Publication: Poverty Reduction Support Credits : An Evaluation of World Bank Support
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2009-11
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2012-08-13
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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.
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“World Bank. 2009. Poverty Reduction Support Credits : An Evaluation of World Bank Support. IEG Fast Track Brief. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/10515 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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Publication Poverty Reduction Support Credits : An Evaluation of World Bank Support(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2010)The goal of Poverty Reduction Support Credits (PRSCs), introduced in early 2001 under World Bank Interim guidelines, was to help countries implement comprehensive, country-owned development strategies to promote growth, improve social conditions, and reduce poverty. PRSCs were intended to ease conditionality and to make annual flows to recipient countries predictable and integrated with their budgets. To reduce fiduciary risks associated with budget support, PRSCs were intended to strengthen domestic budget processes. 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In 1991 a new government initiated far-reaching reforms aimed at the creation of a market-based economy, resulting in significant liberalization of Benin's political and economic system. Growth fluctuated in the range of 4-6 percent until 2000, after which it began to trend downwards, fluctuating largely in response to variation in the exchange rate as well as to movement in the prices of cotton, Benin's main export, and oil, a major import. Benin benefited from support under the Environmental and Social Assessment Framework (ESAF) and Poverty Reduction and Growth (PRGF) facilities, the latter continuously since 1993. According to an independent ex-post review (International Monetary Fund 2004), program implementation during 1993-2003 was broadly successful. Real economic growth averaged 5 percent and fiscal consolidation improved as key initial challenges arising from the Government's low revenue collection and high wage bill were addressed. But overall progress in structural reform was mixed. Initial efforts to liberalize the economy and reduce government intervention were successful, and there was progress in introducing far-reaching reforms in the cotton sector. A new poverty reduction growth facility was approved in August 2005.Publication Poverty Reduction Support Credits(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2010)The Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC) instrument was put to use at an opportune juncture in 2003 when, after a period of economic crisis, macroeconomic stability had been restored to Ghana and a reform process had been mapped out. The Bank used this instrument to signal strong support to the Government for the reform process, which was at risk of being derailed in the run up to the 2004 elections. The PRSC was perceived as a clear departure from previous adjustment lending, which was characterized by acrimonious negotiation of conditions. Following independence from Britain some 50 years ago, Ghana experienced rapid economic growth, spurred by commodity exports and industrialization linked to import-substitution policies. But by the early 1980s, standards of living had declined sharply, and Ghana had joined the ranks of other low-income African countries. Ghana's economic reform program, launched in 1983, marked a notable change in policy direction and a shift from a state-controlled economy to a more market-driven system. Ghana made progress in regaining macroeconomic stability and achieved its Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) initiative completion point by 2004. Even so, progress was uneven, and the economy remained vulnerable. Ghana was among Africa's top 10 performers in the 2008 doing business report, and its ranking on corruption indicators is the best of low-income African countries. A recent national survey found that 75 percent of households regard corruption as a serious national problem, and 80 believe it has worsened in recent years.
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