CHAPTER NO. 1INTRODUCTION The World Bank is a United Nations international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programs. The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group, and a member of the United Nations Development Group.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty. According to its Articles of Agreement, all its decisions must be guided by a commitment to the promotion of foreign investment and international trade and to the facilitation of capital investment.

Five Institutions, One GroupThe World Bank Group consists of five organizations: International Bank for Reconstruction & DevelopmentThe International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) aims to reduce poverty in middle-income countries and creditworthy poorer countries by promoting sustainable development through loans, guarantees, risk management products, and analytical and advisory services. Established in 1944 as the original institution of the World Bank Group, IBRD is structured like a cooperative that is owned and operated for the benefit of its 188 member countries.IBRD raises most of its funds on the world's financial markets and has become one of the most established borrowers since issuing its first bond in 1947. The income that IBRD has generated over the years has allowed it to fund development activities and to ensure its financial strength, which enables it to borrow at low cost and offer clients good borrowing terms.

International Development Association

The International Development Association (IDA) is the part of the World Bank that helps the worlds poorest countries. Established in 1960, IDA aims to reduce poverty by providing loans (called credits) and grants for programs that boost economic growth, reduce inequalities, and improve peoples living conditions. IDA complements the World Banks original lending armthe International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). IBRD was established to function as a self-sustaining business and provides loans and advice to middle-income and credit-worthy poor countries. IBRD and IDA share the same staff and headquarters and evaluate projects with the same rigorous standards. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the worlds 82 poorest countries, 40 of which are in Africa. It is the single largest source of donor funds for basic social services in these countries. IDA-financed operations deliver positive change for 2.5 billion people, the majority of whom survive on less than $2 a day.IDA lends money on concessional terms. This means that IDA charges little or no interest and repayments are stretched over 25 to 40 years, including a 5- to 10-year grace period. IDA also provides grants to countries at risk of debt distress.In addition to concessional loans and grants, IDA provides significant levels of debt relief through the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI).Since its inception, IDA has supported activities in 108 countries. Annual commitments have increased steadily and averaged about $16 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent of that going to Africa. For the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2013, IDA commitments reached $16.3 billion spread over 160 new operations. 15 percent of the total was committed on grant terms.

International Financial CorporationIFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector in developing countries. Established in 1956, IFC is owned by 184 member countries, a group that collectively determines our policies. Our work in more than a 100 developing countries allows companies and financial institutions in emerging markets to create jobs, generate tax revenues, improve corporate governance and environmental performance, and contribute to their local communities.IFCs vision is that people should have the opportunity to escape poverty and improve their lives.

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) was created in 1988 as a member of the World Bank Group to promote foreign direct investment into developing countries to support economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve peoples lives. MIGA fulfills this mandate by offering political risk insurance (guarantees) to investors and lenders.

The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) provides international facilities for conciliation and arbitration of investment disputes.

What World Bank DoThe World Bank Group has set two goals for the world to achieve by 2030: End extreme poverty by decreasing the percentage of people living on less than $1.25 a day to no more than 3% Promote shared prosperity by fostering the income growth of the bottom 40% for every country.The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. We are not a bank in the ordinary sense but a unique partnership to reduce poverty and support development. The World Bank Group comprises five institutions managed by their member countries.Established in 1944, the World Bank Group is headquartered in Washington, D.C. We have more than 10,000 employees in more than 120 offices worldwide.

Financial Products and ServicesWe provide low-interest loans, interest-free credits, and grants to developing countries. These support a wide array of investments in such areas as education, health, public administration, infrastructure, financial and private sector development, agriculture, and environmental and natural resource management. Some of our projects are co financed with governments, other multilateral institutions, commercial banks, export credit agencies, and private sector investors.

We also provide or facilitate financing through trust fund partnerships with bilateral and multilateral donors. Many partners have asked the Bank to help manage initiatives that address needs across a wide range of sectors and developing regions.

Innovative Knowledge SharingWe offer support to developing countries through policy advice, research and analysis, and technical assistance. Our analytical work often underpins World Bank financing and helps inform developing countries own investments. In addition, we support capacity development in the countries we serve. We also sponsor, host, or participate in many conferences and forums on issues of development, often in collaboration with partners.To ensure that countries can access the best global expertise and help generate cutting-edge knowledge, the Bank is constantly seeking to improve the way it shares its knowledge and engages with clients and the public at large. Key priorities include: Results: We continue to sharpen our focus on helping developing countries deliver measurable results. Reform: We are working to improve every aspect of our work: how projects are designed, how information is made available (Access to Information), and how to bring our operations closer to client governments and communities. Open Development: We offer a growing range of free, easy-to-access tools, research and knowledge to help people address the world's development challenges. For example, the Open Data website offers free access to comprehensive, downloadable indicators about development in countries around the globe. We have also made World Bank Livelive discussions open to participants worldwidea key part of our Spring and Annual Meetings with the International Monetary Fund.

