Ex-post Evaluation

1. Background of the Project

During the three years following 1990, housing design standards were formulated by the Project named China Urban Housing Research Cooperation Project (Research Cooperation) with cooperation from the Japanese government. However, further development of technology, human development and improvement of the institutional arrangement were needed for applying those standards to actual housing construction. Therefore, the Chinese government prepared and submitted to the Japanese government a proposal for “China Housing New Technology Research and Human Resource Training Center Project” for the purpose of developing new housing technology through utilizing domestic and overseas applicable and advanced technology, and training technology experts in the housing field. Based on the result of the preliminary evaluation study conducted by JICA, the Japanese government adopted the Project and began it on September 1, 1995, with a prospective duration of 5 years.

2. Project Overview

The Project was implemented for the purpose of conducting researches on new housing technologies and developing human resources in charge of disseminating newly developed technologies. The Project overview is as follows:

(1) Overall Goal

To build suitable, healthful and good quality houses.

(2) Project Purpose

To train professionals in housing planning, design and construction supervision.

(3) Outputs

(4) Inputs

Japanese side:

Chinese side:

3-1 Summary of Evaluation Results

(1) Impact

a. The impact on the achievement of the overall goal

It can be concluded that the Project made great achievements to reach the overall goal from the points mentioned below. After the completion of the Project, a lot of technical personnel participated in training courses conducted by the China Construction Design Institute Human Resource Training Center (the Center was named China Housing New Technology Research and Human Resource Training Center during the Project. See the section 1-2(1) below.); the detail numbers are as follows: 471 persons in the year of 2000; 1,543 persons in the year of 2001; 2,112 persons in the year of 2002; and 2,723 persons in the year of 2003. Research works which were conducted during the Project were continued after the completion of the Project, and some of the achievements were formulated into a series of important technical documents which have been used to guide housing development in China. For example, the Code for Design of Residential Building for the Aged GB/T 50340-2003 was issued in 2003. Dalian Xiyang Community for the Aged won the Beijing Excellence Award. To design residential buildings for the Elderly was one of the principal goals of the Project. Chinese engineers have mastered the latest technologies of constructing practical, healthful and good quality Japanese housing, up till now, and an expedited information channel has been set up.

b. Unanticipated direct and indirect impacts

More and more attention has come to be paid to the environmental and health ramifications of housing construction through the research and development activities, application of the results and training activities conducted in the Project.

(2) Sustainability

a. Organizational Aspect:

As a part of the governmental institutional reform which began in 2000, China Architectural Design & Research Group was established by the merger of the former China Architectural Technology Research Institute, China Huabei Municipal Design Research Institute (Tianjin), Architectural Design Institute of Ministry of Construction, and Urban Construction Research Institute of the Ministry of Construction. China Housing New Technology Research and Training Center was positioned to attach to the China Architectural Design & Research Group, and it was renamed the Training Center of China Architectural Design & Research Group. The China Architectural Design & Research Group and the China Academy of Building Research have separated from the Ministry of Construction; at present they are supervised and administrated by the State Asset Supervision and Administration Commission. These three organizations are running with the market economy rule, and there is no financial support from the Chinese government.

From the organizational aspect, after institutional reform, as the principal organization of the Project, the Human Resource Training Center of China Architecture Design & Research Group, which succeeded the function of training from the Project, still maintain stable organizational structures. In addition, the structures of other organizations which participated in the Project (i.e.: State Housing and Residential Environmental Engineering Center of China Architectural Design & Research Group, Institute of Architectural Engineering Materials and Products of China Academy of Building Research, Institute of Architectural Physics, Institute of Architectural Economic Management of Harbin Industrial University) also have been stable and developed further.

b. Financial Aspects:

The organizations which conduct research activities on housing technologies, such as State Housing and Residential Environmental Engineering Center of China Architecture Design & Research Group, Institute of Architecture Engineering Materials and Products of China Academy of Building Research, Institute of Architectural Physics, and Institute of Architectural Economic Management of Harbin Industrial University, have no financial difficulties. The Human Resource Training Center of China Architectural Design & Research Group has completely separated from the Ministry of Construction, and since then it needs to make money for daily activities by themselves. At present, there are two main financial sources for the Training Center. The first one is training tuition. The second one is earnings from lease of some of the classrooms in the Training Center. After the completion of the Project, there were two to three times more income than before at the Center. Therefore, there are no financial difficulties for the Training Center.

