Gansu Jiuquan Integrated Urban Environment Improvement Project (RRP PRC 45506)

DEVELOPMENT COORDINATION

A. Major Development Partners: Strategic Foci and Key Activities

1. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) began support for urban sector development in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1992. Of the 39 loans totaling $4.5 billion, four were for urban projects in Gansu Province, targeting urban infrastructure, urban transport, wastewater, solid waste management, wetland protection, and urban environment improvement. The Gansu Jiuquan Integrated Urban Environment Improvement Project will be the first project that ADB finances in Jiuquan.

2. Gansu Province has signed agreements with ADB, the World Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, and foreign governments to borrow foreign loans for a total contracted amount of $3.7 billion to finance more than 160 projects involving infrastructure, expressways, forestry, health, education, hydropower, and cultural heritage protection. ADB has financed 13 projects in the areas of urban development, expressways, small hydropower, and forestry. ADB and the World Bank are the two main agencies supporting urban development. Bilateral agencies are providing smaller-scale and more sector-specific lending assistance.

Major Development Partners Development Amount Partner Project Name Duration ($ million) Multisector–Urban Development Asian Development Gansu Baiyin Urban Development 2007–2011 80.0 Bank Lanzhou Sustainable Urban Transport 2010–2015 150.0 Gansu Tianshui Urban Infrastructure Development 2011–2016 100.0 Gansu Urban Infrastructure Development and Wetland Protection 2012–2017 100.0 World Bank Gansu Cultural and Natural Heritage Protection and Development 2008–2013 38.4 Integrated Economic Development of Small Towns 2012–2017 150.0 Gansu Qingyang Urban Infrastructure Improvement Project 2012–2017 100.0 Source: Asian Development Bank.

B. Institutional Arrangements and Processes for Development Coordination

3. In the PRC, the central government mainly coordinates development assistance. All the development partners are requested to align their operations to support the implementation of a national development strategy as set out in the PRC’s Twelfth Five-Year Plan, 2011–2015 for social and economic development and approved by the People’s Congress. Provincial and municipal governments are responsible for formulating their development plans in line with the national development strategy and ensuring that external assistance specific to the relevant provinces and municipalities supports the development needs outlined in their development plans without overlapping with each other.

4. ADB is committed to sharing sector information and experiences in partnership with its developing member countries and other development agencies. In line with its support for the 2005 Paris Declaration and the 2008 Accra Agenda for Action, ADB has been harmonizing its policies, procedures, and practices with its key development partners through parallel implementation structures, technical working groups, and joint missions. ADB actively supports and participates in periodic informal consultations to enhance dialogue and coordination among development partners. It also harnesses lessons from project design, implementation, and monitoring to be shared with other development partners. 2

C. Achievements and Issues

5. The strategies and operations of various development partners have many common elements because of their general alignment with the government’s priorities. Major development partners’ urban sector assistance has given greater focus to cities and towns in the less-developed central, western, and northeastern regions in support of the national development strategy for balanced regional development in the PRC. High priority is also accorded to making all cities livable by improving the urban environment, which includes efforts to improve urban infrastructure and services, reduce pollution, and improve land use.

6. Through coordination, ADB and other development partners have improved development synergies in redressing various urban development challenges and environmental problems by sharing knowledge and management experience. Coordination with major development partners has also been strengthened to support the PRC’s five-year plans, strategic master plans, public awareness and education, financial and institutional strengthening, and Millennium Development Goals.

7. Urbanization is taking place at an unprecedented pace and scale across the PRC and in cities and towns with different geographic conditions and at different stages of social and economic development. This will provide a rich source of knowledge and practices, as well as valuable lessons for future operations. Continued efforts will be needed to gain and share knowledge with the government and development partners to respond to the challenges of rapid urbanization and economic transformation.

D. Summary and Recommendations

8. The project team will coordinate with other development partners during project implementation. Strengthening development coordination in the PRC is expected to minimize transaction costs, maximize responsiveness, solve policy issues more systematically, provide greater support for institutional strengthening and capacity building, and increase accountability to achieve greater development impact.