Towards a sustainable transport infrastructure: A sectoral approach in practice. Transport sector guidelines

This document presents a set of practical guidelines prepared by the EU for the formulation, implementation and evaluation of transport projects. The aim of the guidelines is to provide a comprehensive overview of the issues in moving towards more sustainable transport infrastructure in developing countries and to provide a sectoral framework in which project proposals and requests for European Union assistance to the sector can be examined. These guidelines have been prepared for desk officers and other professionals working in various capacities in the European Commission and its Delegations. Additionally, they are addressed to staff of ministries and organisations in recipient countries, and consultants. This document is of particular interest given that it analyses the different phases of the project cycle, and the issues affecting each of them, where information is identified as a key component in every phase.

The guidelines comprise three parts. The first part on building a sectoral approach, provides an insight into the key issues in transport infrastructure in developing countries and the emerging solutions of a sectoral approach. Part II provides the means of applying a sectoral approach to examine proposals and requests for assistance in financing transport infrastructure projects. It is organised according to the phases in Project Cycle Management adopted by the European Commission in managing development aid (The six phases of the project cycle). For each of these phases, the issues (information) affecting project sustainability are raised in a series of key questions. Possible problems and potential actions are proposed for each of the key questions. Thus the potential sustainability of proposed projects can be assessed by posing the questions for the appropriate project cycle phase. The lists of questions are, however, by no means exhaustive and should be used as the starting point to trigger further questions, bringing to light and examining the underlying causes of problems.

Tools for developing and monitoring projects within a sectoral framework are provided in Part III. These are standard formats for Terms of Reference and reports for studies in different phases of the project cycle. They are for a transport sectoral policy study which is generally done during programming, a pre-feasibility study in the identification phase and a feasibility study in the formulation phase. The standard formats should be used in preparing Terms of Reference for consultants. Examples of sectoral and project monitoring indicators are also given and can be used in project implementation and monitoring.