CHAPTER NO. 2HISTORY OF WORLD BANK

Since inception in 1944, the World Bank has expanded from a single institution to a closely associated group of five development institutions. Our mission evolved from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) as facilitator of post-war reconstruction and development to the present-day mandate of worldwide poverty alleviation in close coordination with our affiliate, the International Development Association, and other members of the World Bank Group, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).Once, we had a homogeneous staff of engineers and financial analysts, based solely in Washington, D.C. Today, we have a multidisciplinary and diverse staff that includes economists, public policy experts, sector experts and social scientistsand now more than a third of our staff is based in country offices.Reconstruction remains an important part of our work. However, at today's World Bank, poverty reduction through an inclusive and sustainable globalization remains the overarching goal of our work.Our expanding collection contains 193,000 linear feet of development information related to World Bank Group member countries dating from 1946-present. This collection includes lending project files, country files, economic reports, sector studies, policy files, oral history interviews, films, videos, photographs.

Norwegian Delegation, Bretton Woods, July 1944

Conceived during World War II at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, the World Bank initially helped rebuild Europe after the war. Its first loan of $250 million was to France in 1947 for post-war reconstruction. Reconstruction has remained an important focus of the Bank's work, given the natural disasters, humanitarian emergencies, and postconflict rehabilitation needs that affect developing and transition economies.Today's Bank, however, has sharpened its focus on poverty reduction as the overarching goal of all its work. It once had a homogeneous staff of engineers and financial analysts, based solely in Washington, D.C. Today, it has a multidisciplinary and diverse staff including economists, public policy experts, sectoral experts, and social scientists. 40 percent of staff are now based in country offices.The Bank itself is bigger, broader, and far more complex. It has become a Group, encompassing five closely associated development institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID).

US Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Morganthau, Bretton Woods, July 1944

TransitionDuring the 1980s, the Bank was pushed in many directions: early in the decade, the Bank was brought face to face with macroeconomic and debt rescheduling issues; later in the decade, social and environmental issues assumed center stage, and an increasingly vocal civil society accused the Bank of not observing its own policies in some highprofile projects.To address concerns about the quality of Bank operations, the Wapenhans Report was released and soon after, steps toward reform were taken, including the creation of an Inspection Panel to investigate claims against the Bank. However, criticism increased, reaching a peak in 1994 at the Annual Meetings in Madrid.

Reform and RenewalMother and daughter, China, 1993

Since then, the Bank Group has made much progress. All five institutions have been working - separately and in collaboration - to improve internal efficiency and external effectiveness. Clients report to be broadly pleased with the changes they see in Bank Group service levels, commitment, deliveries, and quality.More than ever before, the Bank is playing an important role in the global policy arena. It has effectively engaged with partners and clients in complex emergencies from post-conflict work in Bosnia to post-crisis assistance in East Asia to post-hurricane clean-up in central America to post-earthquake support in Turkey and in Kosovo and East Timor.Notwithstanding these considerable progresses, the Bank Group's agenda is not yet complete, nor can it ever be, while the challenges of development continue to grow.Oral History ProgramThe Oral History program at the World Bank began in 1961 as a historical project to record a series of interviews with present and former members of the Bank staff. Its original purpose was to build an institutional memory for future scholarly study of the Bank's history and operations. This purpose has been expanded to include guidance to current staff based on experience of former Bank staff.The interviews provide glimpses into the complexity of the World Bank's evolution since the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944. They were conducted to capture firsthand accounts of important events and experiences from those who observed and participated in them and, in some instances, supplemented with personal and anecdotal material. The interviews serve as learning histories and knowledge tools for the Bank, researchers in many fields as well as partners and clients of the Bank interested in learning more about its development practices and policies.The interviews also served as a major source of information for several publications on the World Bank's history. This collection comprises interviews conducted with more than 140 Bank staff.The opinions, findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in these oral histories do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank Group, its Executive Directors or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the information included in this work.

Historical Interviews by Name

Oral History interviews were conducted with World Bank Presidents, Vice-Presidents, Executive Directors, Senior Advisors and other Bank staff. The collection also includes transcripts of interviews Robert W. Oliver conducted with individuals other than Bank staff (in the mid 1980's) in preparing George D. Woods biography. The individual pages of interviewees include a list of principal positions held during their World Bank tenure; dates of interviews and number of sessions; number of pages of each transcript; a link to the PDF of the transcript when available; and current status of access restrictions.In collaboration with the World Bank Group Staff Association, the Archives conducted eight interviews in the late 1980s with persons that were significantly involved in the Staff Association. These interviewees are marked below with an asterisk (*), and interviews cover only their involvement in the Association, and not the World Bank Group.

