Uncertainty in planning, deficiencies in project evaluation and public works selection, fragmentation and overlapping of powers, and inadequate rules on contract awards and project controls result in public works that are less useful and more costly than elsewhere.
The execution time for projects financed by the European Regional Development Fund is nearly twice as long as scheduled in Italy, compared with average overruns of just one quarter in the rest of Europe, and cost overruns are 40 per cent as against 20 per cent.