Information paper on technical assistance activities of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

JNITED NATIONS

ECONOMIC ,

AND 1

SOCIAL COUNCIL

ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR AFRICA Second Session

Provisional Agenda Item 6..

Distr.- ■ '•'■-■ '-.

GENERAL

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17 November 1959

ORIGINAL? ENGLISH

INFORMATION PAPER ON TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE ACTIVITIES OP THE INTERNATIONAL BAHK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT

Prepared "by the International Bank For Reconstruction And Bsvelataaent

The Bank's primary function is to provide financing for productive projects in its member countries.- Its technical assistance activities, however, are becoming increasingly important in scope and volume.. In part they stem directly from the Bank's loan operations.;, in. this connection they may include,, for example,- helping a government to determine priorities for financing among different projects, or making suggestions with regard to a project to make it more economical or more suitable to the country's needs,, or making recommendations with regard to the administration of a project or it financing,, including measures for raising local capital. However*, the Bank's technical assistance activity of a broader character, unconnected or only remotely connected with loan operations, has steadily expanded ; over the past several years,. ■ ; ■ - .

In general, its advisory assistance has emphasized," but is by

no means confined to, the fields of development programming and of mobilizing

local capital.. The following- paragraphs summarize more specifically some of the activities undertaken by the Bank in African countries,. . . . , -

survey missions on behalf of African countries --Nigeria,, the Trust

Territory of Somaliland,. Libya and Tanganyika.. The Nigerian report ms published in 1955, and that for Somaliland vi&s duplicated by the Bank for

59 -528..

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took place in 1959..and.the mission reports are noyr in preparation? they will probably be published in I960. EL4 Bank'has been approached to organize similar missions - to survey development potentialities and profclecs in comprehensive fashion and make recorjnenrl&tions for a

lon^-term development progra&me - for some other African countries but

no firm decision has yet been taken.

rt+w TWffT^BffiLnff Assistance. In 1959, hy agreement with the Ethiopian Government, the.3ank assigned, a resident..representative to Ethiopia, the first ouch assignment in an African country. He will serve as liaison between the Bank and the Government on matters relating to loan projects or operations and also .when requested will advise the Government on questions relating to economic -development in Ethiopia.

Development Institutions;

for promoting development in industry'and apiculture, and for bribing together the technical, entrepreneurial, managerial and financial ' requisites to carry out projects in these sectors, :are the'development banks or corporations that have been established in many countries.

'The Bank'has furnished both financial and technical assistance-to the Development Bank' of Ethiopia; it has been consulted"by the Arab:League

■■Secretariat in the formation of the projected .Ifab Financial Institution for Economic Development; and has made a preliminary appraisal and

recommendations with regard to-development institutions, proposed for

■ Morocco and Tunisia, ■■ •. ''■■■ ■

Special Fund Projects-' 'The Bank has' agreed'to act as Executing Agency for the Niger Valley survey project among others. '

Recruitment of Individual Experts/ •"Several African countries have sought the Bank's assistance in finding, and employing highly

qualified expatriates*for executive or advisory posts that.involve

.coordination of economic development studies, policy or planning.

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For example , the Bank has recruited or recommended candidates for such posts as Governor of a State Bank, senior financial advisor to a Government, advisors on development planning, port administration, petroleum and minerals policy, and numerous others.

Economic Development Institute. The Economic Development Institute, organized by the Bank in 1956 as a staff college for senior officials responsible for preparing and carrying through development

programmes and projects in ldss-developed countries, has had 23 participants from Africa - nearly one-quarter of the four-year total. In the current

(1959-60) course, the ratio is 7 out of 24 - from the Belgian Congo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Nigeria (2) and the United Arab Republic,

respectively.

Other Training Programmes. The Bank has a General Training Programme, given annually for about six months, designed to acquaint more

junior career officials vdth the Bank's policies and methods, and broaden their understanding of economic problems and techniques, and of various phases of financial administration. It is designed to meet the needs of more as well as less-developed countries, and consequently the proportion of participants from Africa has been lower than for the Economic

Development Institute - 10 out of a total of 101, Individual specialized training has also been provided for numerous officials of member countries, who have been invited to spend various periods in the Bank for this

purpose

For the past several years, the countries of the African continent have been increasingly important clients, in relative as well as absolute terms, for technical assistance from the Bank. This trend is

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a logical reflection of the transition of many territories to

independence, and of the fact that the number of African countries who are members of the Bank in their own right has risen since 1957 from three to eight. ' The demand in Africa for the kind of services to which the Bank gives emphasis - general surveys, other types of programming assistance, assistance in the organization of capital markets and development institutions, etc. - is unlikely to decline;

and the Bank will make every effort within the limits of its resources, especially of staff, to meet this demand. The prospective establishment of the International Development Association, as an affiliate of the Bank, will not directly affect the demand for, or the Bank's ability to furnish technical assistance, but it may help to make the practical application of such assistance easier and more effective.

November 17, 1959.