Access & Restrictions

Detailed information regarding access and any restrictions is available in the Access and Restrictions section for each individual transcript. Under the provisions of the World Bank Policy on Access to Information, transcripts are eligible for disclosure review 20 years after the date of issue. If you would like to initiate disclosure review of a transcript, please complete and submit the Access to Information Request Form available on the Access to Information website. The transcript will be reviewed for any information that may fall under exceptions outlined in the World Bank Policy on Access to Information. If the transcript is approved for declassification it will be published on the World Bank Group Archives website. Some transcripts are not available for research at this time due to restrictions placed by interviewees in the release agreements for these transcripts. For these cases, access will have to be decided on a case-by-case basis. If copies of the transcript are not permitted, the original transcript is only available for research in the Archives Reading Room in Washington, D.C. or from the institution that holds the copy right.

History of Oral History ProgramThe Oral History program at the Bank has had an on and off chronicle since its beginnings in 1961, when the World Bank Group's management first approved a historical project to tape- record a series of interviews with present and former members of the Bank staff. Its purpose was to build an 'institutional memory' for purely archival and research purposes; mainly to be used for a future scholarly study of the Bank's history and operations. The project was conducted jointly by the Brookings Institution who employed Professor Robert W. Oliver of the California Institute of Technology, and Columbia University who prepared and became the repository of the transcripts.

Around thirty interviews were conducted which constituted a major source for the authorized history of the Bank by Edward S. Mason and Robert E. Asher, The World Bank Since Bretton Woods (pdf 606K; table of contents only), (Brookings, 1973). The transcripts of these interviews were eventually acquired by the World Bank Group Archives.The interviews give glimpses into the complexity of the Bank's evolution beginning in 1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference, where the Articles of Agreement of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were negotiated. They are conducted on an institutional level, with the goal of eliciting from the participant as full and accurate an account as possible. That is, capturing firsthand accounts of important events and experiences from those who observed and participated in them and, in some instances, supplemented with personal and anecdotal material to illustrate. The Oral History Program Interview Series has recently been re-established as an ongoing and integral function of the World Bank Group Archives. In 1981, a feasibility study to revitalize the program was done, however, the recommendations were not funded and thus not implemented. Soon after the death in 1982 of the Bank's fourth president, George D. Woods (Jwho served from January 1963 --March 1968), his wife commissioned a biography about her husband's years at the Bank. Eventually, Professor Oliver undertook the project and conducted a series of interviews over the course of five years beginning in 1985, referred to as "Conversations About George Woods and the World Bank". Professor Oliver's book, George Woods and the World Bank (PDF 163K; table of contents only), was published in 1995. At the same time, during the period between 1981 and 1989, a few more interviews were conducted and added on to the existing collection, in addition to a small number acquired from the Harry S. Truman Library.Beginning 1993, the Oral History Program Interview Series became one of the main functions of the newly-created Office.As with the transformation of the World Bank Group from an investment organization to a development assistance institution, so it is today with the transformation and shift in emphasis of the Oral History function within it. While the openly stated goal of Oral History interviews is to fill in the gaps in supplementing and complementing written records that are found wanting for historical analysis as well as to build 'institutional memory' for archival and scholarly research purposes, today's interviews, on the other hand, are to be highly focused, and of direct relevance to the overall strategy and objectives of the Institution. Thus, serving as learning histories and executable knowledge tools, not only for the Bank or the individual scholar, but also for researchers in many fields as well as partners and clients of the Bank, interested in learning more about its development practices and policies as one of the primary institutions concerned with international development. In this context, the internet is the perfect vehicle for international communications, offering the Bank new opportunities for information and knowledge sharing. This, also is in line with the 1996 Annual Meeting address to the Board of Governors of the Bank's ninth president, James D. Wolfensohn, emphasizing the role of the Bank as that of "a Knowledge Bank." the Historian, until its disbanding in April 1998, when the function was brought back to Archivesthe last interview was conducted in 1997. During that time, then in-house Bank historian, J. Kraske, in collaboration with his associates wrote Bankers with a Mission: The Presidents of the World Bank, 1946-91 (PDF 184K; table of contents only) (Oxford University Press, 1996) using a number of oral history interviews as a source.

CHAPTER NO. 3PROJECTS & OPERATIONS OF WORLD BANK

The development objectives of the Second Social Protection Administration Project (SPAP) for Armenia are to: (i) improve social protection service delivery; and (ii) strengthen analytical and monitoring and evaluation functions of the agencies delivering social protection benefits and services. The project has five components. The first component will support rolling-out of integrated social protection service delivery that was initiated and piloted under the SPAP project. This component will also include civil works, furniture, and other goods for the central offices of two agencies - the state employment service agency (SESA) and the agency for medico-social expertise (AMSE) whose functions will be incorporated into the integrated social protection center (ISPCs) at the decentralized level. The second component, supporting the implementation of the new employment strategy by the government seeks to address some specific challenges of the Armenian labor market, namely: a high share of unemployed and not in education, employment, or training (NEET) youth; a low rate of job creation; a lack of specific technical skills which sometimes prevents employers from opening or filling vacancies; and low awareness and coverage of public employment services among both jobseekers and employers. The third component, modernization of the pension system will support the state social security service (SSSS) in improving its core business processes and upgrading them in line with ISPC requirements. The fourth component, strengthening ministry of labor and social issues (MLSI) analytical capacity and monitoring and evaluation systems aims at strengthening the capacity of the monitoring and evaluation unit within the MLSI and developing an integrated system of monitoring and evaluation of social protection benefits and services (in total over 70 different programs). The fifth component, project management will finance the standard operation of the project coordination unit (PCU) at MLSI for the duration of the project, trainings, project audit, and incremental operating costs.Basic InformationProject IDP146318

