Institutional and Governance Review

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CPIA Africa, September 2023: Policies for Economic Resilience in a Turbulent World
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-09-12) World Bank
The Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) for Africa is an annual diagnostic tool for Sub-Saharan African countries that are eligible for financing from the International Development Association (IDA), the part of the World Bank that helps the world’s poorest countries. The CPIA Africa 2023 report provides an assessment of the quality of policies and institutions in all 39 IDA-eligible countries in Sub-Saharan Africa for calendar year 2022. The average overall CPIA score for Sub-Saharan Africa remained unchanged at 3.1 in 2022. Economic and social resilience continues to be tested in all countries in Sub-Saharan Africa amid tight global credit markets, as institutional capacity for restoring stability and delivering sustained growth remains a challenge. Such resilience is also fundamental to responding to global climate change and the expected market shifts as the world economy transitions to green energy. The recovery of economic activity in the region following the slowdown caused by COVID-19 has been multispeed, with wide variation across countries. Global events that diverted attention away from longer-term development priorities marked 2022. Inflation was the predominant form in which international pressures translated to domestic economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, resulting in stress on social policies and government budgets, on account of divergent responses by governments and private sector competition. In some countries, this has led to significant stress on debt sustainability, highlighting the importance of debt management, budgetary oversight, and financial soundness. An opportunity for regrouping on policy reforms arose in the second half of 2022, as gas prices declined after a mild European winter and China lifted health-related restrictions. Despite global economic challenges, more countries in Sub-Saharan Africa saw improvements in their overall CPIA scores compared to the previous year. In Western and Central Africa (AFW), the overall score increased for eight countries—Benin, Cabo Verde, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, the Republic of Congo, and Togo. The overall score increased for four countries in Eastern and Southern Africa (AFE)—Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, and Zambia. In contrast, the overall score decreased for eight countries—Chad, the Comoros, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Sudan. The countries with improved scores made notable advancements in the economic management, policies for social inclusion, and governance clusters. Conversely, the countries with declining scores faced economic management and governance challenges. For the most part, the countries that received downgrades were positioned toward the lower end of the scale, while the upgraded countries generally had overall scores above 3, indicating a growing divergence in scores across the region in 2022.
CPIA Africa, November 2021: Assessing Africa’s Policies and Institutions
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-11) World Bank
The Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) 2021 Africa report provides an assessment of the quality of policies and institutions of International Development Association (IDA); eligible countries in Sub-Saharan Africa in calendar year 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The report analyzes the CPIA scores for 2020 to assess the extent to which the policies and institutions of the region's IDA countries are fostering sustainable growth, poverty reduction, and the effective utilization of development resources. The CPIA scores quantify the level of performance of each country against 16 criteria that represent the policy and institutional arrangements of an effective poverty reduction and growth strategy. The criteria are grouped into four clusters: economic management, structural policies, policies for social inclusion and equity, and public sector management and institutions. Countries are rated on a scale between 1 and 6, with high and rising scores signifying stronger policy and institutional frameworks.
CPIA Africa, August 2020: Safeguarding Human Capital during and beyond COVID-19
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-08-12) World Bank
The 2020 Africa Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) report covers the period from January to December 2019. The addition of Somalia brought the number of the region’s International Development Association (IDA)–eligible countries to 39. The overall CPIA score for the region’s 39 IDA-eligible countries came in at 3.1, the same as in the previous three years, in a context of moderating per capita growth. The average scores for most of the CPIA clusters trended down in 2019. While the average score for the economic management cluster was unchanged from last year’s assessment, the average scores for the other three clusters—structural policies, social inclusion, and public management and institutions—declined, indicating that the quality of policies and institutions in the region’s IDA countries weakened in 2019. The weakening of structural policies was reflected in the decline in the quality of trade policy, uneven improvements in the regulations affecting factor and product markets, and further deterioration of the financial sector performance. In the area of social inclusion, many countries experienced a decrease in the quality of service delivery that affects access to and quality of health and education services. In the broader area of governance, limited progress was made in strengthening property rights, and transparency and accountability. In addition, the quality of public administration declined, and financial management systems and revenue mobilization capacity weakened in many countries.
