According to plans it should have been finished 64 months later. 16 years have now passed and the project has not been completed. A project which has come to a standstill in the municipality of Alto Santo, State of Ceara would benefit 2.5 million people suffering from the drought. The construction of the Joana dam in the interior of the State of Piaui started in 1984. Plans then were that the project should be ready two years later.
Exaggerated costs are also a feature of many of the projects.
An irrigation dam in Trusse, municipality of Iguatu, State of Ceara should have been finished in 1993. In other cases just a small amount of money would finish projects but this has not been made available. An example is the Serrinha irrigation dam in the State of Pernambuco. The construction started in 1983 and was planned to last three years. The project would benefit 50400 people and the dam would supply sufficient fish for 3100 people per day.