Project IDP146318

StatusActive

Approval DateMarch 24, 2014

Closing DateDecember 31, 2018

CountryArmenia

RegionEurope and Central Asia

Environmental CategoryB

Team LeaderIvan Drabek

Borrower***GOVERNMENT OF ARMENIA

Implementing AgencyMINISTRY OF LABOR AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS

Total Project Cost**US$ 25.50 million

Commitment AmountUS$ 21.20 million

SectorsOther social services 100%

ThemesSocial safety nets 70%

Improving labor markets 10%

Social risk mitigation 10%

Other social protection and risk management 10%

* Theme Classification did not exist at the time project was approved* Total project cost includes funding from World Bank and non-bank sources in US$ millions. Active and Closed projects show commitment at Board approval. It does not reflect any cancellations. Proposed (pipeline) and dropped projects show the forecast amount. The commitment amount for projects in the pipeline is indicative and may be modified during the project preparation.

I) HEALTH SERVICES IMPROVEMENT PROJECTThe development objective of the Health Services Improvement Project for Zambia is to improve health delivery systems and utilization of maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) and nutrition services in project areas. The project has three components. The first component, strengthening capacity for primary and community level MNCH and nutrition services objective is to strengthen health systems in project areas through: (i) enhanced training capacity and standards for nursing and midwifery; (ii) improved supply chain systems for essential commodities; and (iii) improved referral system and linkages across levels of care. It has following three sub-components: (a) enhance training capacity and standards for nursing and midwifery; (b) improve supply chain systems and availability of essential commodities; and (c) improve referral system and linkages across levels of care. The second component, strengthening utilization of primary and community level MNCH and nutrition services through results based financing approaches objective is to build on the on-going results based financing (RBF) pilot to strengthen MNCH and nutrition service delivery, with a specific focus on increasing supply and demand side efficiency and reaching the underserved population. It comprises of following two sub-components: (a) expand results based financing at primary facility level; (b) introduce results based approaches at community level. The third component, strengthening project management and policy analysis objectives are to strengthen project management, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; provide technical assistance for evidence-based policy analysis and health financing innovations; and appoint an independent verification agent to verify the project results. It comprises of following three sub-components: (a) project management and implementation, monitoring and evaluation; (b) support evidence-based policy analysis and health financing innovations; (c) institute independent verification arrangements.Basic InformationProject ID P145335

Status Active

Approval Date March 21, 2014

Closing Date June 30, 2019

Country Zambia

Region Africa

Environmental Category B

Team Leader Netsanet Walelign Workie

Borrower*** THE GOVERNMENT OF ZAMBIA

Implementing Agency MOH AND MCDMCH

Total Project Cost** US$ 67.00 million

Commitment Amount US$ 52.00 million

SectorsHealth 100%

ThemesHealth system performance 30%

Nutrition and food security 20%

Child health 20%

Population and reproductive health 20%

Malaria 10%

* The project abstract is drawn from the PAD, SAR or PGD and may not accurately reflect the project's current nature** Total project cost includes funding from World Bank and non-bank sources in US$ millions. Active and Closed projects show commitment at Board approval. It does not reflect any cancellations. Proposed (pipeline) and dropped projects show the forecast amount. The commitment amount for projects in the pipeline is indicative and may be modified during the project preparation.

II) MATERNAL AND CHILD NUTRITION AND HEALTH RESULTS PROJECTThe development objective of the Maternal and Child Nutrition and Health Results Project for Gambia, is to increase the utilization of community nutrition and primary maternal and child health services in selected regions in the recipient's territory. There are three components to the project, the first component being community mobilization for social and behavior change. This component will focus on community-based promotion of key family practices (i.e., the 12 family and community practices that promote child survival, growth and development)6 and health care seeking behaviors for improved maternal and child health and nutrition outcomes through: (i) Provision of conditional cash transfers to communities and village support groups (VSG) to increase demand for and utilization of health and nutrition services through counseling and timely referrals for life-saving health services (e.g., hygiene, sanitation, counseling on infant and young child feeding, delayed first pregnancy and child spacing, referral of pregnant women and children with danger signs to health centers). The second component is the delivery of selected primary health care services. This component aims to support the delivery of selected nutrition and health care services at primary, and, where needed, referral health care levels, through: (a) provision of performance-based grant to health centers for the delivery of a predefined package of maternal and child health and nutrition services at primary and referral health care facilities; and (b) provision of startup support for effective service delivery, including the implementation of selected health care waste management measures. Finally, the third component is the capacity building for service delivery and results-based management.Basic InformationProject ID P143650

