Organization
World Bank
Report Year
2015
1st MAR Year
2016
Accepted
Yes
Status
Active
Recommendation

Improve the evidence-base related to electricity access and its alignment with the corporate goals of promoting shared prosperity and ending extreme poverty.

(A) At the project level, (i) design results frameworks for electricity sector projects that go beyond simple headcount measures of access grid, off-grid, SHS, end-uses served to include attributes such as quality, reliability, affordability of service and (ii) where joint Bank Group projects are undertaken, assess value-added of such joint projects to the private sector and country clients. (B) At sector and country level, help country clients to appropriately enhance their M&E systems, household surveys, census and

similar undertakings to measure and monitor the economic, welfare, and gender-related outcomes from increased electricity access. (C) Across country clients, promote uniformity and comparability in indicators, and help improve country capacity for designing, implementing, and utilizing the

M&E frameworks.

Recommendation Adoption
IEG Rating by Year: mar-rating-popup S H NT NT Management Rating by Year: mar-rating-mng-popup H H NT NT
CComplete
HHigh
SSubstantial
MModerate
NNegligible
NANot Accepted
NRNot Rated
Findings Conclusions

Monitoring and evaluation show weaknesses in all elements of design and implementation. This weakness is more marked in low- and medium-access countries, largely due lack of indicators, weak baseline data, and inadequate capacity for monitoring. The shortcomings are highest regarding the tracking of economic and welfare outcomes, including gender considerations, but there has been greater recognition of this matter in the World Bank and recent improvements in M&E frameworks in this regard. However, IFC and MIGA do not have any significant provision for tracking the welfare and gender outcomes related to their operations.

Collaboration among World Bank, IFC, and MIGA through joint projects has grown over the years, albeit in an ad hoc manner. Feedback from both internal and external stakeholderspoint to a number of areas for improvement. In order to take effective action in this area, more and solid evidence is needed on the value added as well as on costs and benefits to private sector clients from such joint projects.

Original Management Response

WB: Partially Agree. Management is committed to advance the evidence on results and impacts of electricity access, including its contributions to the WBG goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. To this end:

(i) The Bank will apply the SE4ALL Multi-Tier Framework for measuring electricity access. The framework will be used to: (a) measure country progress towards universal access under SE4ALL and (b) track project contributions, starting with a pilot group of energy operations to be implemented in FY16, and expanded afterwards. In addition, efforts will be made to facilitate the adoption of the framework by other parties to ensure consistency of reporting under SE4ALL and to assist clients to adopt a simplified version for their own tracking.

(ii) The Bank will continue mainstreaming impact evaluations in the selected energy access operations.

The specific recommendation to assess "value-added" of WBG joint projects to the private sector clients and the countries would not be feasible in the absence of counterfactuals and the absence of a WBG-wide methodology for such an assessment.

IFC will continue to implement across sectors its eight-point action plan that resulted from IEG's evaluation on IFC's Poverty Focus, over a three-year timeframe. IFC will carefully take stock on its evidence-base in relation to the corporate goals across sectors and examine and discuss the next steps for improvement.

Action Plans
Action 1
Action 1 Number:
0353-01
Action 1 Title:
Action 4: The SE4ALL Multi-Tier Framework (MTF) for tracking energy access is operationalized.
Action 1 Plan:

Action 4: The SE4ALL Multi-Tier Framework (MTF) for tracking energy access is operationalized.

Indicator 1: Number of countries with the baseline survey established using the MTF energy access definition and methodology

Baseline 1: 0 countries

Target 1: 15 countries

Timeline: FY19

Indicator 2: Number of WB projects and development partners piloting integration of the MTF approach in their M&E activities

Baseline 2: 0

Target 2: at least 4 WB operations and at least one development partner other than WB

Timeline: FY19

Action 2
Action 3
Action 4
Action 5
Action 6
Action 7
Action 8
2019
IEG Update:
No Updates
Management Update:
No Updates
2018
IEG Update:
No Updates
Management Update:
No Updates
2017
IEG Update:

IEG notes the completion of MTF- related field work (Rwanda, Kenya, and Ethiopia) and report drafting since the 2016 update. IEG also notes that KfW and the Netherlands Government have additionally come on board for the MTF. The adoption of MTF in ongoing projects in DRC, Rwanda,Kenya, and pipeline projects (Haiti) is noted.

Management Update:

Target 1: The field work for MTF surveys has been completed in Rwanda, Kenya, and Ethiopia. Data analysis and report drafting is ongoing. Field work is currently in-progress for Zambia, Nigeria, Liberia, Honduras, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, Nepal. For Haiti and Niger, recruitment of the survey firms is ongoing. Final agreement on survey strategy and implementation is still pending for DRC and Uganda.Target 2: The MTF is being used for M&E in the following projects: - DRC: Electricity Access and Service Expansion Project (P156208) - Rwanda: Electricity Sector Strengthening Project (P150634) - Kenya: Off-grid Solar Access Project for Underserved Counties (P160009) - FY18 pipeline - Haiti: Modern Energy Services for All (P154351) - FY18 pipeline. In addition, the Uganda: Energy for Rural Transformation 3 (P133312) is using the MTF for impact evaluation.Several development partners have adopted the MTF for program monitoring including GIZ/ENDEV, KfW, and the Netherlands government.

2016
IEG Update:

IEG notes the management's efforts in rolling out MTF surveys in 15 countries as well as the target timeline. IEG also notes that outside the Bank, GIZ and GOGLA have adopted the MTF approach for their M&E across the board.

Management Update:

MTF surveys are being rolled out in 15 countries. All survey instruments including questionnaires, survey manual and sampling methodology have been completed. Preparatory work, including discussions with Governments, is ongoing in all 15 countries. Surveys are now underway in Rwanda and Kenya, and procurement is underway for survey firms in another 5 countries. Surveys are expected to be completed in FY17.

Rating: Substantial

Action 4 Target 2

MTF data and methodologies are being incorporated in the M&E activities for IDA operations in the following countries: Kenya, Bangladesh, Haiti, Uganda, and Rwanda. Other project teams are considering this approach. Outside the Bank, GIZ has adopted the MTF approach for their M&E across the board. Similarly GOGLA has done the same.

Rating: High (this target is complete)