Multilateral Development: Status of World Bank Reforms (Briefing Report,
06/06/94, GAO/NSIAD-94-190BR).

In February 1992, the World Bank assembled a task force to review the
Bank's portfolio management. Audits had shown a growing decline in the
Bank's project success rate for the past decade, particularly during the
last three years. The task force reported in October 1992 that the main
causes of the decline were poor project design, management, and
implementation. Underlying the decline in the project success rate was
the Bank's preoccupation with new lending, described by some as the loan
approval culture, which often took precedence over effective project
management once new loans were approved. The task force called on the
Bank to change its internal values and incentives by focusing on the
central objectives of achieving sustainable development impact and the
critical role of portfolio management. This report (1) discusses the
status of the Bank's efforts to institute reforms, (2) assesses the
extent to which the United States influences the forms, and (3)
describes the process used by the United States to evaluate loan
proposals.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  NSIAD-94-190BR
     TITLE:  Multilateral Development: Status of World Bank Reforms
      DATE:  06/06/94
   SUBJECT:  International economic relations
             Investments abroad
             Foreign economic assistance
             Foreign financial assistance
             Bank loans
             Foreign loans
             Interagency relations
             Economic policies
             Financial management
             Bank management

             
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