Cote d'Ivoire - Second Fiscal Management, Education, Energy and Cocoa Reforms Development Policy Operation

closed

Closed

The operation is the second in a programmatic series of three Development Policy Financing (DPF) operations. The policy program supported by the DPF series aims at: (i) enhancing tax revenue collection and public procurement; (ii) strengthening the efficiency and equity in the education sector; (iii) improving the performance of the electricity sector by enabling private participation and diversification; and (iv) consolidating transparency in the management of the cocoa sector. The DPF series is closely aligned with the 2016-2020 National Development Plan (NDP) and is an integral element of the World Bank Group (WBG) Country Partnership Framework (CPF) (FY2016-2019). The second adjustment is the addition of a third and last operation in the series, to broaden its scope and ensure that all reforms are sustainably implemented over time. The initial timeframe of two operations has proved to be too short given the scope and magnitude of all the reforms embedded in the DPF series, especially with the introduction of the fourth pillar proposed above. By adding one more operation, new reforms have been included to assist further the authorities in their effort to implement key policy actions in mobilizing domestic resources (such as the reduction of tax exemptions), in increasing the efficiency and the quality of the education sector (by increasing the teaching time toward targeted poor performing students), and in restoring the financial viability of the energy sector (by ensuring the payment of all arrears). Such extension also contributes to enhance the probability of achieving expected results by consolidating the reforms in strategic sectors such as energy and cocoa, that may face some resistance from vested interests. Lastly, the incorporation of a third operation to the existing series does not represent a radical shift in the WBG strategy since an annual DPF was already programmed during the full period of the CPF (FY2016-2019). The DPF series aims at supporting the Government in its overall effort to promote sustainable and inclusive growth as well as to increase the economy’s resilience to both domestic and external shocks over the next few years. The Government’s strategy has been defined in the recently adopted NDP for the period 2016-2020, which was presented to the international community at the Consultative Group meeting organized in Paris in May 2016. The proposed series selectively focuses on a sub-set of critical challenges linked to fiscal policy and key sectors for inclusive growth: education, energy, and cocoa. These sectors play a critical role in the Government’s strategy as they have all a significant impact on the life of the poorest segments of the population as well as on the redistribution of income across groups. This selectivity was based on the combination of the Government’s priorities, the recent findings of the Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) and other analytical work, and the lessons derived from previous DPF operations in Côte d’Ivoire and in other low-income countries.

FY17 - Education,FY17 - Energy and Extractives,FY17 - Industry, Trade and Services,FY17 - Information and Communications Technologies,FY17 - Public Administration

World Bank Group

Project

Power Generation (CCGT), Raw Materials, Government, Education