Why Most Development Projects Fail in Pakistan? A Plausible Explanation

Abstract

The need for effective .project planning in the farmework of macro planning has always been very strong in Pakistan as projects form the basis of development. Without the successful execution of projects, it is unlikely that development plans could be implemented effectively. In Pakistan an elaborate machinery for the planning of development projects exists but its prformance has been far from satisfactory. If one has to write the porject history of Pakistan, one wiII come across numerous examples of projects that have failed due to the ineffecient functioning of this machinery. Needless to say these failures have cost the economy billions of rupees, which in a capital-scarce economy like Pakistan, would have made a substantial difference towards economic development had this machinery operated efficiently. The objective of this paper is two fold: first to indentify shortcomings and weak links in the project planning system which are responsible for the failure of most projects. Failure here refers to the lack of implementation in time and within the project's planned budget estimates. And second, to suggest appropriate remedial policy measures. Experience has shown that the process of project planning and implementation in the country has suffered from inherent problems ranging from conceptual differences about the projects, hurriedly prepared feasibility studies deficient in proper technical and. economic underpinnings and the lack of basic information obtained through insufficient investigation and surveys to inadequate project monitoring and almost non-existent in-depth evaluation studies.

Perception of University Graduates about the Project Management Education in Pakistan “Professional Perspective”

“…16 -18). Sahibzada and Mahmood (1992) have also stressed on the need of up gradation of human skills of the public sector managers in Pakistan. They report that most of the government officials have never attended training, while others need refresher courses.…”

With the Projectisation of the World, The Time is Right to Unravel Why International Development Project (IDP) Failure is Prevalent

“…It comes as no surprise that planning/tracking/reporting is the first factor on their list because poor planning and bad project management, according to Saunders [21], remain major problems in project implementation. Numerous examples of development projects are reported to have failed in Pakistan due to the inefficient functioning of the machinery for planning development projects [2]. One of the most important reasons for project failure in Cameroun in particular, which may apply to many other parts of Africa is poor planning -most of the projects do not have a well-defined plan from outset [1].…”

“…Agheneza [1] indicated that "Several development projects have failed to have a significant positive impact on the quality of life" in the Ngie, NW Province of Cameroon (page 74). Similarly, Sahibzada and Mahmood [2] reported that if one has to write the project history of Pakistan, one will come across numerous examples of projects that have failed due to the inefficient functioning of the machinery for planning development projects. Even when funds are available to carry projects through, some IDPs are considered failed operations and terminated by their donors after years of implementation, examples of which include Kpong Irrigation Project (KIP) in Ghana as well as Programme de Mise en Valeur des Plaines du Moyen-Bani (PMB) and Projet d'Amenagement du Perimetre Irrigue de Maninkoura (PAPIM), both of which are in Mali (see [3]).…”