The Programme implementation aimed at reducing the growing disproportion in development of the communes. The Programme was to comprise 500 rural communes (from 13 provinces) in the most difficult position, mainly the ones that did not meet requirements related to socioeconomic conditions. Participation in the Programme was supposed to make up for the developmental distance and strengthen social integration in their area. The initiatives being part of the Programme included workshops, courses or open-air activities in such areas as e.g. traditional artistic craftsmanship, folk singing and dance, music-, art-, film- and sports classes, computer graphics or foreign language classes. The groups that took part in those activities included elderly persons, children, youth and whole families. An important fact is that the initiative was organised by local institutions or associations selected by way of tender.
The Programme implementation brought permanent results in more than 90 percent of the communes involved where the actions initiated by the Programme are now continued in various forms. The Programme also helped in increasing the communes’ efficiency in obtaining funds from external sources for the social integration tasks. It also facilitated planning and developing communal strategies of solving social problems.
The Programme implementation in KRUS [Kasa Rolniczego Ubezpieczenia Społecznego - Agricultural Social Insurance Fund] failed. The Fund still does not have a fully efficient IT system, although since 2006 it spent the total funds designated for that purpose (more than EUR 27 million) from the World Bank cash loan. The following work completion date - the third one already - is scheduled for the end of 2012.
The new consistent IT system was to be ready in 2009. It was supposed to improve efficiency of KRUS’s work and integrate the systems functioning to date. Reality is different - the investment completion dates were postponed twice and according to NIK, considering the progress of works until present, it is highly doubtful that the next deadline being the end of 2012 will be met. From three planned systems two key ones do not operate: the management system (including subsystems for the management of finance, human resources, pays, procurements and fixed assets) and the long-term data archiving system. Only the work automation system is functioning.
Pursuant to NIK, the project was badly managed by KRUS from the very beginning and it lacked a consistent concept of the whole project. As a consequence, there were chaos and delays. The tender procedure for the management system took one year and a half and the contractor did not ensure required quality of works. The archiving system is still being installed. In this case the tender procedure was repeated twice as the only quotation exceeded the estimated task budget.
Activities of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in terms of disseminating the Programme results also proved unsatisfactory. The nationwide campaign on social integration arising from the cash loan agreement was not conducted. The campaign aiming at informing the public opinion of the changes in KRUS was not carried out, either.
At the same time NIK pointed out that the Programme was implemented in a sluggish manner. On the one hand, it resulted from its inappropriate preparation, on the other from the need to apply the World Bank procedures in parallel with domestic regulations. It required the Programme participants to master and apply complex procedures of the Bank, including financial ones, in fact only for the needs of a single project. According to NIK, it shows that it is necessary to reconsider selection of a source of financing for such projects in the future.
The cash loan agreement with the World Bank obliged NIK to conduct financial audit of the Programme and issue confirmation of the spending regularity. As a result of the audit, NIK issued a positive opinion on the reliability and accuracy of the Programme financial report for the years 2010-2012 and positively evaluated, with some reservations, regularity of spending from the cash loan funds.
