Philippine assistance program support (PAPS) project : pre-investment facility component

Evaluation covers the period 1/90-8/92. The PIF seems well on the way to success. Midway through the project life, all grant funds have essentially been committed, and the 158 private sector recipients are planning investment projects with a total cost of over $3 billion. Investments are expected to generate over 50,000 new jobs vs. a total grant outlay of $5 million. Actual investments ($54 million to date) represent a ratio to PIF grants of over 48 times. The project"s procedures and organizational structure are functioning well and grantees have generally been very satisfied with the services rendered. Delays have been due to external factors such as difficulty in obtaining clearances from the Philippine government and delays in communication. The project is considered suitable for a follow-on, with three suggested minor changes in orientation: (1) increase monitoring of actual investments by grantees (an activity which will become more important as the project continues); (2) establish a separate organization and, possibly, separate funding for new foreign investment, if more support for the Foreign Investment Act is intended; and (3) place no additional further prioritization or sectoral restrictions on eligible investments, except, possibly, an upper limit of $4.3 million on project cost.