CPIA Africa: Strengthening Debt Management Capacity
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-07-31) World Bank
The 2019 Africa Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) report covers the period January to December 2018. Over this period, the average quality of policies and institutions in International Development Association (IDA)-eligible countries remained unchanged, amid decelerating growth across the region. The overall CPIA score for IDA countries in Sub-Saharan Africa was 3.1 in 2018, the same as 2017, reflecting the slow progress in improving the quality of policy and institutional frameworks in the region.
Actionable Regulatory Governance Indicators for UE Regions
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2018-06-13) World Bank
The European Union’s Cohesion Policy is its biggest investment instrument. It supports the Europe 2020 strategy of smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth. With a budget of €351.8 billion for 2014–2020, the Cohesion Policy accounts for around one-third of the EU budget. The Cohesion Policy is primarily implemented through investments in EU regions and cities. Local and regional governments in the EU are responsible for more than half of all public investment. There is a growing focus on the importance of good governance to ensure effective implementation. The European Commission’s 6th Cohesion Policy report notes that governance problems not only delay the implementation of Cohesion Policy programs but also reduce the impact of these investments. The report states: ‘a lower standard of governance can affect the impact of Cohesion Policy both directly and indirectly. In the first place, it can reduce expenditure if programs fail to invest all the funding available. Secondly, it can lead to a less coherent or appropriate strategy for a country or region. Thirdly, it may lead to lower quality projects being selected for funding or to the best projects not applying for support at all. Fourthly, it may result in a lower leverage effect because the private sector is less willing to co-finance investment.’ The purpose of this report is to develop and test a set of actionable indicators for the regulatory frameworks of EU regions. Deregulatory measures focusing on ‘fixing broken regulations’ are a necessary and important element of investment climate reforms. However, gains from one-off initiatives aimed at cutting costs and procedures are often reversed if the responsible institutions, tools, and incentives are not changed.
The Performance of Palestinian Local Governments: An Assessment of Service Delivery Outcomes and Performance Drivers in West Bank and Gaza
(Washington, DC, 2017-06-15) World Bank
Palestinian local governments represent a key pillar of the future Palestinian state. Predating the Palestinian Authority, many have long and proud histories, including some of the oldest inhabited cities in the world. With increasing political and geographical fragmentation over the last two decades, Local Government Units (LGUs) have become of paramount importance regarding the provision of services to the local population, particularly in areas where the relatively young central government is politically, geographically, and fiscally constrained. Some existing LGUs were created as early as the second half of the 19th century, and over the decades, they have performed under the complexities of disparate political and legal regimes. As the lowest level of governance, Palestinian local authorities fulfill a critical role, not only as a key public service provider but also as the government tier closest to citizens, with elected councils critical for representation and accountability to citizens. The most recent local elections were on May 13, 3017, and in October 2012, only in the West Bank; following the most recent local elections in both the West Bank and Gaza in 2006. Strengthening LGUs and enabling them to perform as fully functional local governments accountable to citizens are key priorities for the Palestinian Authority.
South Sudan Governance Analysis: Building Sustainable Public Sector Capacity in a Challenging Context
(Washington, DC, 2017) World Bank
This report was developed in the first half of 2016, when the signing of the Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in South Sudan (ARCISS) and subsequent establishment of the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGNU) presented a possible window of opportunity to restart and reset state-building effort, in particular, to initiate a more strategic approach to capacity building. From the government side, it was possible incentives will emerge to signal a break with the past by delivering services to citizens. In this context, the main objective of the note has been to contribute a stronger evidence base for renewed efforts at supporting capacity building. Despite the renewed deterioration since mid-2016, it is expected that many of the key challenges and tensions analyzed will remain important considerations when capacity building efforts are eventually renewed. South Sudan has faced renewed conflict and a deepening macro-fiscal crisis. Shortly after the formation of the TGNU in late May 2016, fighting broke out in Juba and the security situation in the rest of the country has subsequently deteriorated. This note mainly covers the period until June 2016, as a contribution to providing a more nuanced understanding of efforts at capacity building in South Sudan. This note is primarily concerned with capacity in the civilian public service in South Sudan, and its ability to deliver public services. The note explores cross-cutting issues and challenges related to developing a capable and effective civil service and drills down into two specific areas: public financial management (PFM) and the public health sector. The report combines an analysis of the opportunities and constraints created by the evolving country context; cross-cutting factors which have shaped core public administration functions across sectors since 2005; and analysis of capacity in two selected state functions PFM and health care. The report is organized as follows: chapter one presents purpose, scope, and approach. Chapter two covers the conceptual underpinnings of the paper. Chapter three provides a cross-cutting perspective on capacity-building efforts in South Sudan, providing an overview of public sector as a tool for the management of political support, as well as the evolution of aid architecture. Chapter four covers PFM in South Sudan and chapter five addresses the health sector. Chapter six reviews key findings and emerging lessons and concludes with recommendations and options for improving monitoring of capacity-building efforts going forward.
