.

Unit One
The nature of a project, features
of project, project stakeholder
 1.1: Nature of a project
 The basic purpose of initiating a project is to accomplish
some goals. Projects are initiated either to take advantage
of an opportunity or to solve a problem/correct problems,
- to respond to a new customer request/environment

For instance, developing a watershed, building irrigation

facility, developing new variety of a crop, new breed of an
animal, construction of farm building
 1.1 Nature of a project….
Definition : project is a sequence of unique, complex,
and connected activities having one goal or purpose and
that must be completed by a specific time, within
budget, and according to specification.
Projects are implemented through project management
which is “the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and
techniques to project activities in order to meet project
requirements
 1.1 Nature of a project….
 A successful project based on the project management
method consists of three stages:
 Planning

 Scheduling

 Controlling
 1.1 Nature of a project….

Four key considerations always are involved in a project:

(1)What will it cost?
(2) What time is required to complete the project?
(3) What technical performance capability will it provide?
(4) How will the project results fit into the design and
implementation of organizational strategies?
 1.1 Nature of a project….
Typical Project Examples
(a) Construction projects
 (b) Development projects
 (c) Weddings, remodeling a home, and moving to
another house are certainly projects for the families
involved
(d) Company audits, major litigations, corporate
relocations, and mergers are also projects.
 1.2 Features of project
 1)Objectives: A project has a set of objectives or a
mission

2) Definite Time Limit (Temporary) A project has a

definite time limit. It cannot continue forever.
3) Uniqueness Every project is unique and no two
projects are similar
 1.2 Features of project…..

 4) Teamwork: Any project calls for the services of

experts from a host of disciplines
5) Complexity: A project is complex set of activities
relating to diverse areas.
6) Risk and Uncertainty: a risk free project cannot be
thought of.
7) Sub-contracting- to give a contract to somebody else
to do part of the work.
 Project Terminology
 Program refers to an exceptionally large, long-

range objective that is broken down into a set of

projects. These projects are further divided into
tasks, which are, in turn,

 split into work packages that are themselves

composed of work units. Here is the hierarchy.

 Project Terminology….
 Program – refers to a group of projects
Project – a specific, finite task to be accomplished.

Task – is a further subdivision of a project.

Work packages – is a group of activities combined to

be assignable to a single organizational unit.
 Work unit – refers to the smallest unit in a project
activity
 Development projects defined

FAO, refers to development project as

“ A proposed for investment where a cost stream results

in a certain flow of benefits over a specified period”
World Bank Publication expand on this idea and link
project development to a flow of benefit
“ Generally, in Agricultural projects we are thinking of
an investment asset from which we can expect to realize
benefits over an extended period of time” ( Gittinger
 Development projects defined

Recent definition of development project

“A project is an instrument of change. It is a coordinate series of actions
resulting from a decision to change resources combination and levels so
as to contribute to realization of the country’s development objectives”
The development projects should therefore be expanded to contain the
notion of interventions, participation and sustainability for all
stakeholders and participants
(including farmers, businesses, financial institutions and also the public
and private sector investors)
 Classification of development project
From time horizon-

Long duration projects

Short duration projects

From point of view of their output

Projects producing goods

Projects producing service

Projects producing knowledge

Projects based on coverage

Projects based on different economic sectors

 Classification of development project
Whatever its size, a projects success is based on the three
main criteria as shown by the following triangle
Scope/quality

Time budget/cost
any alter in any one of dimensions would affect the other
 Classification of development project..
project is deemed to be successful if it:
Deliver the outcome with an agreed upon quality

Does not overrun its end date

Remains within budget(Cost of resources)

 Project Stakeholders
A “stakeholder” is any person or organization that is
actively involved in a project, or whose interests may be
affected positively or negatively by execution of a project.
Stakeholders may include the project sponsor, project
team, support staff, customers, users, suppliers, and even
opponents to the project.
These stakeholders often have very different needs and
expectations.
 Project Stakeholders….
Example: several stakeholders involved in a home
construction project
The project sponsors would be the potential new
homeowners
The project manager in this example would normally
be the general contractor responsible for building the
house, work with all the project stakeholders
 Project Stakeholders….
 The project team for building the house would include

several construction workers, electricians, carpenters,

and so on.
Support staff might include the employers of the
homeowners, the general contractor’s administrative
assistant, and other people who support other
stakeholders
 project Stakeholders….

 Suppliers. The suppliers would provide the wood,

windows, flooring materials, appliances, and other
items.
Suppliers would expect exact details on what items they
need to provide, where and when to deliver those items,
and similar information.
 Project Stakeholders….
 Additional stakeholders would include the city council
and mayor, who would be interested in increasing revenues.
They might suggest certain guidelines for the minimum
value of the homes for providing adequate property taxes.
The city may also have regulations to ensure the safety of
the public in the area of the construction site. The local
housing inspector would also be a stakeholder, concerned
with ensuring that everything meets specific codes and
regulations. Opposing neighbor
 1.4why development projects fail
 1) Inappropriate technology

2) Inadequate support systems

3) Policy Environment

4) Administrative problems

5) Problems of poor project analysis

 Chapter Two Project lifecycle

Project Life Cycles

Before any project is actually realized it goes through
various planning phases. Therefore,
the different phase through which a project passes
constitutes what is often called “the project cycle”
 is a continuous process involving sequential steps that
form a kind of cycle, usually called ‘the project cycle’
 Project Life Cycles….
The sequence is as follows:
Identification
Preparation and analysis

Appraisal
Implementation

Monitoring and evaluation

 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 1 Identification
 The first stage in the cycle is to find potential projects. Some sources of

projects are given here:-

Some may be “resource based” and stem from the opportunity to make

profitable use of available resources.

