Engaging with fragile states: an IEG review of World Bank support to low-income countries under stress

Contents......Page 5
Acknowledgments......Page 9
Foreword......Page 11
Avant-propos......Page 15
Prefacio......Page 19
Executive Summary......Page 25
Résumé analytique......Page 39
Resumen......Page 55
Acronyms and Abbreviations......Page 71
1 Background......Page 75
1.1 A Larger Share of LICUS Lending during Fiscal 2003–05 Went to Post-Conflict LICUS, While Administrative Budgets Were More......Page 78
Objectives, Purpose, and Organization of the Review......Page 80
Review Instruments and Methods......Page 81
Stay Engaged......Page 87
2.1 Over 40 Percent of Respondents Said That the Bank’s Analytical Work Has Achieved Its Intended Results Only to a Slight Extent or Not at All......Page 91
2.1 Lao People’s Democratic Republic: Good Practice Example of Using Existing Political Knowledge......Page 94
Support Simple and Feasible Entry-Level Reforms......Page 99
2.6 Timor-Leste: Excessive Optimism, Impatience, and Partial Solutions?......Page 103
Work Closely with Other Donors......Page 104
2.7 Afghanistan: Lack of a Common Vision among Donors Works against Effective Action......Page 110
Overall LICUS Approach......Page 111
2.10 Comparing the Pre-LICUS and Post-LICUS Initiative Periods, the Majority of Stakeholder Respondents Said There Is Improvement in the Effectiveness of the Bank’s Lending and Nonlending Support......Page 114
LICUS Identification......Page 117
LICUS Classification......Page 118
Aid-Allocation System for LICUS......Page 119
Conclusion......Page 121
Analytical Work......Page 123
4.1 Overall Balance Between Knowledge and Finance for Administrative Budgets and Lending......Page 124
Operational Policies and Procedures......Page 126
Management Attention and Operational Guidance......Page 129
Conclusion......Page 133
Conclusions......Page 135
Lessons of Experience for the Bank and Other Donors......Page 137
Recommendations......Page 143
Appendixes......Page 145
A: Definitions and Data Sources......Page 147
B: LICUS, Fiscal 2003–06......Page 153
C: Progress on Millennium Development Goals......Page 155
D: Four LICUS Business Models......Page 157
E: Summary of OECD-DAC Principles for International Engagement in Fragile States......Page 159
F: Four Bank Themes Based on the OECD-DAC Principles......Page 161
G: Fiscal 2003–05 Country Strategy Documents for Fiscal 2005 LICUS......Page 163
H: Implications of the HIPC Initiative for LICUS......Page 165
I: Breakdown by Country: Lending and Administrative Budget— Total and for Analytical Work......Page 167
J: Political Analysis Relevant for Strategy Development in LICUS......Page 169
K: Capacity Development Projects in LICUS......Page 171
L: Accountability in the Management of Natural Resources in LICUS......Page 175
M: Development Policy Lending......Page 177
N: The Challenges of Engaging Civil Society Organizations in LICUS......Page 179
O: The World Bank’s Economic and Sector Work in LICUS......Page 181
P: Performance of Active Projects......Page 185
Q: Performance of Closed Projects and Lessons in LICUS......Page 187
R: Country Assistance Evaluations and CAS Completion Report Reviews......Page 197
S: Human Resource Proposals for Improving Staffing in LICUS......Page 199
T: Operational Policies and Bank Procedures Relevant to LICUS......Page 201
U: Safeguards in LICUS......Page 203
V: Key Guidance Notes for LICUS......Page 205
W: Overview of the World Bank Institute’s LICUS Activities......Page 207
X: Overview of the Development Economics Vice Presidency’s LICUS Activities......Page 209
Y: Donor Relationships......Page 211
Z: Stakeholder Perceptions Based on Survey Results......Page 213
AA: Statement by the External Advisory Panel......Page 227
BB: Management Response......Page 229
CC: Chairman’s Summary: Committee on Development Effectiveness (CODE)......Page 241
Endnotes......Page 247
Bibliography......Page 253
1.1 The LICUS Challenge: Views from the Field......Page 76
1.2 The 2002 LICUS Approach: Core Principles......Page 79
2.2 Afghanistan Priority Restructuring and Reform Process: Developing State Capacity through the Direct Restructuring of the Civil Service......Page 97
2.3 The Complexities of State Building in LICUS: Is the Bank Ready?......Page 98
2.4 Areas for Further Development in the Bank’s Approach to Capacity Development......Page 100
2.5 Three Lessons from Post-Conflict Countries......Page 102
3.1 Highly Variable per Capita IDA and Trust Fund Financing across LICUS during Fiscal 2003–05......Page 120
4.1 OP/BP 8.50: A Major Source of Delays in Liberia......Page 127
4.3 Examples of Procurement Problems in LICUS......Page 128
ES.1 The Majority of Bank Respondents Said There Has Been No Change When Working on LICUS in Several Areas......Page 29
RA.1 La majorité des personnes interrogées à la Banque ont indiqué que le fait de travailler sur les LICUS n’avait rien changé dans plusieurs domaines......Page 44
R.1 En la mayor parte de las respuestas del personal del Banco se sostiene trabajar en el área de los PIBD no produjo cambio alguno en varias esferas......Page 60
1.2 LICUS Population Concentrated in Africa......Page 82
1.4 Negative Growth Rate in about Half of LICUS, Lower Growth Rate in Most LICUS Compared with Low-Income Country Average......Page 83
1.6 Human Development Index for LICUS Worse than for Low-Income Countries in 2003......Page 84
1.7 Kaufmann, Kraay, and Mastruzzi (KKZ) Governance Indicators Worse for LICUS than for Non-LICUS Low-Income Countries......Page 85
2.2 Bank Respondents Somewhat More Likely than Other Respondents to Say That the Bank’s Work Has Been Grounded Largely in an Understanding of the Country’s Politics......Page 93
2.3 Most Respondents Said That the Use of Nongovernmental or Semi-Autonomous Arrangements Has Made a Small Positive Contribution......Page 105
2.4 The Majority of Bank Respondents Said the Bank Has Pursued Collaboration with Donors to a Large Extent; the Majority of In-Country Respondents Said It Has Done So to a Large or Moderate Extent......Page 108
2.5 The Majority of Respondents Noted a Positive Change in the Bank’s Effectiveness with Donor Collaboration......Page 109
2.9 The Majority of Stakeholder Respondents Said World Bank Lending and Grant Support to LICUS Has Achieved Its Intended Results to a Moderate or Slight Extent......Page 113
4.1 Change in Various Factors When Working on LICUS......Page 125
4.2 Bank Respondents’ Views on Effectiveness of LICUS Unit......Page 130
4.4 Development Economics Vice Presidency’s Technical Input......Page 134
ES.1 Implementation Experience on the Core Country-Level LICUS Principles......Page 27
RA.1 Mise en oeuvre des principes fondamentaux définis pour les LICUS......Page 41
R.1 Experiencia en materia de aplicación de los principios básicos de la Iniciativa para los PIBD en los países......Page 57
1.1 Twenty-Five LICUS, Fiscal 2005......Page 77
2.1 Lending, Trust Funds, and Administrative Budgets Going to LICUS and Non-LICUS Low-Income Countries during Fiscal 2000–02 and 2003–05......Page 89
2.2 Capacity Development Lending and Trust Funds in LICUS......Page 95
2.3 Implementation Experience with the Core Country-Level LICUS Principles......Page 115