Federative Republic of Brazil: National Road Safety Capacity Review
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-11-01) World Bank
As part of a long-term partnership between the World Bank and Brazil, the Federal Government of Brazil sought the World Bank’s assistance to review road safety management capacity in Brazil, building both on past experiences in the country and international best practices. This National Road Safety Management Capacity Review, therefore, was prepared by the World Bank, with the support of the Global Road Safety Facility (GRSF). The primary objective of the review is to evaluate the multi-sectoral capacity of road safety management in Brazil, identifying possible road safety challenges and presenting recommendations to address these challenges. The methodology of the review, in accordance with the guidelines of the World Bank Global Road Safety Facility, focused on examinations of key functional aspects of road safety, including institutions, legislation, financing, information, and capacities at all levels of government and among non-government actors. The review was prepared mainly based on interviews of key road safety stakeholders at the federal, state, and municipal levels, members of parliament, NGOs, and the private sector, in addition to direct inspection of roads and on-road behaviors, and the analysis of published research and reports on road safety. In addition, information and understanding gained from previous reviews of the states of São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul, and Bahia were also incorporated.
Governance Reforms of State-Owned Enterprises: Lessons from Four Case Studies (Egypt, Iraq, Morocco, and Tunisia)
(Washington, DC, 2015-08) World Bank
The state-owned enterprise (SOE) landscape has become increasingly diverse. There used to be some relatively well-defined criteria, but with the growing complexity of state participation in the economy, there is no longer a uniform definition, and especially because the definition of a SOE has always been country-specific. SOE reforms can have major positive impacts not only by reducing fiscal risks by decreasing hidden subsidies, direct transfers, and overstaffing, but also by strengthening competition and developing capital markets. SOE reforms in developing countries began in the 1960s because of the poor performance of many of the SOEs. The reform movement sought to strengthen the internal capacity of SOEs. To enrich the discussion about possible avenues for performance-enhancing SOE reforms, this report presents the main principles of good governance of SOEs with references to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guidelines on corporate governance of SOEs (OECD 2005). This document is divided into six parts: (1) an effective legal and regulatory framework for SOEs; (2) the state as an owner; (3) equitable treatment of shareholders; (4) relations with stakeholders; (5) transparency and disclosure; and (6) the responsibilities of the boards of SOEs.
Jamaica : Parliamentary Oversight of Public Finances--An Institutional Review
(Washington, DC, 2013-06-10) World Bank
Sound legislative oversight of public finances is crucial to ensure efficiency and effectiveness of public spending. All national governments, and particularly those that are accountable to their citizens through free elections and the voice of civil society, are concerned with the efficiency and efficacy of public finances. More broadly, well-functioning parliaments promote good governance; enhance transparency and accountability, including for public expenditures and their results; widen public discourse on national priorities and options; and build better partnerships between officials and representatives and their electorate. In all this, those among the citizenry with the least have the most to gain. This report responds to a request from the Government of Jamaica to review the structure and capacity of the Parliament of Jamaica to undertake its constitutional role with respect to oversight of the nation's public finances. Jamaica's Parliament is the country's supreme legislative body, consisting of an elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate (Upper House), as well as the Queen or her representative, as the ceremonial head, and the Governor General. The Government of Jamaica has amended various legislations to adopt a Fiscal Responsibility Framework (FRF). The FRF includes specific fiscal targets as well as provisions to include the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and public service control over expenditures and lending.