Some projects may be “market based” arising from an identified demand

in home or overseas markets.

Others may be “need based” where the purpose is to try to make

available to all people in an area of minimal amounts of certain basic

material requirements and services.
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 1 Identification……
Well informed technical specialists and local leaders are also
common sources of projects.
Technical specialists will have identified many areas where new
investment might be profitable, while local leaders may have
suggestion about where investment might be carried out.
Project identification is initiated when farmers, extension
workers, or NGO or donor agency staff point to a prospective
project.
This stage involves the conceptualization of the project ideas.
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 2 Preparation (Pre-feasibility and/or feasibility studies)

a process of progressively more detailed preparation and analysis of

project plans.
Projects that survive the early stage of successful identification need
to be prepared and analyzed before money is allocated to them.
Project preparation (or formulation) covers the establishment of
technical, economic and financial feasibility that will provide
enough information for deciding whether to begin more advanced
planning
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 2 Preparation (Pre-feasibility and/or feasibility studies …

 Decisions have to be made on the scope of the project,

location and site, soil and hydrological requirements, Project
size (farm or factory size) etc.
Resource base investigations are undertaken and alternative
forms of projects are explored
This stage is concerned with the study of a limited number of
project alternatives and will enable project planners to
exclude poor alternatives.
 Project Life Cycles….

Stage 2 Preparation (Pre-feasibility and/or feasibility studies…

 Complete technical specifications of distinct proposals
accompanied by full details of financial and economic costs and
benefits are the outcome of the project preparation stage.
 The project now exists as a set of tangible proposals.
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 3 Appraisal

After a project has been prepared, it is generally appropriate

for a critical or an independent review to be conducted. This
provides an opportunity to reexamine every aspect of the
project plan.
to assess whether the proposal is appropriate and sound
before large amount of money is committed. Appraisal
should cover at least seven aspects

 2 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 3 Appraisal…..
 Technical – here the appraisal concentrates in verifying whether
what is proposed will work in the way suggested or not.
 Financial –to see: if money needed for the project have been
properly calculated, their sources are identified and reasonable plans
for their repayments are made.
 Commercial – to examine whether the necessary inputs for the
project are supplied.
 - to see whether the arrangements for the disposal of the products
are verified
 2 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 3 Appraisal……
 Incentive - to see whether things are arranged in such a way that all
those whose participation is required will find it in their interest to
take part in the project.
 Economic – to see the economic significance of the project towards
the nation’s development.
 Managerial – this aspect of the appraisal examines: to see if the
capacity exists for operating the project, and to see if the responsible
ones are given sufficient power and scope to do what is required.
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 3 Appraisal….
 Organizational – to see if it is organized internally and
externally into units so as to allow the proposals to be carried-
out properly and to allow for change as the project develops.

 Environmental impact assessment (EIA): EIA study is now a

pre-requisite for project financing.
 -Designed to develop an understanding of the environmental
consequences of newly planned or existing projects and of any
project related activities.
 Environmental benefits or costs are usually externalities or side
effects that affect the society in whole or in part
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 4 Implementation
 A project that is considered to be worthwhile at the appraisal
stage qualifies for implementation
The objective of any effort in project planning and analysis
clearly is to have a project that can be implemented to the
benefit of the society
In this stage,
Funds are actually disbursed to get the projects started and
keep running,
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 4 Implementation ….
 A major priority during this stage is to ensure that the project is
carried out in the way and within the period that was planned
 While the project is being carried out, continuous monitoring is
required to satisfy those people implementing the project that things
are proceeding according to plan.
 Monitoring typically requires an effective information gathering
and management system that can check the progress of the project
according to the plans that have been drawn up and the project
objectives
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 4 Implementation ….
 It is during implementation that many of the real
problems of projects are first identified. Therefore, to
allow the management to become aware of the difficulties
that might arise, recording, monitoring and progress
reporting are important activities during the implementation
stage.
 Finally the project is brought to completion
 Project Life Cycles….
Stage 5 Monitoring and Evaluation
Once project is completed (and possibly also several times during
its implementation), needs to be evaluated to enable analysts
(borrowers or lenders) to assess its performance and outcome
The final phase in the project cycle is evaluation. Once a project
has been implemented, it is often useful, to look back over what
took place, to compare actual progress with the plans, to judge
whether decisions and actions taken were responsible and useful.
 Project Life Cycles….

Stage 5 Monitoring and Evaluation…

Evaluation is not limited only to completed projects. It is important
managerial tool in ongoing projects.
- and formalized evaluation may take place at several times in the life
of a project.
Evaluation assesses whether:
Project objectives have been met
Activities have been implemented as planned
Anticipated benefits have been achieved
Evaluation should be undertaken when a project is terminated or is
well into routine operation.
Thank You