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p. 7 of 8 BACK | NEXT I. Introduction II. Background Information III. Operational Assessment IV. Benefits and Costs V. Conclusions

A Review of North American Representative Office

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IV. Benefits and Costs

30. When NARO was approved, the opportunity cost of not strengthening representation in the donor countries was considered very high. Representative offices were considered essential for

• sustaining the support of member governments and the general public,
• promoting understanding and awareness of the role and value of multilateral development assistance,
• mobilizing appropriate levels of official development assistance,
• demonstrating enhanced accountability and transparency,
• facilitating relations with increasingly more complex donor country constituencies, and
• strengthening interagency collaboration.

As demonstrated in the previous section, NARO has made significant inroads toward achieving these objectives. It has also demonstrated its utility and operational effectiveness for the Bank as well as the North American constituencies.

31. In 1995, it was estimated that NARO would cost $270,000 to establish and approximately $940,000 to operate annually. The actual establishment cost was $257,000, while the annual operating cost averaged $723,000. From October 1995 through December 1997, it was estimated that NARO would cost the Bank $2.12 million to operate-the actual cost was $1.63 million. When telecommunications savings attributable to NARO's establishment are deducted, the average annual operating cost and total operating cost through December 1997 falls to $520,000 and $1.17 million, respectively (see Appendix 4).

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