IEG Fast Track Brief

32 items available

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http://hdl.handle.net/10986/9411

Fast Track Briefs inform the World Bank Group (WBG) managers and staff about new evaluation findings and recommendations.

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Cost-Benefit Analysis in World Bank Projects

(Washington, DC, 2010-06) World Bank

Cost-benefit analysis used to be one of the World Bank's signature issues. It helped establish its reputation as the knowledge Bank and served to demonstrate its commitment to measuring results and ensuring accountability to taxpayers. It was the Bank's answer to the results agenda long before that term became popular. This report takes stock of what has happened to cost-benefit analysis at the Bank, based on analysis of four decades of project data, project appraisal and completion reports from recent fiscal years, and interviews with current Bank staff. This study draws two broad conclusions. First, the Bank needs to revisit the policy for cost-benefit analysis in a way that recognizes legitimate difficulties in quantifying benefits while preserving a high degree of rigor in justifying projects. Second, it needs to ensure that when cost-benefit analysis is done it is done with quality, rigor, and objectivity, as poor data and analysis misinform, and do not improve results. Reforms are required to project appraisal procedures to ensure objectivity, improve both the analysis and the use of evidence at appraisal, and ensure effective use of cost-benefit analysis in decision-making.
Poverty Reduction Support Credits : An Evaluation of World Bank Support

(Washington, DC, 2009-11) World Bank

Poverty Reduction Support Credits (PRSCs) were intended to help countries implement comprehensive, country-owned development strategies to promote growth, improve social conditions, and reduce poverty. PRSCs were intended to ease conditionality, make annual flows to recipient countries predictable and integrated with their budgets, strengthen domestic budget processes, provide a framework for donor harmonization, and focus on achieving results. In terms of process, PRSCs have worked well. Findings show that they incorporated many envisaged changes in design and implementation. These include stronger country ownership, eased conditionality, and a shift of focus towards public sector management and pro-poor service delivery. PRSCs balanced tensions between predictability and program credibility. Although PRSCs differed from preceding adjustment loans, development policy lending today has converged towards a similar design. PRSCs today are subject to the same guidelines as other Development Policy Loans (DPLs). Differences remain in practice in terms of the association with PRSPs, broad scope, programmatic nature, and country performance. The evaluation recommends either that PRSCs be phased out as a separate brand name or that these differences be clearly spelled out.
World Bank Engagement at the State Level : The Cases of Brazil, India, Nigeria and Russia

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2009-09) World Bank

Beginning in the late 1990s, the World Bank significantly expanded its engagement at the state level in Brazil, India, Nigeria, and Russia. This pilot cross-country study reviews the selected cases of World Bank's lending and analytic work at the state level in those four large federated countries. In each case, state governments were the Bank's principal development partners. The study looks at the evolution of the four country strategies and the Bank's mode of engagement at the state level, in order to draw lessons from that experience both for the Bank and for its federal and state partners. State-level engagement posed several strategic and operational questions, among them which states to engage, the scope of engagement, and the modalities of engagement. The Bank set out its approach to selecting states in country strategy documents. The findings are worth highlighting. First, the study confirms the desirability of continued selective Bank lending in a few states. However, the poverty impact of those interventions could be enhanced by balancing states' propensity to reform and the concentration of poverty within them, giving greater weight to the needs of poorest states. Second, continued focus on public finance management as the core area appears sound, irrespective of whether engagement is confined to this area or serves as an entry point for broader engagement. And third, there is considerable scope for greater impact from analytic work, knowledge transfer, and expanded knowledge sharing not so much concepts and theories as practical experience of what works and what does not.
The World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment — An Evaluation

(Washington, DC, 2009-06) World Bank

The World Bank's Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) assess the conduciveness of a country's policy and institutional framework to poverty reduction, sustainable growth, and the effective use of development assistance. It plays an important role in the country performance ratings that have been used for allocating resources from the International Development Association (IDA) to eligible countries since 1980. This evaluation takes the premise that beyond informing IDA allocation, the CPIA is useful as a broad indicator of development effectiveness. It assesses the relevance of the content of the CPIA through a review of the economics literature. It also assesses the reliability of CPIA ratings in two ways-through comparing CPIA ratings with similar indicators, and through reviewing the CPIA ratings generation process. Based on these assessments, the evaluation derives recommendations for enhancing the CPIA.
Nepal Country Assistance Evaluation, 2003–08

(Washington, DC, 2009-05) World Bank

The FY03-08 evaluation period was one of tumultuous political turmoil, conflict, and dramatic change in Nepal; today, prospects for sustainable peace are brighter, though still fragile. In such difficult and unpredictable conditions, formulating and implementing an effective development assistance strategy and programs were great challenges for development partners, including the Bank. To its credit, the Bank managed to remain constructively engaged in Nepal despite a challenging political and security context and has achieved some significant results on the ground. Nevertheless, the Bank's strategy was poorly adapted to the country's conflict situation and political instability, and until recently (FY08) underwent little adjustment in response to the rapidly-evolving conditions on the ground. Looking forward, Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) recommends that International Development Association (IDA) introduce greater realism into its strategy and program design and keep these flexible against a backdrop of a clear long-term vision, applying frequent course corrections in response to changing circumstances and consulting widely with national stakeholders and development partners. Other than through its existing portfolio of two hydropower projects, International Finance Corporation (IFC) did not make a significant contribution to Nepal's development over most of the review period. IFC's gradual re-engagement beginning in 2006 was successful, resulting in two Global Trade Finance Program (GTFP) investments, an investment in a domestic airline in 2008, a pipeline of investment projects in the financial sector, and a constructive dialogue with the government on the business climate.
Biennial Report on Operations Evaluation in IFC 2008 : Enhancing Monitoring and Evaluation for Better Results

