Pacific Islands - Pacific Resilience Program (English)

Ratings for the Pacific Resilience Program for Pacific Islands were as follows: outcomes were moderately satisfactory, the Bank performance was moderately satisfactory, and the monitoring and evaluation quality was modest. Some lessons learned included: projects that are part of a broader program with a shared Results Framework (such as PREP) need a PDO and indicators that reflect their contributions. The project demonstrated how a multilayered regional program can overcome its initial challenges to deliver tangible benefits to participating countries, building on comparative advantages, partnerships, and economies of scale. The experience and credibility commanded by the project manager and key staff matter, significantly. The PREP-SPC Project Manager and its key staff (particularly, the Senior Financial Officer) were highly experienced and familiar with both the technical and institutional contexts. This, combined with strong communications and problem-solving skills, was cited by project stakeholders as a key factor in the project's achievements. At the same time, the initial difficulties experienced by the project in attracting qualified candidates for key positions indicates that such positions are at a premium in the region and need to be planned well in advance. Building capacity in a technically challenging field such as DRM among PICs requires targeting multiple candidates and carefully choosing the modes of delivery.