Improving the World Bank's Development Effectiveness: What Does Evaluation Show?

Over the past decade, the World Bank has dramatically altered its direction to emphasize poverty eradication as the institution's main mission. Many programs and policies have been revised to make the Bank more effective in its support of the global fight against poverty. Yet, have these initiatives improved the Bank's development effectiveness?

This publication focuses on three questions to assess the development effectiveness of World Bank programs:

• How have living conditions in the developing world improved over the last 10-15 years, and how does this compare with the previous decade?
• How effective have World Bank interventions been in helping countries improve their living conditions?
• Finally, what broad lessons have emerged from OED evaluations on improving the Bank's development effectiveness?

This review of the World Bank's development effectiveness points to a number of opportunities for further improvements. Some of these will require changes in business processes; some will require changes in the organization; and still others will require strategic choices for the institution. The Bank has transformed itself significantly in the past 10 years, and should be ready for further adjustments, if it is to remain useful and relevant and show concrete results in a fast-changing world.