Publication: Assessment of Road Funds in South Asia Region
Loading...
Published
2008-12
ISSN
Date
2012-08-13
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Sustaining an adequate level of resources for road maintenance has been a continuous issue worldwide, including in South Asia. Since the late 1990s South Asia has developed different models of Road Funds (RFs), at the national level, or in the case of India at the state and local level, to improve sources of financing for road maintenance and development. The World Bank South Asia transport team has carried out a review of RFs in the region to draw lessons learned from the past experience. The review provides the analytical underpinning for advising governments on how to improve the performance of existing RFs or how to establish new RFs for road maintenance, and for providing guidance to the World Bank for revising its transport sector strategy in relation to road policy reforms in the South Asia region.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Guillossou, Jean-Noel; Stankevich, Natalya. 2008. Assessment of Road Funds in South Asia Region. Transport Notes Series; No. TRN 37. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/11744 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Romania - Functional Review : Transport Sector(Washington, DC, 2010-10-15)This report describes the results of the Functional Review of the transport sector in Romania. During its early transition years, Romania implemented radical structural reforms in the institutions of the transport sector, but over the last decade there has been concern that these changes have not led to tangible improvements in transport policy administration nor in the efficiency and effectiveness of the main delivery institutions in the railway and road sectors. The Review has tried to discern the main reasons for these shortcomings and to identify remedial actions. It focuses on three main challenges: the administration of the transport sector as a whole; the corporate governance of state-owned road and railway companies; and the priorities for the companies themselves. Attention is also given to budgeting issues and opportunities for greater private sector participation.Publication Institutional Development and Good Governance in the Highway Sector(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2010)The World Bank financed the Gujarat State Highway Project (GSHP) during 2001-07. The project development objective was to enhance the capacity of the Government of Gujarat (GOG) for effective and efficient planning and management of road infrastructure, while concurrently maximizing existing road infrastructure asset productivity through priority investments and increased maintenance funding. The project not only achieved its objective and targets successfully, but also was implemented with a significant cost reduction (about 23 percent). The GSHP resulted in a reduction in the backlog of major maintenance and an improved network to meet rapidly growing transport demand in the state. The project had the unique distinction of no contract disputes, a rarity among the highway development projects in India. The project also set best practices in developing and managing a very comprehensive asset management system, state of the art quality assurance framework and a very comprehensive training and capacity building program. The annual road sector allocation has grown from USD 30 million in 1995-1996 to an impressive USD 610 million in 2010-11, currently the second largest among all the Indian states. This study attempts to identify the key elements of the Gujarat road sector reforms and explores whether and, if so, how such reforms can be replicated across other Indian states and possibly even in other countries in the region.Publication India's Transport Sector : The Challenges Ahead, Volume 2. Background papers(Washington, DC, 2002-05-10)India's transport system--especially surface transport--is seriously deficient, and its services are highly inefficient by international standards. The economic losses from congestion and poor roads are estimated at 120 to 300 billion rupees a year. This report takes a critical assessment of the key policy and institutional issues that continue to contribute to the poor performance of the transport sector in India. After an introduction, Chapter 2 provides an overview of rapid demand change and poor supply response, and the resulting adverse impacts on the Indian economy and society. Chapter 3 examines the causes of poor supply response by focusing on four major problems: unclear responsibilities, inadequate resource mobilization, poor asset management, and inadequate imposition of accountability. Chapter 4 reviews recent reforms and lessons learned. Chapter 5 proposes short to medium term actions for each of the main transport subsectors. Three factors make it particularly opportune time for India to expedite transport reform: 1) Initial reform momentum has been built up. 2) There is a growing consensus within India that transport should be managed as an economic sector. 3) There are many successful models for transport reform from around the world. The resistance to reform should be overcome considering the high cost of slow or inadequate action to the Indian economy and society.Publication Romania : Public Expenditure and Institutional Review : Main Report(World Bank, 2010-02-17)The government has embarked upon a comprehensive and difficult medium term program for reforming the public sector aimed at rebalancing the relation between revenue and spending and enhancing the efficiency and efficacy of service delivery. The Romanian economy has been hit hard by the global economic downturn. Latest estimates suggest that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) may have contracted by around 7 percent in 2009, before modestly recovering in 2010. The severe decline in output has had a significant adverse effect on consolidated budget revenues, which fell substantially below the initial target in 2009. To prevent a further deterioration of the already large fiscal deficit, the shortfall in revenue has led to adjustments in spending. Consolidation of expenditure needs however continue in order to put public finances on a sustainable trajectory over the medium term. The report is structured in two volumes. The first volume synthesizes the menu of options suggested to reduce the short term gap between budget expenditure and revenues. It also highlights the key challenges and recommendations for improving efficiency and efficacy of spending in the sectors investigated. Volume two consists of the background analyses, with individual chapters dedicated to the fiscal framework; public pay; pensions; education; health; and agriculture. The report makes the case that, in the current crisis environment and consistent with experience worldwide, the gap between expenditure and revenue should be done primarily by reducing the level of current spending.Publication Preparing a National Transport Strategy : Suggestions for Government Agencies in Developing Countries(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-04)The purpose of this report is to assist policy makers and planners in developing countries in the preparation of a National Transport Strategy (NTS). The report highlights lessons that can be learned from NTSs developed by different countries around the world. It draws upon transport strategy and policy documents from 23 countries and from a range of World Bank source material. The aim is not to provide a ready-made strategy document but to identify relevant questions and choices that need