Status Active

Approval Date March 21, 2014

Closing Date July 31, 2019

Country Gambia, The

Region Africa

Environmental Category B

Team Leader Menno Mulder-Sibanda

Borrower*** REPUBLIC OF THE GAMBIA

Implementing Agency N/A

Total Project Cost** US$ 8.68 million

Commitment Amount US$ 3.68 million

SectorsHealth 60%

Other social services 40%

ThemesHealth system performance 25%

Nutrition and food security 35%

Child health 20%

Population and reproductive health 20%

* The project abstract is drawn from the PAD, SAR or PGD and may not accurately reflect the project's current nature** Total project cost includes funding from World Bank and non-bank sources in US$ millions. Active and Closed projects show commitment at Board approval. It does not reflect any cancellations. Proposed (pipeline) and dropped projects show the forecast amount. The commitment amount for projects in the pipeline is indicative and may be modified during the project preparation.

CHAPTER NO. 4INDIA PROJECTS & PROGRAMThe World Bank Groups Partnership Strategy for India (2013-2017) will help India lay the foundations for achieving faster, sustainable, and more inclusive growth as outlined in the governments 12th five year plan. The World Bank Group will support India with an integrated package of financing, advisory services, and knowledge. As of July 2013, total net commitments in India stood at $22.3 billion (IBRD $12.6 billion, IDA $ 9.7 billion) across 78 projects.

Government of India and World Bank Sign $500 Million Agreement to Improve Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Services in Four Indian StatesThe government of India and the World Bank today signed a $500 million credit agreement to improve piped water supply and sanitation services through decentralized delivery systems in the states of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.The credit agreement for the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) Project for Low Income States was signed by Nilaya Mitash, joint secretary, department of economic affairs, ministry of finance, on behalf of the government of India; Sujoy Mozumdar, director (Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan) and project director, Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) Project for Low Income States on behalf of the ministry of drinking water and sanitation, government of India; H K Borah, principal secretary, public health & engineering department on behalf of the government of Assam; Anshuli Arya, principal secretary, public health & engineering department on behalf of the government of Bihar; Jabber Singh, special secretary, department of drinking water and sanitation on behalf of the government of Jharkhand; Arun Singhal, principal secretary, department of rural development on behalf of the government of Uttar Pradesh and Onno Ruhl, World Bank country director, India on behalf of World Bank.Improving access to water and sanitation services through decentralized delivery systems is a development priority for the Government of India. Activities under this project will directly support the governments efforts to meet these objectives, said Nilaya Mitash, joint secretary, department of economic affairs, ministry of finance, and government of India.Today, only 31% of the 167 million rural households in India have access to tap water and domestic toilets (Census 2011). About 67% of the rural population continues to defecate in the open and India accounts for about 50% of the worlds open defecation. Studies suggest that the economic impact of inadequate sanitation in India is equivalent to 6.4% of GDP in 2006.The project will be implemented over a six-year period and will support the design and implementation of a dedicated RWSS program for low income states under the ongoing National Rural Drinking Water Program in the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MoDWS). Phase 1 of the project, signed today will support RWSS programs in 33 districts in the states of Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh. These states have the lowest coverage of tap water with Bihar at 2.6%, Jharkhand at 3.7%, Assam with 6.8% and Uttar Pradesh at 20.2%. Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh also lag significantly in sanitation, with more than 75% of the rural households not having access to latrines within their premises. This project is expected to directly benefit about 7.8 million rural people in these states.Some 3.8 million women, who bear the burden of securing daily water supplies and dealing with illnesses from poor water and sanitation facilities, are expected to benefit from improved facilities that will get created in the project areas. The project will reduce the time spent by women in collecting water, which they can now use in other productive ways, said Onno Ruhl, World Bank country director for India. The World Banks Country Partnership Strategy is focused on promoting decentralized and community-based participatory approaches in delivering water and sanitation services. This project will pilot schemes at the local level where the capacity of Gram Panchayats (GPs) will be enhanced, and, together with the Village Water Supply and Sanitation Committees, they will be empowered and enabled to make decisions, procure material, carry out construction and manage funds, Ruhl added.The World Bank has been supporting the government of India in piloting and scaling up RWSS Programs since 1991, contributing more than $1.4 billion and benefitting about 24 million rural households in over 15,000 villages. This project will support sustainable RWSS programs by linking GPs with higher levels of government and strengthening the capacity of PRI institutions; integrating water supply and sanitation interventions and promoting solid and liquid waste management and health and hygiene awareness programs.Other key components of the project include investments for improving water supply and sanitation coverage, including construction of new infrastructure and rehabilitation of existing schemes. Most habitations will be served by Single Village Schemes (SVSs) using local groundwater sources. Multi Village Schemes (MVSs), which mainly rely on surface water sources, will be taken up for those habitations where the local source is either not sustainable or not of acceptable quality.The sanitation component will support the government of Indias program, which includes construction of household toilets, soak-pits, drain and lane improvements, community awareness programs for improving sanitation and hygiene practices, along with incentives for achieving open defecation free status. In addition, the project will promote pilot programs for 24/7 water supply and introduce new technologies in the RWSS sector, including the use of solar energy.One of the major shifts that the four states will witness is the decentralized service delivery arrangements and increased participation by the PRIs and communities. This is expected to help enhance accountability at all levels. The project will also get into twinning arrangements with successful on-going Bank supported RWSS projects in India and learn from the good practices that they have already demonstrated, said Smita Misra, lead water and sanitation specialist and the projects task team leader.The Project will be financed by a credit from the International Development Association (IDA) the World Banks concessionary lending arm which provides interest-free loans with 25 years to maturity and a grace period of five years.

