Rural trails and access roads

PES covers the period 3/80-9/83 (with some data updated to 9/84) and is based primarily on a 10/83 special evaluation (PD-AAQ-082) Project objectives have been partially met. Reconstruction has been completed or is underway on 78% of targeted roads; contracts have been awarded or are ready for bidding on another 17%. Improved roads in an early reconstruction area have already allowed farmers to increase production area, fertilizer usage, and crop yields and to add potatoes as a cash crop. construction system used (paying contractors for completed construction) has increased initial cost estimates (due to greater contractor risk), it has also encouraged faster construction and higher quality; A.I.D. field supervision has also ensured the latter. As the project has tended to attract mainly small contractors, it has contributed to their survival in a depressed economy. However, the Secretariat of Communication, Public Works, and Transportation (SECOPT) has failed to organize community maintenance committees; PCV participation in promoting community involvement has also been less than planned. The intended integrated development dimension of the project has not been implemented due to changes in the Government of Honduras"s development priorities. As contractors rent earthmoving equipment to SECOPT and are paid on a unit price basis for surfacing and drainage structure materials, less employment has been generated for unskilled local laborers than expected (contractors want to maximize equipment rental and reduce construction time for higher profits). The distinction between roads and trails in the project paper has been abandoned, in part due to the unavailability of rural hand labor, and volume of traffic alone has been used to determine standards for roads being rehabilitated. A lesson learned is that roads are instrumental to development and should not be considered an end in themselves. Action decisions include: for SECOPT to improve its supervision of field engineers and hire more experienced engineers; and to develop a plan to promote community maintenance of roads and create a SECOPT department to implement the plan.