In December 1999, the World Bank (the Bank) and the International Monetary Fund (the Fund) introduced a new approach to their relations with low-income countries, centered around the development and implementation of poverty reduction strategies (PRS) by the countries as a precondition for access to debt relief and concessional financing from both institutions. These strategies were also expected to serve as a framework for better coordination of development assistance among other development partners.

In December 1999, the World Bank (the Bank) and the International Monetary Fund (the Fund) introduced a new approach to their relations with low-income countries, centered around the development and implementation of poverty reduction strategies (PRS) by the countries as a precondition for access to debt relief and concessional financing from both institutions. These strategies were also expected to serve as a framework for better coordination of development assistance among other development partners.

This independent evaluation of the IMF’s role and performance in the determination and use of aid to low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa is presented at a ground-level view. Country performance has improved in many sub-Saharan Africa countries over the period, and the report details the role of the IMF’s programs, as well as perceptions of that role. The report is an important contribution to following through on the IMF’s commitment to its Poverty Reduction Strategy and makes three main recommendations for improving the coherence—actual and perceived—of the IMF’s policies and actions relating to aid to sub-Saharan Africa going forward.

An edited collection on foreign aid that addresses important aid questions, and reviews the shifting aid landscape in light of the recent global financial crisis. The volume reviews the progress achieved so far, identifies the challenges ahead, and discusses the emerging policy agenda in foreign aid.

"Budget support has become an increasingly important instrument in the context of a partnership-based approach to development assistance. Compared to traditional modes of aid delivery, it promises greater country ownership, reduced transaction costs, better donor coordination, scaling up of poverty reduction and potentially greater development effectiveness. This book presents a timely and valuable review of key concepts, issues, experiences and emerging lessons relevant to budget support. It provides an overview of principal characteristics, expectations and concerns related to budget support, key design and implementation issues, as well as some practical experiences. The contributors include government representatives from developing countries, leading academic scholars, bilateral development agencies and development practitioners from international financial institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. They present a wide range of views on key issues such as the choice of instruments, alignment of budget support with country programs, predictability, and coordination and conditionality. The authors draw their insightful analysis on the contemporary research and evaluation work, as well as the broad practical experience with budget support. This book will be of great interest to practitioners in aid-recipient countries and international financial institutions, bilateral agencies and civil organizations involved in budget support."

The World Bank Legal Review is a publication for policy makers and their advisers, attorneys, and other professionals engaged in the field of international development. It offers a combination of legal scholarship, lessons from experience, legal developments, and recent research on the many ways in which the application of the law and the improvement of justice systems promote poverty reduction, economic development, and the rule of law. In keeping with the theme of the World Development Report 2006: Equity and Development, and following the success of the World Bank Group’s Legal Forum on “Law, Equity, and Development” in December 2005, volume 2 of The World Bank Legal Review focuses on issues of equity and development. The volume draws together some of the key ideas of the Legal Forum, including articles by many of its distinguished participants, and explores the role of equity in the development process, highlighting how legal and regulatory frameworks and equitable justice systems can do much to level the playing field in the political, economic, and sociocultural domains, as well as how they can reinforce existing inequalities. Consistent with the interdisciplinary nature of this endeavour, Law, Equity and Development contains work by academics and practitioners in law, criminal justice, economics, human rights, social development, cultural studies, and anthropology.

This volume documents decisions, interpretations, and resolutions of the Executive Board and Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund, as well as documents relating to the United Nations and other international organizations.

This volume documents decisions, interpretations, and resolutions of the Executive Board and Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund, as well as documents relating to the United Nations and other international organizations.

This paper proposes an approach to making the MTS operational as it relates to the Fund’s work in LICs that would define more precisely the Fund’s responsibility and accountability in the PRSP and donor collaboration processes. The proposed activities are not “new,” but represent an intensification of existing work and its extension to the all LICs as appropriate. This would help clarify expectations as to the Fund’s role, and establish a consistent institutional approach to collaborating with donors and other stakeholders on the ground.