The IMT-GT Implementation Blueprint (IB) 2012–2016 is a concrete manifestation of the
countries’ resolve to an action-oriented and results-based path in the next five years. The
strategic investment projects in the IB, complemented by software initiatives, will significantly
improve connectivity in the subregion, thus allowing member countries to take full advantage
of the benefits of integration with the realization of the ASEAN Economic Community.
The IB has set the framework for a more disciplined process of project planning and
implementation and monitoring. Projects with well-defined concepts and implementation
plans have been selected for inclusion in the IB in order to ensure that they can be carried
out effectively and with the desired outcomes, as well as impacts on both national as well as
subregional objectives. Toward this end, the IB has incorporated a results-based framework to
capture the delivery of outputs, outcomes, and impacts. While this new system of monitoring
will undoubtedly pose a challenge to the program, it will also compel quality of project delivery,
and greater accountability on the part of the implementer.
The successful implementation of the IB requires a stronger, more focused institutional
mechanism. The operational mechanisms have been defined with greater clarity to specify the
accountability of officials responsible for the various bodies, including the chairs of working
groups, the national secretariats, and the Centre for IMT-GT Subregional Cooepration. The
involvement of line ministries will be crucial in delivering results. The national secretariats,
in particular, will need to assume a greater role in appraising projects in relation to the IB
guidelines; advising on project conceptualization; and managing the process of monitoring
outputs, outcomes, and impacts based on the results framework. The Asian Development
Bank (ADB) will assist in this process.
As the IB is a living document, it is expected to evolve and adapt to key changes in the
subregion in the course of its 5-year implementation period. New projects that are critical to
attaining the objectives in the six sectors, as well as adjustments in the timing and sequencing
of the projects, could be reflected in the course of IB implementation, as long as they are
consistent with the IB guidelines. An annual update of the rolling pipeline will be the mechanism
for accommodating changes at the level of programs and projects.