ANNEX 3: LEARNING FROM PROJECT AND PROGRAM EXPERIENCES
â–
167
heavy rains typically inundate homes with a mix of sewage and storm water up to a meter deep. The VUUP focuses on engaging local communities in the critical stages of preparation, design, and implementation while seeking to improve the living conditions of all residents, regardless of their registration status. Using a multi-sector approach, the project aims to provide or rehabilitate infrastructure and housing in low-income areas through capacity building in the local government and through partnerships with communities. The first major investment, of US$222 million, supports upgrading lowincome communities in four cities: Can Tho, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh, and Ho Chi Minh, including the Tan Hoa-Lo Gom Canal area. The project seeks, among other things, to conduct an integrated upgrading of basic infrastructure at the neighborhood level, such as drainage, waste-water collection, electricity and lighting, street-access improvements, and water supply, as well as the provision of social services, such as schools, pre-schools, and health centers in targeted lowincome communities. The lessons learned in this first stage of VUUP activities informed similar projects in the area of Da Nang, the fourth-largest urban area in Vietnam (World Bank 2008b). Among the lessons carried over, the need for active community participation, minimization of relocation and resettlement, and the design of infrastructure to an appropriate technical standard that is still affordable to the communities. The second phase of the project supports the upgrading of tertiary infrastructure, the development of three resettlement sites, microfinance for housing improvement, and improved drainage systems. The current pipeline proposal to expand the VUUP to the Mekong Delta region would focus on the provinces of Can Tho, My Tho, Kien Giang, Tra Vinh, Dong Thap, and Ca Mau (World Bank 2010). The expected measureable outcomes of the project include improved environmental conditions, improved quality of life, increased access to financing for housing improvements, greater tenure security, and improved capacity at the national level to manage urban systems.
Job Creation Liberia—Reducing Vulnerability to Natural Disasters while Creating Job Opportunities for the Poor
In 2006, Mercy Corps initiated their Cash-for-Work program in Liberia to promote drainage maintenance. Prior to the initiation of this program, heavy rains would frequently trigger flooding in both urban and rural areas. Cleaning the drains was not a government priority, and the drainage systems had not been properly maintained for decades due to lack of funds and civil war. The one-year