Using Knowledge to Improve Development

Effectiveness: An Evaluation of World Bank Economic and

Sector Work and Technical Assistance, 2000-06

Helena TangLead Evaluation Officer

September 2008

Why did we evaluate ESW and TA?

► The Bank considers knowledge important for development • ESW and TA are the Bank’s main knowledge

products

► Knowledge: long-standing agenda for the Bank• “Global knowledge bank” (1996)• One of 6 strategic pillars going forward

► First comprehensive evaluation of these products • Inform Bank’s future strategy on knowledge and

learning

What are ESW and TA?

► ESW• Economic reports (53 types)

– Inform Bank activities (strategy and lending)– Influence client’s policies and/or programs

► TA• Technical Advice

– Implement reforms and strengthen institutions (drafting legislation, training in data analysis, knowledge sharing, etc.)

85 percent of AAA, FY00-06

TA, 24%

Research Services, 12%

Impact Evaluation,

0.03%WDR, 2%

Donor & Aid Coordination,

1%

ESW, 61%

One-quarter of spending on country services, FY00-06

ESW&TA26%

Lending Prep25%

Project Supervision

30%

Other19%

What questions did we ask?

►To what extent did ESW and TA meet their objectives?

To what extent did the following affect the achievement of ESW and TA objectives?

►Origination (client-requested or not)

►Partnership in production with local institutions (government or others)

►Technical quality

►Dissemination

What evaluation tools did we use?Five Sets of Evidence1. 12 Country Reviews

Country Review Selection

Peru

Guyana

Mali

Democratic Republic of Congo

Serbia Romania

Jordan

Mauritius

Bangladesh

VietnamMalaysia

Lesotho

What evaluation tools did we use?Five Sets of Evidence► 12 Country Reviews► Electronic Surveys of in-country stakeholders

• Specific ESW• Specific TA• General

► Electronic Surveys of all ESW and TA TTLs► Electronic Survey of loan TTLs► Statistical and econometric analysis

MAIN FINDINGS

Client views on ESW and TA

► Clients find Bank ESW and TA more useful than those provided by other institutions

► Clients value Bank ESW and TA for their high quality, objectivity, and provision of international perspectives

► Clients generally prefer TA over ESW (IBRD & IDA)

► Middle income country (MIC) clients prefer TA and ESW over lending• Some MIC clients clearly prefer de-linking TA and

ESW from lending

Client country respondents had a range of views on the effectiveness of ESW and TA

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Country Reviews

Specific ESWSurvey

Specific TASurvey

User ESW/ TASurvey

123456

At least two-thirds gave an above average rating

Examples of effective ESW: Vietnam PER

► Budget legislation► MTEF► Capacity

Examples of effective ESW: ICAs

► Privatization (Serbia)► Competitiveness

strategy (Guyana)► Labor law, property

registration, deregulation of public service delivery (Malaysia)

Example of effective TA: Mauritius Aid for Trade

► Just-in-time advice on trade reform program

► Analysis of reform scenarios and effects

► Recommendations incorporated in government reform program

ESW improved Bank activities► Shaped country assistance strategies

► Improved lending quality• Presence of relevant ESW associated with better

loan quality at entry• Around 90 percent of DPL but only around 60

percent of investment loans

What made ESW and TA effective?► Technical Quality

• Good quality ESW requires resources• ESW better resourced in IBRD than in IDA

countries• Bank budget and not trust-fund matters

► Origination• Client interest and buy-in essential but products

can be originated by the Bank

What made ESW and TA effective?► Partnership

• Close collaboration with clients throughout the process but not necessarily co-production

• Collaboration takes time (completion of forest sector review in DRC delayed nearly 2 years)

► Dissemination• Sustained engagement beyond one-off

dissemination • Broad vs targeted• Language and translation

What made ESW and TA effective?► Government capacity

• Lower in post-conflict and some low income countries (DRC, Lesotho)

• Lower in countries with high turnover of senior government officials (Jordan, Serbia, and in the sector ministries in Peru)

►RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendation #1

► Reinvigorate the mandate (underpinned FY99 ESW reforms) of a strong knowledge base on countries where Bank is providing (planning to provide) funds

Recommendation #2

► For IDA countries, ensure ESW is adequately resourced, even if it means fewer ESW in some countries

Recommendation #3

► Enhance institutional arrangements: substantive task team presence in country offices, and include a clear strategy for sustained post-delivery engagement

Recommendation #4

► Recognize and build on client feedback to help counter-balance current Bank incentives for lending over non-lending, and ESW over TA

Recommendation #5

► Take results tracking framework more seriously, including systematizing client-feedback