I) MAHARASHTRA RURAL WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION PROGRAMThe objective of the Maharashtra Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Program Project (RWSS) for India is to improve the performance of Maharashtra's sector institutions in planning, implementation and monitoring of its Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Program and to improve access to quality and sustainable services in peri-urban villages, and in water-stressed and water quality-affected areas. India has been one of the fastest growing economies in the last decade, but its economy now shows signs of slowing down. Between 2004 and 2011, a period that includes the global financial crisis, India's growth averaged 8.3 percent per year. Expanding social programs lowered the poverty rate by 1.5 percentage points per year during 2004-09, double the rate of the preceding decade. India's growth rate however slipped to a decade low of 5 percent in 2012-13 due to a combination of domestic and external factors, including high inflation, high fiscal deficit and weak external demand for the country's exports. This slowdown carries high social costs for millions of Indians, and threatens the gains made in poverty reduction over the past decade. Under its current 10-year RWSS program, Government of Maharashtra (GoM) seeks to significantly expand the frontiers in the sector with a focus on increasing house connection coverage, ensuring continuous water supply with adequate pressure and minimum quality standards, and ensuring that 100 percent of the rural population has access to safe water and basic sanitation. However, delivering this vision requires building capacities of institutions through appropriate implementation and management models. Maharashtra is also a rapidly urbanizing state with many large villages (each with a population of more than 10,000 people) and a growing number of peri-urban areas that are demanding higher levels of service. Finally, the state also faces challenges in addressing the needs of water-stressed and water quality affected areas, managing drinking water quality, and ensuring drinking water security in the face of increasing droughts and climate change impacts on rainfall patterns and the yield of existing sources.Basic InformationProject ID P126325

Status Active

Approval Date March 12, 2014

Closing Date March 31, 2020

Country India

Region South Asia

Environmental Category B

Team Leader N. V. V. Raghava

Borrower*** GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

Implementing Agency MAHARASHTRA WATER SUPPLY AND SANITATION DEPARTMENT

Total Project Cost** US$ 1440.00 million

Commitment Amount US$ 165.00 million

SectorsWater supply 75%

Sanitation 20%

Public administration- Water, sanitation and flood protection 5%

ThemesRural services and infrastructure 87%

Water resource management 10%

Rural policies and institutions 3%

* The project abstract is drawn from the PAD, SAR or PGD and may not accurately reflect the project's current nature** Total project cost includes funding from World Bank and non-bank sources in US$ millions. Active and Closed projects show commitment at Board approval. It does not reflect any cancellations. Proposed (pipeline) and dropped projects show the forecast amount. The commitment amount for projects in the pipeline is indicative and may be modified during the project preparation.

CHAPTER NO. 5 INDIA: INNOVATIONS IN PROJECTS

India: Mizoram State Roads Project

One of the major challenges in building hill roads is stabilizing hill slopes with appropriate and cost effective interventions. The Mizoram State Roads Project in India employed innovative bioengineering techniques that used the abundantly available local bamboo to stabilize the hill slopes at a fraction of the cost of conventional methods that use concrete structures for the purpose.Bioengineering is the use of vegetation, mostly shrubs and grasses, either alone or in conjunction with stone and concrete protection works such as retaining walls etc. to enhance the stability of slopes. It benefits both road building agencies and users alike as it not only provides one of the best, and cheapest, ways to protect the road and its users from landslides, but also retains the hillsides productivity, unlike stone and cement works on which no vegetation can grow. A slope treated with bioengineering measures can therefore retain its forests, water bodies, farmlands and orchards while also covering up any unsightly scars that result from road widening activities. These environment friendly measures also reduce the carbon footprint of roads.Bioengineering techniques are now being implemented under the World Bank supported Himachal Pradesh State Roads Project.

