PBSs

Summarizes attached interim evaluation (XD-ABI-460-A) of a project to extend electricity to rural areas of Bangladesh. The project is being implemented by the National Rural Electrification Cooperative Association (NRECA) and the Rural Electrification Board (REB). The evaluation covered the period 8/86-12/93. The REB has created a working rural electricity distribution system based on the experience of the U.S. Rural Electrification Administration. The technical and engineering functions of the REB and its rural electric cooperatives (PBSs) are performed with a high level of competence, and private engineering firms have been developed to provide high-quality design and construction services. NRECA has transferred a vast amount of information and skills to the REB and the PBSs in the areas of engineering, construction, operation and maintenance (O&M), and utility finance. However, efforts to develop the management and planning skills needed to sustain REB and PBS capacity in the long run have been less successful; TA should focus on these areas during the remainder of the project. The system's financial viability is also a matter of concern. Although taken as a whole all 17 o

Source: DEC abstract, PD-ABI-460 (1994). The source's own text.