Catalog

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Cooperation Between the ADB and NGOs

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Institutional Implications

A. Administrative Implications

The Office of Environment and Social Development (OESD) holds primary institutional responsibility for development, implementation and evaluation of policy and practice related to cooperation with NGOs, and for execution of many aspects of the Bank's program of cooperation with NGOs. OESD would be responsible for providing guidance to and would work closely with other departments and offices of the Bank related to cooperation with NGOs and incorporation of NGO initiatives in Bank operations, and for the maintenance and strengthening of such initiatives. OESD is the Bank's primary focal point for liaison with NGOs and serves as a resource center for Bank cooperation with NGOs. OESD holds responsibility for (i) the maintenance of an information and data base on NGOs; (ii) the organization and execution of formal consultation and dialogue with NGOs; and (iii) for coordinating the development of operational guidelines for implementation of an expanded program of cooperation with NGOs, including this Policy on the Bank's Cooperation with NGOs. OESD will take a lead role in activities within the Bank toward the development and strengthening of internal capacity necessary for effective cooperation with NGOs.

The Programs Departments are responsible for aspects of cooperation with NGOs relating to country programming and incorporation of aspects related to NGO cooperation in country programs, strategies, and policy dialogue, and in loan project and technical assistance identification. The Programs Departments are responsible for cooperation and consultation with NGOs in country programming and country strategy activities, and would consult with the Projects Departments in matters relating to country-specific NGO cooperation and consultation relating to broader project-specific activities. Resident Missions and donor country Representative Offices, as the Bank's representatives in the field and with their closer knowledge of local circumstances, are a country-level liaison and focal point in NGO cooperation and coordination. Through various modalities, Resident Missions and Representative Offices have assumed greater responsibility for maintaining regular overall country-level contact with NGOs and are a source of specific contact with regard to Headquarters missions, including project and programming missions.

The Projects Departments have responsibility, as a part of the project processing and implementation processes, and with support from OESD, for cooperation and coordination with NGOs in project-specific activities, and in evaluation of NGO participation as it relates to projects and other operations. Already existing in many projects, such responsibilities include broad consultations with NGOs in project identification and planning activities, technical and project-related consultations and discussions with NGOs, defining roles for NGOs in specific project activities, compiling information about NGOs relevant to specific activities, and meeting NGO requests for project-related information. The Projects Departments would be involved primarily in identifying and evaluating NGOs that may be contracted or otherwise engaged or involved with respect to projects.

The Office of the General Counsel would be responsible for dealing with NGOs in the context of legal frameworks, in its role in providing oversight of law and development activities as part of the Bank's governance programming.

The Office of Pacific Operations holds responsibility for project and programming activities related to NGOs in the Bank's Pacific DMCs.

For NGOs that may be engaged as consultants, the Central Operations Services Office (COSO) has responsibility for maintaining and providing information to NGOs regarding consultant services activities. COSO also would have responsibility for implementing the Bank's policies and procedures on the use of consultants and procurement when NGOs would be engaged in Bank operations. NGOs registered with the Bank as consultants would be included in the central project information systems administered by COSO.

The Information Office is responsible for meeting general NGO requests for information and policy documents, in accordance with the Bank's Policy on Confidentiality and Disclosure of Information. The Information Office is responsible for maintenance of the Bank's depository library program and the Bank's home page on the World Wide Web.

The Postevaluation Office, through the Bank's postevaluation function, is responsible for assessing the efficiency of Bank-NGO cooperation, particularly in relation to operational and policy activities.

B. Resource Implications

It will be necessary that the Bank possess adequate and appropriate institutional capacity to support expanded cooperation with NGOs. At the same time, it would be necessary that operations and initiatives toward cooperation with NGOs be cost effective and be within the scope of programmed resources, with benefits and potential savings being considered against any additional actual costs.

It would be necessary that the Bank have adequate internal capacity for effective cooperation with NGOs. Staff training and other forms of staff skills development should be undertaken, with resources already allocated in this regard to be used efficiently and effectively, and additional resources made available as necessary. When staff expertise is required but not available, it will be necessary to engage appropriate project and staff consultants.

For loan project and technical assistance processing, additional resources for effective cooperation with NGOs may be required. This would relate to mission requirements for addressing NGO matters and for supporting NGO participation in project processing; there may be a need to include additional staff with NGO skills and experience in project missions and expand mission durations. It may be necessary to expand NGO-related capacity in Resident Missions and Representative Offices.

Additional costs would be incurred in the expansion and institutionalization of the Bank's program of consultation and dialogue with NGOs. This cost would not be large, however, and could be met from existing budget allocations for the Annual Meeting and through technical assistance resources.

The Bank would wish to cooperate with NGOs that have established capacity and that are credible, accountable, and transparent. Where necessary capacity within the NGO sector or within government structures addressing NGO matters is lacking, institutional development and capacity building for NGOs could be considered within the context of the Bank's overall capacity-building program. Resources would be available from loan resources and technical assistance funds. Research, analysis, and information-sharing with regard to NGOs could be undertaken with a minimal need for additional resources, and could be financed from both administrative and technical assistance budget sources.

It may be possible to attract cofinancing for activities relating to NGO involvement in loan project and technical assistance activities. In such cases, it will be important that such possibilities be identified early in the processing cycle.

Expanded cooperation with NGOs will involve resource implications, both financial and human. In many aspects of the Bank's operations, the importance of cooperation with NGOs is being realized, and necessary resources are being allocated. In other cases, additional resources will be required. The specific nature of additional resource requirements will depend on the nature of new initiatives undertaken by the Bank and the resource implications of such initiatives.

Analysis by the World Bank and other development institutions concludes that additional resource expenditure for expanded NGO cooperation and consultation frequently can be compensated for or recovered, through the avoidance of project implementation problems and delays, and avoidance of mitigation measures necessary to resolve problems. The analysis points out that projects with a sound planning base that more closely reflect the realities of a given circumstance and more closely meet the needs of intended beneficiaries will in the long run result in a more effective, more sustainable intervention. Analysis suggests that in some cases, depending on specific circumstances and the type of project, involvement of NGOs in project identification, planning, and implementation may in fact reduce costs through avoidance of problems and delays, and through the better long-run use of resources.

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