India: Assam agricultural competitiveness project

Although Assam has an abundance of rainfall in the monsoon season and the land is fertile, farmers are unable to maximize the income from their fields because they lack access to water during the long dry winter months. This is largely because they lack the capital to invest in shallow tube wells to tap into the regions high water table and abundant groundwater. To enable farmers to irrigate their fields in winter, the World Bank-supported Assam Agricultural Competitiveness Project sought to provide groups of 3-5 small and marginal farmers with irrigation pumps for shallow tube wells. At first, the project focused on the centralized procurement of these pumps to ensure that a large number of pumps were quickly delivered to farmers across the state at low costs.This, however, proved to be difficult. With Assam being a northeastern state, few qualified manufacturers were willing to bid. Moreover, to ensure that the pumps were of good quality, only manufacturers who had the requisite turnover and capacity were allowed to bid, reducing the number of bidders even further. In the end, while the pumps procured were cheap, the farmers were unfamiliar with the brands on offer and the uptake of pumps was slow. The project then devised an innovative process of community procurement that allowed farmer groups to choose the pump sets themselves from a pre-selected databank. The databank was drawn up through a state selection process and listed each pump set on offer with its corresponding rate. With manufacturers of varying capacities being allowed to apply, the pump sets on offer included a choice of 25 models and 13 suppliers. Since suppliers were assured of bulk orders, they were able to offer the low prices typically associated with centralized procurement. An audit process was also devised to verify that the pumps were delivered and installed with the farmers for whom they were intended.

The community procurement process has led to a significant increase in the uptake of pumps by farmer groups. The cost of the pump sets is not only lower, farmers also receive better after-sales service because the pumps are delivered by local dealers. Based upon the success of this project, the states Department of Agriculture has mainstreamed the process of community procurement into their regular operations.

India: Karnataka Watershed Development Project

A watershed, or catchment area, is the area of land where all the water that drains off it or flows beneath it drains into a single point or body of water. Watersheds can vary in size from a few hectares of land to thousands of square kilometers. Watershed management is the integrated use of land, vegetation, and water resources that harmonize actions between upstream and downstream areas to raise agricultural productivity, increase rural incomes, and rejuvenate the natural resource base.

Between 2001 and 2009, the Karnataka Watershed Development Project, known locallyas Sujala, used cutting-edge technology to plan, prioritize, monitor and assess interventions over half a million hectares of land in seven predominantly rain-fed districts in Karnataka. The project was implemented by the Karnataka Governments Watershed Development Department (WDD) in partnership with several non-governmental organizations and the World Bank. Satellite images taken at regular intervals from a height of 900 kms provided accurate the manic data - such as land use and land cover, groundwater prospects, soil characteristics etc. - for large catchments as well as micro-watersheds. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) fused this spatial data with non spatial data such as rainfall, literacy etc. to help technical experts and communities to prioritize works and together develop comprehensive action plans for each micro-watershed. While the Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development, initiated by the Department of Space in 1992, had pioneered the use of satellite remote sensing and GIS mapping to develop locale-specific action plans for watershed development in 175 districts of the country, Sujala was the first project to deploy this technology effectively over a large area. It also expanded its use to map resources, prioritize areas for treatment, carry out on-going monitoring and evaluation, and assess impacts. This was also the first time that high-resolution satellite images were placed before grassroots communities to help them plan interventions.In a key innovation, Antrix Corporation, part of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), developed a unique approach for monitoring and evaluation that fused remote sensing; GIS mapping and Management Information System (MIS) with conventional ground-based monitoring techniques to provide state of the art information to track progress and assess impacts. This rigorous method of monitoring performance on an ongoing basis enabled planners to maintain transparency, enforce accountability, and apply mid-course corrections where necessary, leading to the projects ultimate success in achieving the desired impact on the ground.

With some 600,000 villages in India, there is huge potential to scale up these innovations across the country. Many of the projects approaches have already been incorporated into Indias new national watershed policy guidelines. The Sujala project has won seven prestigious awards: National Productivity Awards 2007 and 2009;National Water Award 2007; Earth Care Award2008; National E-Governance Award 2009; as well as the Global Sustainability Research Award at Stockholm, Sweden, and the Geospatial Excellence Award at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The project has also attracted significant international attention.

India: Urban resettlementThe Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) commenced in 2002 to improve transport services in India's premier megacity. It involved urban resettlement on an unparalleled scale. Over 100,000 people living along roads and railways tracks were to be resettled to improve rail and road transport services. While resettling people is difficult anywhere, it appeared almost intractable in the complex socio-political environment of Mumbai, a linear city that lies along a narrow north-south peninsula and is one of the most densely populated urban areas in the world.

Almost 95% of the affected people did not have legal title to the land they occupied. Affected structures included an assortment of residences, businesses, religious and community facilities, schools, dispensaries, nurseries, and so on. Getting people from diverse social and economic backgrounds to accept homogenous resettlement options was not easy. Even more challenging was finding alternative resettlement sites in land-scarce Mumbai and mobilizing the resources to develop these.The unprecedented scale and complexity of the process called for innovative solutions. To solve both land and financial constraints, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) - the agency responsible for the project's Resettlement and Rehabilitation (R&R) activities - enlisted private participation. It offered private developers development rights' and cash incentives to construct new resettlement sites in the less-dense northern suburbs of the city.Recognizing people's concerns regarding involuntary resettlement, the MMRDA altered its approach from one that narrowly focused on compensating people for their losses towards one that sought to arrive at a win-win' solution for all. This resulted in wider consultation and negotiation with the affected people, with the help of NGOs.The agency's willingness to adapt and explore alternative solutions, often going beyond the scope of the R&R policy, enabled it to come up with innovative resettlement options that were more agreeable to the affected people. This was a critical factor in helping to reduce the number of complaints. It cut down the costs and delays involved in litigation and speeded up the implementation process.