c. Technical Aspects:

It can be concluded that the sustainability of technology effects is high from the following points. The achievements of the research themes of “Design of Residential Building for the Elderly”, “Housing Research for Villages and Small Towns”, and “Housing Product Research,” which were undertaken by China Architectural Design & Research Group have been applied to actual construction. Most achievements won the national Ninth Five-year Plan excellence award. The research result from the “Design of Residential Building for the Aged” has become the national standard of “Code for Design of Residential Building for the Elderly” GB/T 50340-2003. The Construction Structure Research Institute of China Academy of Building Research has applied many project results to practice since the completion of the Project. The Architectural Economic Management Institute of Harbin Industrial University published the Housing Construction Supervision Manual and Housing Industrialization Forum while keeping cooperative relations with Japanese researchers in the same field. The Training Center of China Architectural Design & Research Group tried to further develop training courses based on the achievements of the Projects and in accordance with the market demand and the needs of the human resource training.

d. Project effects

Judging from the sustainability of the outcome from the six outputs of the Project, it can be concluded as below that the sustainability of the Project effect is fairly high. In the field of human resource training, technical personnel were trained every year even after the completion of the Project; as for the field of planning/designing, the research on residential building for the elderly has been adopted to national technical standards. As for the field of prediction of housing needs, there was provision of useful information concerning the planning policies of the national Tenth Five-year Plan, etc.; as for the field of housing construction, the Housing Construction Supervision Manual has been published and used as a text book in Universities. Furthermore, the Quality Management Manual is being used by technical personnel on the ground. As for the field of housing production, the lab which was in charge of housing production was certified by the National Technical Quality Management Bureau, and the results from its research activities are about to become the national technical standard. As for the field of housing quality, achievements of research activities are about to become the national technical standard as well.

3-2. Factors promoting sustainability and impact

(1) Factors concerning planning

As far as the policy of the Chinese government is concerned, requirement for housing quality becomes higher and higher, and a series of policies and standards have been worked out. This fact may have improved the Project’s sustainability and promoted the development of the project effects.

(2) Factors concerning the implementation process

Same as above

3-3. Factors inhibiting sustainability and impact

The Human Resource Center may be separated from the Architectural Design & Research Group and required as an independent organization to run by itself in the future. In this case, it may have negative impact on the development of the Center.

3-4. Conclusions

Since the completion of the Project in 2000, the Training Center still maintains its original organizational structure and keeps it running well. Although the Training Center may meet some difficulties and problems in the future, including a problem regarding its organizational status, the Training Center is confident of its future development because the construction market is developing quickly in China. The Center has organizational, financial and technical sustainability, and it is playing an important role in human resource development in the field of new housing technology in China.

The other three organizations which participated in the Project are conducting comparatively smooth research work. Because of the prosperous housing market in China, the organizations have a good prospect for development in the field of housing new technology. Therefore, it is logical to conclude that the sustainability of the Project is high.

3-5. Recommendations

(1) To the implementing organizations of the Project

In order to maintain the project effects, the three implementing organizations should take advantage of their own technologies, human resources and experiences by continuing cooperative activities with Japan and other countries, and should utilize them in responding to needs from the domestic housing market. China Architectural Design & Research Group Human Resource Training Center should take the institutional reform as good opportunities to further improve its organization and widen its scope of activities.

(2) To JICA

The same as Item 6 below.

3-6. Lessons Learned

In the Project, there existed a gap between the real training needs and the needs assumed during the project design stage. The five outputs of the research and development activities were incorporated into the training activities, but they did not necessarily correspond to the training needs in the early stage of the Project. After the completion of the Project, the needs for the training in the field which the research and development activities of the Project dealt with have risen because of such reasons as the technology standards for the residential housing of the elderly was established. However, more attention should be paid to matching better the training activities to the real training needs of the housing filed when a similar project is planned.

3-7. Follow-up Situation

N/A.