2011年-世界发展银行全球_Bangladesh___World_Bank_Country-Level_Engagement_on_Governance_and_Anticorruption_55页_1mb

Bangladesh: World Bank Engagement on Governance and Anticorruption

Core Content

This working paper evaluates the World Bank's engagement with governance and anticorruption (GAC) issues in Bangladesh from FY2004 to FY2010, focusing on the relevance and effectiveness of its strategies and the impact of the 2007 GAC Strategy implementation. The study combines desk reviews and field visits to assess how the Bank supported governance reforms and how these efforts contributed to development outcomes.

Main Objectives

• To assess the relevance and effectiveness of the World Bank's GAC engagement in Bangladesh.
• To evaluate the impact of the 2007 GAC Strategy implementation.
• To identify early outcomes and lessons learned.

Key Findings

Country-Level Engagement

• Relevance: High (■■■)
• Effectiveness: Moderate (■■)

Bangladesh is one of the world's poorest and most densely populated countries, with significant challenges such as natural disasters and pervasive corruption. Despite these, the country has shown strong economic growth and improvements in health and education. The 2006 Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) aimed to improve governance and anticorruption, with four main objectives: enhancing implementation capacity, tackling corruption through the Anti-Corruption Commission, laying the foundation for legal and judicial reform, and strengthening voice, empowerment, and participation. The Bank's approach was flexible, adapting to political and bureaucratic commitment.

Sector-Level Engagement

• Relevance: Not fully assessed
• Effectiveness: Not fully assessed

Key areas of focus included public financial management, revenue management, decentralization, and procurement. These areas were rated as highly relevant and effective, indicating that the Bank's interventions in these sectors had a strong impact on governance and anticorruption efforts.

Project-Level Engagement

• Relevance: High (■■■■)
• Effectiveness: High (■■■)

Projects in primary education, local government, power sector, and investment climate showed positive outcomes. However, GAC activities in roads had mixed results. The Bank emphasized the use of tools like the Operational Risk Assessment (ORA) and the Operational Risk Mitigation Action Plan (ORMAP), as well as the role of the Senior Governance Advisor/Specialist in improving project-level governance.

2007 GAC Strategy Implementation

• Staff Attitudes: Moderate (■■)
• Quality of Operational Response: Moderate (■■)

The 2007 GAC Strategy aimed to promote capable and accountable states, with a focus on transparency, accountability, and participation. The strategy emphasized safeguarding Bank funds from fiduciary risks and ensuring that the poor do not pay twice. While the strategy had a positive influence on staff attitudes, the implementation was still in its early stages and showed moderate effectiveness.

Lessons Learned

• The Bank's GAC engagement in Bangladesh was appropriate given the political instability and the need for flexible strategies.
• The 2006 CAS laid a strong foundation, but the subsequent CPS was more selective in its focus on GAC issues.
• Project-level GAC efforts were more effective than country-level initiatives.
• The Bank's use of a wide range of tools and instruments helped in addressing governance challenges.
• Institutional weaknesses, such as weak oversight and political interference, limited the effectiveness of some GAC initiatives.
• Civil society and NGOs played a significant role in delivering services and promoting good governance, though their influence was constrained by partisan affiliations.

Impact of the 2007 GAC Strategy

• The strategy led to a more systematic and integrated approach to GAC.
• It encouraged the use of country systems and third-party monitoring mechanisms.
• It promoted collaboration with domestic and international stakeholders.
• It aimed to improve the Bank's responsiveness to GAC concerns and enhance its effectiveness in supporting governance reforms.

Key Initiatives and Tools

• Country Governance and Anticorruption (CGAC): Joint workshops, peer learning, and upstream assessments were used to diagnose governance challenges.
• Governance Partnership Facility (GPF): Provided support for targeted GAC initiatives in 18 countries.
• Operational Risk Assessment (ORA): Helped in identifying and managing risks related to governance.
• Operational Risk Mitigation Action Plan (ORMAP): A tool for mitigating fiduciary risks.
• Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA): Used to assess the effectiveness of public financial management.
• Country Financial Accountability Assessment (CFAA): A tool for evaluating financial accountability in countries.

Conclusion

The World Bank's engagement on governance and anticorruption in Bangladesh was largely relevant and effective, particularly at the project level. The 2007 GAC Strategy marked a significant shift towards a more systematic and integrated approach, though its implementation was still in progress. The Bank's use of a variety of tools and instruments helped in addressing governance challenges, but institutional weaknesses and political dynamics limited the effectiveness of some initiatives. The study highlights the importance of a flexible and adaptive approach to GAC engagement, as well as the need for stronger institutional frameworks and more effective collaboration with local stakeholders.