension of Programme 135, Irish Aid provided additional grants of €13M to invest in small scale infrastructure in poor communes under Programme 135. The funding was allocated to 180 construction projects in 21 provinces.

While the agency committed to continue providing support to infrastructure development in provinces across Vietnam, it demands an impact assessment to identify key impact outcomes of the grants in 2011 and 2012, on top of the level of achievement of these projects against their stated outcomes.

At the same time, a Monitoring & Evaluation framework is desired for the agency’s investment in the 2013 – 2015 phase. In fact, in a new three-year agreement with the Committee for Ethnic Minorities (CEM), Irish Aid committed to contribute up to €13.29M ( €4.43M each year) from 2013-2015 to support similar constructions, principally in eight provinces including Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Bac Kan, Dien Bien, Thanh Hoa, Quang Ngai, Kon Tum and Tra Vinh, with possible extension to other provinces. The first funding in 2013 has been allocated to 67 projects in these eight provinces, including two projects in Quang Tri province under the request of Irish Aid. In the eight provinces, Irish Aid also provides technical assistance through the Poverty Reduction Policies and Programmes Support Project (PRPP), co-funded by Irish Aid and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).