§ Mr. DenhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made in implementing the recommendations of the Wapenhams report that incentives to World bank staff should reflect success in implementing the poverty reduction agenda rather than loan disbursement. [25629]
§ Mr. BaldryThe bank issued a report in September 1994 describing progress made in the implementation of "Portfolio management; next steps: a programme of actions". Copies of the report have been placed in the Libraries of the House. Measures taken include: revised job competencies with a strong focus on implementation; recruitment efforts to fill skills gaps, especially in the social sciences; introduction of a new project performance rating methodology, emphasising achievement of development objectives and work on performance indicators. Performance indicators on poverty reduction were among those completed last year.
§ Mr. DenhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will make it his policy to ensure that the World bank's country poverty assessments are(a) prepared according to consistent, published criteria, (b) take account of non-income measures of wealth and (c) are used to inform country public expenditure reviews; [26527]
(2) if he will make it his policy to ensure that World bank country poverty assessment teams include (a) a balanced mix of economists, social scientists and other relevant professionals, (b) consultants recruited from the country concerned and (c) representatives of organisations of the poor in the country concerned. [26528]
§ Mr. BaldryA working group on poverty reduction was set up under the framework of the bank-led special programme of assistance for sub-Saharan Africa. It made recommendations last autumn for improving the quality of poverty assessments and their linkage to such other work as public expenditure reviews and country assistance strategies. The United Kingdom has played an active role in this working group.
The recommendations highlighted the importance of carefully designed and professionally conducted participatory poverty assessment techniques by teams with the appropriate mix of skills; the need for local participation and collaboration; and a broader approach 191W towards measuring poverty, including non-income measures. Bank management is aiming to ensure that this best practice is reflected in future poverty assessment exercises.