to be considered in preparing an NTS. At each stage of the development of the NTS, a checklist of considerations is given, and, where appropriate, examples of good and bad practice are identified. Within the report particular attention is paid to separately identifying Objectives, Policy Principles and Strategies. Objectives express society's goals, which should reflect the general socio-economic goals of the country-goals that are shared with other (non-transport) sectors. Policy Principles represent the principles that should govern the pursuit of those goals. They are the guiding philosophy for decisions within the sector. Strategies represent the ways in which goals are to be achieved in line with the policy principles. A wide range of policies relating to the sector as a whole and to different modes of transport are considered in the report, covering topics such as investment planning, private provision of road infrastructure, transport services, rail infrastructure and operations, ports and multi-modal transport, route service franchising, pricing, cost recovery and taxation. In addition, a series of examples of how strategies can be formulated based on objectives and policy principles are given. Throughout the report, consultation and transparency in the preparation of an NTS are stressed. The report concludes with a broad assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of NTSs reviewed for the report.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication FY 2025 China Country Opinion Survey Report(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-08-04)The Country Opinion Survey in China assists the World Bank Group (WBG) in better understanding how stakeholders in China perceive the WBG. It provides the WBG with systematic feedback from national and local governments, multilateral/bilateral agencies, media, academia, the private sector, and civil society in China on 1) their views regarding the general environment in China; 2) their overall attitudes toward the WBG in China; 3) overall impressions of the WBG’s effectiveness and results, knowledge work and activities, and communication and information sharing in China; and 4) their perceptions of the WBG’s future role in China.Publication Evaluation Insight Note(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-11-12)This Evaluation Insight Note (EIN) aims to contribute to the World Bank’s goal of encouraging the use of data, digital technology, and innovation towards transforming agri-food systems in client countries. The EIN was guided by the overall question: “How are World Bank agriculture and irrigation projects using technologies and what insights can be drawn from them” In answering this question, the EIN draws from a portfolio identification and review of 158 active and 113 closed projects (FY16-23) World Bank agriculture and irrigation projects to describe the extent and utilization of agricultural technologies. It supplemented the findings from the review with insights drawn from four project evaluations (Project Performance Assessment Reports) prepared by IEG in Bangladesh, Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire, and Vietnam, which were selected because of their likely lessons on agriculture technology. The portfolio and systematic review provided the basis for seven main insights on coverage and nature of technologies used in World Bank agriculture projects, demand-based technological solutions, technology diffusion, collaboration, and investment in enabling environment factors, among others. (1) The World Bank Agriculture and Irrigation portfolio shows limited coverage of advanced technologies. (2) The technologies that are prevalent in projects are mainly focused on increasing agricultural productivity with limited focus on technologies for facilitating market linkages. (3) Among the technologies promoted in Bank agriculture and irrigation projects, some technologies, and applications such GIS, early warning systems and MIS are more concentrated than others. (4) Combining demand-based technological solutions with training and technical assistance supported uptake of those solutions. (5) Technology diffusion worked well when there was strong collaboration between key research and extension agencies, each with well-defined roles and responsibilities in the projects. (6) When technology dissemination efforts are combined with investments in enabling environment factors such as infrastructure (i.e., roads, markets), they facilitated technology adoption. (7) Building sustainable institutional models – key for technology uptake and use – continue to be challenging in Bank supported projects.Publication The World Bank Group in Georgia, 2014-23(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-30)This Country Program Evaluation assesses the performance and effectiveness of the World Bank Group’s support to Georgia in achieving the country’s development objectives. In the decade leading up to the evaluation period, Georgia pursued economic reforms to attract critical investments for becoming a regional trade and transport hub. Ambitious economic reforms went hand in hand with efforts to improve human development and strengthening social protection systems. Growing geopolitical tensions and internal political polarization have challenged Georgia’s reform progress in recent years. The Bank Group’s strategy adapted well to Georgia’s development needs and was well coordinated with other development partners. It successfully employed a range of instruments to help increase competitiveness, growth, and job creation, and effectively contributed to improved infrastructure and increased trade by using programmatic and innovative approaches. The Bank Group’s regular investments in analytical work and the switch to results-based programmatic support helped improve the efficiency and effectiveness of education and health care systems. The IEG offers the following lessons based on the evidence and analysis in the Country Program Evaluation: (i) Prioritizing Bank Group support around the move towards deeper regional integration was an effective anchor for key economic reforms for economic convergence. (ii) Pursuing a selective and adaptive approach in a country with high implementation capacity and institutions, strong coordination among development partners, and access to a wide range of external resources can allow the Bank Group to exercise significant influence in areas of comparative advantage and global expertise. (iii) A stronger focus on outcome-based programmatic approaches helped to build local capacity and crowd-in partner financing.Publication The World Bank Group in Tanzania, Fiscal Years 2012–22(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-07-22)This evaluation assesses the relevance and effectiveness of the World Bank Group's support to Tanzania between Fiscal Years 2012 and 2022. Over the past decade, Tanzania has experienced resilient growth, with an average annual per capita GDP increase of 2.2%. However, poverty remains widespread and slow to decline, underscoring the need for more inclusive growth. The report examines the Bank Group's strategic and operational approaches during this period, which were aligned with Tanzania's development priorities and focused on industrialization, human development, and public sector reforms. The evaluation includes thematic chapters on the Bank Group's support for private sector-led growth and spatial transformation, as well as lessons to inform future support to the country.Publication Digital Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13)All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.