Annual maintenance of infrastructure critical: Iffland

Regular maintenance of infrastructure projects is a must and is absolute key for the long-lasting quality of such projects, says the Regional Director of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Andrea Iffland.

Dr. Iffland drew the attention of the Government of Vanuatu and development partners to this point at the recent launching of Vanuatu Infrastructure Strategic Investment Plan (VISIP) – 2015 – 2024.

The Report contains plans for 26 high priority projects for the country to be implemented over the next decade. And the total value of these high priority projects has been put at Vt38 billion.

Speaking at the launching ceremony the ADB Regional Director said that: “It is one thing to build new infrastructure. But when we consider really assisting the Government and the Government taking forward key infrastructure development, it is absolutely critical that we also consider cost of maintaining them”.

“And we have seen that so often. There is new infrastructure built and of course it costs money, and maintenance starts not only ten years down the line. It is an annual investment to maintain the value of the investments taxpayer’s money has basically put forward. So, this is absolutely critical,” Dr. Iffland stressed.

She said this VISIP Report has tried to assess the cost of maintaining the cost of infrastructure priority list which is in the Report. And has drawn attention to the need to build in and consider right at the start of project development, the cost of maintaining it.

She added that the total value of the investment of the 26 high priority projects is Vt38 billion. The amount to ensure maintenance is adequately carried out per annum is going to be Vt1.8 billion.

“This is going to be critical, and the question here is how it’s going to be done,” she asked. “I don’t want to leave it at such a sobering note. I do believe that we are all here to assist the government in looking at helping to really develop these infrastructures and also look at how best to develop mechanisms that ensure that funding is going to be there to continue with maintenance.

“It is a waste to see these expensive infrastructures basically after year two starting to deteriorate,” the ADB Regional Director lamented. And she pointed to the situation with the roads. “The roads are obvious, we have the portholes starting one- and- a- half years later, with the cyclone coming and the wet season it goes very quickly. So the roads don’t necessarily last seven years as normally. So, it should be regularly maintained.”

The development of the VISIP started in 2012 when the Vanuatu Government asked the Pacific Initiative Partners to look at key investment projects, originally focused on economic infrastructure — the type of investments critical for the country to progress business activities, to growing the economy.

Dr. Iffland said they started with a long list of 80 investment projects, which was very substantial. Then subsequently, the government found that it was very important not only to look at economic infrastructure, but also to include social infrastructure, dealing with education, health, youths, sports and community services.

The report was completed in late 2014 and the Council of Ministers endorsed the priority list of altogether 26 key infrastructure projects and subsequently endorsed the document again in April, straight after Cyclone Pam.

The key development partners for the VISIP are ADB, Australian, New Zealand, European Union, European Investment Bank, Japan, and the World Bank Group.