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-11) World Bank

The Biennial Report on Operations Evaluation (BROE) in International Finance Corporation (IFC) assesses the adequacy, coverage, and quality of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) in IFC and makes recommendations for improvements going forward. It covers IFC management's M&E of its performance and also IEG's independent evaluation activities. In the last three years, IFC has made advances in monitoring and evaluating its performance: (i) new M&E tools have been introduced to cover all active investments and advisory services operations; and (ii) the use of M&E results in informing IFC strategy and in linking incentives to project results has grown. The report recommends that IFC management and Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) develop more robust and consistent metrics for monitoring and assessing IFC's additionality and development impact at the sector and country levels, as IFC transitions to a more programmatic approach in its interventions.
Nigeria - Country Assistance Evaluation

(Washington, DC, 2008-09) World Bank

The period from July 1, 1998 to June 30, 2007 (World Bank fiscal years 99-07) saw a substantial improvement in Nigeria's economic performance and outlook relative to the previous two decades, during which, notwithstanding the expanding production of oil and gas, Nigeria's social indicators deteriorated steadily and the country acquired among the worst reputations for corruption and poor governance. During its second term, the Obasanjo administration built on some actions taken previously to stabilize the economy, created an oil surplus account to prevent the fiscal instability of the earlier period, took significant steps to improve public financial management, put in place important new initiatives on corruption and transparency, and continued the privatization program. During this period, the Bank provided important assistance to the government of Nigeria. In spite of the relatively small weight of the Bank's financial contribution given Nigeria's earnings from oil, the Bank carried a great deal of weight as a source of objective advice and as a means of influencing perceptions of Nigeria in the international community. During the period to mid-2003, however, the Bank had some difficulty in determining the role it should play. A large number of lending operations were started, often without the base of local knowledge needed for success. At the same time, the Bank was slow to invest in analytic work. With the reform team providing clear Nigerian leadership in the second term of President Obasanjo, the Bank adapted its program in many areas to provide effective support. The Bank is well placed to continue to make an important contribution to Nigeria's economic and social progress. For this to occur, it is important that the Nigerian government take all necessary steps to ensure policy continuity as well as to extend and deepen the reforms initiated over the evaluation period-this is of critical importance for the country's long-term economic success.
The World Bank’s Economic and Sector Work and Technical Assistance, FY00-06

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-09) World Bank

Economic and sector work (ESW) and non-lending technical assistance (TA) are two of the analytical and advisory services (AAA) through which the Bank provides knowledge support to its client countries. The objectives of ESW are to inform lending, inform government policy, build client capacity, stimulate public debate, and influence the development community. The objectives of TA are to assist in policy implementation, strengthen institutions, and facilitate knowledge exchange. ESW and TA are an essential part of the Bank's engagement with its clients it spent $910 million (or 26 percent of its spending on country services) on these products during FY00-06. The majority of ESW and TA met their objectives at least to an average extent during FY00-06, although there were substantial differences across countries and tasks. ESW and TA of higher technical quality were clearly more effective in meeting their objectives. Close collaboration with clients from task initiation through the formulation of recommendations was important for ESW and TA to be effective, whether clients were involved in the production of the task or not. Sustained follow-up after the completion of the tasks was important for effectiveness. Whether clients requested the tasks did not matter for effectiveness, although all tasks needed to be tailored to client needs and interests to be effective. ESW and TA were less effective in countries where government capacity was lower. Clients in middle-income countries prefer non-lending to lending services, and clients in all countries prefer TA over ESW.
Supporting Environmental Sustainability: An Evaluation of World Bank Group Experience, 1990-2007

(Washington, DC, 2008-08) World Bank

The Bank Group's lending and non-lending support for environmental sustainability has increased and improved over the past 15 years. But the institution needs to raise the priority it accords to this area of rising concern, strengthen internal cooperation, and work more effectively with its government and private partners to help countries to get better results in addressing environmental challenges. The Bank, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) should jointly develop and commit to a new environmental strategy and ensure that environmental priorities enter fully into their strategic directions as well as in regional and country assistance programs, focusing in particular on underperforming regions and sectors and countries with the most significant environmental problems. The Bank Group should step up its support for public-private partnerships and take greater advantage of the private sector's potential for technology development and transfer, transformation toward clean and low-carbon technologies, and sustainable supply chains, while continuing to help countries strengthen environmental governance.
Egypt - Country Assistance Evaluation

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-06) Thomas, Vinod

Between fiscal 1999 and fiscal 2007, the period under review in this Country Assistance Evaluation (CAE), Egypt's economic performance improved substantially, particularly after 2004, following improvements in economic management, structural reforms, and correction of the exchange rate. The GDP growth rate averaged about 5 percent per year over this period, rising to almost 7 percent in 2006 and 2007, translating into a per capita income growth of almost 3 percent per year, a strong performance. Future Bank strategy should reflect Egypt's middle-income status by including a flexible lending program and an emphasis on knowledge services, including reimbursable technical assistance. The Bank can further strengthen the recent successful partnership by: (i) identifying direct and indirect interventions that could help reduce income disparities through improving the targeting of social safety nets; (ii) focusing analytic work on macroeconomic analysis and income disparities, and improving its dissemination; (iii) pursuing further financial sector reforms and promoting reforms that indirectly combat corruption (public financial management, simplification of taxation and business procedures, and an information act); and (iv) emphasizing sectoral strategies and policy and institutional reforms in infrastructure and energy.