This note presents the methodology and findings of a field study on the financing needs of Madagascar's communes-the country's lowest but most institutionally advanced level of subnational government. Following a first round of municipal elections in 1995, more than 1,500 communes are now...

In 1999 the Bank began conducting Institutional and Governance Reviews (IGRs), adding to its tools for economic and sector work. IGRs trace the institutional roots of weak government performance and offer practical recommendations for improving government operations and development strategies....

A study of three user groups in India suggests that such groups rarely perform as expected. The note is based on such study, which comprised the performance of 100 community user groups, involved in the collective management of natural resources in three Bank-supported projects in the country....

With more developing and post-communist states embracing democracy, improving the performance of their congresses, parliaments, and other legislative assemblies has become a must. These bodies make laws, hold the executive branch accountable, and represent citizen interests. Good governance...

Working with local researchers, World Bank staff recently analyzed a random sample of cases filed in the first instance courts of Argentina and Mexico. (First instance or trial courts make the initial rulings on cases based on both facts and law. Higher instance or appeals courts are often...

The note looks at effective anticorruption legal instruments. However, law enforcement measures are not the first or necessarily the preferred method of defense. An informed citizenry, a government imbued with a service ethic, and other measures can be more effective in combating corruption. But...

The proclaimed priority of exports contained in many development plans, Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, and similar documents will remain hollow if it is not supported by forceful reforms that counter biases against exports. Once such reforms are implemented, much can be gained from reforming...

Preshipment inspection can help control overinvoicing or underinvoicing of imports, misclassification of imports, and misappropriation of donor funds provided for import support. Of the various objectives for customs reform, trade facilitation is arguably the most important for efficiency and...

The World Bank's just-released "Global Economic Prospects and the Developing Countries 2001" reports that developing country growth surged to 5.3 percent in 2000, up from 3.2 percent in 1999 and 1.0 percent in 1998. All developing regions experienced faster growth, though to varying degrees....

Increasing awareness of the importance of governance has been accompanied by an increase in the number of commercial firms and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) producing broad indicators of the quality of governance and public institutions. First generation governance indicators, e.g.,...