In addition, proactive information disclosure, a transparent grievance redressal mechanism, and an independent panel of eminent citizens who regularly monitored the resettlement sites and listened to people's concerns played an important role in resolving grievances and building people's confidence in the resettlement process.Going beyond the provision of brick and mortar resettlement sites, the MMRDA helped the resettled people to adapt to their new environments. Resettlement colonies were provided with schools, day-care centres, and women's centres. People's livelihood options were expanded through skills training for the youth and micro-credit for women.An independent study has found that the provision of formal housing to resettled families has raised their social status and improved their employability and creditworthiness. It has also given them, especially the women, a greater sense of security in their new homes.The project has become a worldwide example of urban resettlement on a mega scale. Mumbai's suburban rail services, which cater to over 7 million passengers a day, have witnessed a greater frequency of trains and lower levels of congestion. The MMRDA has now been identified as the nodal agency for urban resettlement in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The lessons learnt from the project have equipped the MMRDA to effectively deal with the resettlement challenges of future infrastructure projects in the city.

CONCLUSITIONWith 1.2 billion people and the worlds fourth-largest economy, Indias recent growth and development has been one of the most significant achievements of our times. Over the six and half decades since independence, the country has brought about a landmark agricultural revolution that has transformed the nation from chronic dependence on grain imports into a global agricultural powerhouse that is now a net exporter of food. Life expectancy has more than doubled, literacy rates have quadrupled, health conditions have improved, and a sizeable middle class has emerged. India is now home to globally recognized companies in pharmaceuticals and steel and information and space technologies, and a growing voice on the international stage that is more in keeping with its enormous size and potential.Historic changes are unfolding, unleashing a host of new opportunities to forge a 21st-century nation. India will soon have the largest and youngest workforce the world has ever seen. At the same time, the country is in the midst of a massive wave of urbanization as some 10 million people move to towns and cities each year in search of jobs and opportunity. It is the largest rural-urban migration of this century.The historic changes unfolding have placed the country at a unique juncture. How India develops its significant human potential and lays down new models for the growth of its burgeoning towns and cities will largely determine the shape of the future for the country and its people in the years to come.Massive investments will be needed to create the jobs, housing, and infrastructure to meet soaring aspirations and make towns and cities more livable and green. Generating growth that lifts all boats will be key, for more than 400 million of Indias peopleor one-third of the worlds poorstill live in poverty. And, many of those who have recently escaped poverty (53 million people between 2005-10 alone) are still highly vulnerable to falling back into it. In fact, due to population growth, the absolute number of poor people in some of Indias poorest states actually increased during the last decade.Inequity in all dimensions, including region, caste and gender, will need to be addressed. Poverty rates in Indias poorest states are three to four times higher than those in the more advanced states. While Indias average annual per capita income was $1,410 in 2011placing it among the poorest of the worlds middle-income countries it was just $436 in Uttar Pradesh (which has more people than Brazil) and only $294 in Bihar, one of Indias poorest states. Disadvantaged groups will need to be brought into the mainstream to reap the benefits of economic growth, and womenwho hold up half the skyempowered to take their rightful place in the socioeconomic fabric of the country.Fostering greater levels of education and skills will be critical to promote prosperity in a rapidly globalizing world. However, while primary education has largely been universalized, learning outcomes remain low. Less than 10 percent of the working-age population has completed a secondary education, and too many secondary graduates do not have the knowledge and skills to compete in todays changing job market.Improving health care will be equally important. Although Indias health indicators have improved, maternal and child mortality rates remain very low and, in some states, are comparable to those in the worlds poorest countries. Of particular concern is the nutrition of Indias children whose well-being will determine the extent of Indias much-awaited demographic dividend; at present, an overwhelming 40 percent (217 million) of the worlds malnourished children are in India.The countrys infrastructure needs are massive. One in three rural people lack access to an all-weather road, and only one in five national highways is four-lane. Ports and airports have inadequate capacity, and trains move very slowly. An estimated 300 million people are not connected to the national electrical grid, and those who are face frequent disruptions. And the manufacturing sectorvital for job creationremains small and underdeveloped.Nonetheless, a number of Indias states are pioneering bold new initiatives to tackle many of Indias long-standing challenges and are making great strides towards inclusive growth. Their successes are leading the way forward for the rest of the country, indicating what can be achieved if the poorer states were to learn from their more prosperous counterparts.India now has that rare window of opportunity to improve the quality of life for its 1.2 billion citizens and lay the foundations for a truly prosperous futurea future that will impact the country and its people for generations to come.

WEBBLIOGRAPHYwww.worldbank.comBIBLIOGRAPHY World Bank Institute. "About WBI". World Bank Group. "World Bank Historical Chronology: 1970-1979". World Bank Group.44