One-Third of World Bank Health, Nutrition and Population Program Loans Met With Unsatisfactory Outcomes, Internal Audit Shows
An internal audit of the World Bank's health, nutrition and population division found that a third of the programs it loaned money to have not had satisfactory outcomes, the New York Times reports. The bank has spent $17 billion on those initiatives since 1997. The New York Times writes, "The projects were typically too complex for the weak or inexperienced bureaucracies carrying them out, researchers found. And coordinating the plethora of donors, nonprofit groups and government agencies involved made delivering results very difficult" (Dugger, New York Times, 4/30).
The program's director Julian Schweitzer said, "I accept much of the report; I accept it as constructive criticism," adding, "In hindsight, some of these projects were too complex. But I also want to make a point that health is complicated. It is very hard to develop a good health system" (Faiola, Washington Post, 5/1). Changes have already been made to improve on its 2007 strategy, according to the bank, which announced earlier this year that it would triple health funding to $3 billion and emphasize the strengthening of local systems (Jack, Financial Times, 4/30).
The Economist reports, "Yet another ground for self-reproach was that the failure was concentrated in Africa, the poorest part of the world. Middle-income countries did not do too badly. But in Africa three-quarters of projects were deemed not to be up to snuff" (The Economist, 5/1). According to the New York Times, 60% of the program's projects on communicable diseases were focused on HIV/AIDS and "more successful efforts aimed at malaria, tuberculosis and leprosy, among others, got far fewer resources" (New York Times, 4/30). African HIV/AIDS programs were shown to meet stated goals 25% of the time, according to the report. Other programs, such as anti-malaria efforts in Eritrea that reduced death rates by 85%, proved more successful. According to the Washington Post, the Bank said it "is moving to double its staff dealing with malnutrition, and would seek ways to streamline existing programs" (Faiola, Washington Post, 5/1).
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