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World Bank officials inspecting one of the DRDIP project bridge in Pakele sub County
BY MARKO TAIBOT
ADJUMANI: Tuesday, March 21, 2023
Adjumani district ha began implementation of 27 projects under the Development Response to Displacement Impact Projects (DRDIP) worth sh14b.
However the district officials are concerned that works have commenced late as the first phase of DRDIP is set to end in six months.
According to the World Bank guidelines, once the project ends before the completion of the sub-projects, it will affect the funding for the second phase of DRDIP.
The DRDIP desk officer, Abubakar Gulam on March 20, 2023, attested that the district is implementing 27 infrastructure sub-projects under the 7th disbursement of DRDIP all valued at Shs14 billion have just started.
Gulam revealed that the sub-projects delayed implementation because the works ministry took too long to release their designs and that the procurement process was very slow.
“We have a total of shs14bn and all the 27 sub-projects have a completion timeline of 6 months and that is when DRDIP’s first phase ends” Gulam disclosed.
John Ilukor, an economist in the development Dats group of World Bank who visited the Adjuamni district over the weekend to evaluate the impact of the first phase of DRDIP said DRDIP is left with a few months to close and pending projects are supposed to be completed if the second phase is to be funded in time.
“For us, it is clear, if the projects are not completed and the time has come, the project is ending then we would not be able to disperse any money until these sub-projects are completed, so, DRDIP II will not commence without making sure this and other projects are completed,” John said.
He revealed that money is already available to fund DRDIP II but they are waiting for the government of Uganda to make the request.
Ilukor also said the purpose of the visit is to ascertain if there is a need to give money for the second phase of DRDIP.
“I think what we have seen, and what we have been told we think there is a need for DRDIP, the gaps are wide and glaring, and there is more work to be done, for us as World Bank we are committed to having DRDIP II.”
The DRDIP technical engineer, Samuel Owen Ocaya, confirmed that the delay was not from the districts implementing the projects, but the line ministries under which the sub-projects fall delayed the process of designing which led to the late release of funds.
“Going forward, we must start engaging the various ministries to have designs in place for various sub-projects early,” Ocaya said.
The district vice chairperson of Adjumani, Richard Kaijuka, explained that with the track record of the district in managing DRDIP sub-projects, he is confident the contractors will deliver their work at the right time.
“We have not recorded any case of corruption in managing the sub-projects, and we need DRDIP again due to the impacts it has created for the nationals and the refugees,” Kaijuka said
DRDIP is aligned to the National Development Plan (NDP) III, Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF), and Refugee Policy 2010 among other Government policies and frameworks for the management of refugee affairs.
DRDIP is currently being implemented in 15 Refugee hosting districts and 13 refugee settlements. The districts include Arua, Koboko, Yumbe, Moyo, Adjumani, Obongi, Madi-Okollo, and Terego in the West Nile sub-region, Lamwo, in the Acholi sub-region; Hoima, Kikuube, Kiryandongo in the mid-western Bunyoro sub region; Isingiro, Kyegegwa and Kamwenge in the South-Western sub-region.
