ABCs of IDA--Results by Country
Lifting People Out of Poverty
The International Development Association, IDA, is the World Bank’s Fund for the Poorest. One of the world’s largest sources of aid, IDA provides support for health and education, infrastructure and agriculture, and economic and institutional development to the world’s poorest countries—half of which are in Africa. These countries are home to 2.5 billion people, 1.8 billion of whom survive on $2 a day or less.
IDA funds are not tied to any given sector. Governments determine their own priorities. And should conditions change—in the face of economic shock or natural disaster—IDA funds can be redirected as needed.
IDA accounts for 20 percent of all development assistance. Since its inception, IDA has supported programs and projects in
108 countries. Annual commitments have increased steadily and averaged about $15 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent of that going to Africa. For the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2011, IDA commitments reached $16.3 billion spread over 230 new operations. 17 percent of the total was committed on grant terms.
IDA also helps maximize scarce aid resources: Every $1 of IDA aid leverages, on average, another $2.
IDA is
replenished every three years with contributions from developed and developing country donors, as well as from two other agencies of the World Bank Group: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Finance Corporation.
With help from IDA, 28 countries—home to 2.1 billion people or 34 percent of the world’s population—have
"graduated.” Their economic development means they are no longer reliant on IDA support, and many have gone on to become IDA donors.
During the past decade, IDA funding helped save at least 13 million lives. IDA financing immunized 310 million children; provided access to water and sanitation for 177 million people; helped more than 47 million people receive health services; provided nutrition supplements to 98 million children; and brought better education to more than 100 million children each year.
- 22 percent reduction in infant mortality and 26 percent reduction in child mortality, in just three years
- 8 million fixed and mobile telecommunication subscribers
- 45 percent of households in urban multi-apartment buildings now use safe, clean, and affordable gas-based heating solutions, up from 11 percent in 2004
- 44 water users associations established as part of reforms supported in the irrigation sector
- 1.2 million people in 431 communities benefitted from new or reconstructed roads over the past five years
- 700,000 people in 30 communities reached through rehabilitated small-scale irrigation systems
- 20 million people benefitted from microfinance over the last 12 years
- 4.4 million girls enrolled in secondary schools in 2006, up from 1.1 million in 1991
- 230,000 residents gained better access to infrastructure and basic services over the past five years
- 2 million long-lasting medicated bed nets have benefitted pregnant women and children under age five since March 2007
- 3,400 households in 39 villages have benefitted from the construction of 129 kilometers of roads
- Schools and homes rebuilt expeditiously allowed primary school girls in a remote village to continue their education within days of the 2009 earthquake
- 130,000 people in rural and peri-urban areas now have access to electricity
- 45,000 people in the poorest rural areas benefitted from more than 9,200 solar home systems since 2005, and another 30,000 people benefitted from 87 solar systems installed in schools and clinics in the large, poor city of El Alto
- Approximately 200,000 jobs created or sustained during the period 1997–2005
- More than 7,000 ex-professional soldiers provided employment and integrated into civilian life
- 94 percent of Ouagadougou’s population—1,480,000 people—now have access to safe water
- 55 percent female enrollment in the 20 most underprivileged provinces in 2006, compared to 36 percent in 2000
- 29,527 adult ex-combatants demobilized from 2004 to 2008; since September 2006, socioeconomic reintegration provided to 6,886 demobilized ex-combatants, including 380 minors
- A revised procurement code, investment code, commercial code, and competition law in place since 2004
- Primary completion rate reached 85.6 percent in 2008–2009, up from less than 50 percent only five years ago
- More than 27,000 lower secondary school students and more than 3,000 primary school students received scholarships to continue their schooling
- 1.6 million people benefitted directly from improved infrastructure, including more than 98,000 from improved access to education facilities and more than 117,000 from improved access to health facilities
- 90,000 people benefitted from improved access to energy, and more than 45,000 from improved access to markets
- Corporate tax rate reduced from 35 percent to 30 percent from 2003 to 2008
- Customs taxes streamlined and import fees and taxes significantly modified and lowered over a five-year period
- 15,000 ex-combatants and at-risk youths provided with jobs
- 250,000 certificates/deeds salvaged, restored, and digitized by the National Civil Registry Archives, safeguarding citizenship, property information, and official documents related to birth, marriage, and other life events; another 36,000,000 certificates/deeds in the process of being digitized
- 71 percent of students now completing primary school without repeating a grade, up sharply from 52 percent in 2003–2004
- 404,000 insecticide-treated bed nets distributed to households in high-transmission areas in 2010; up from 136,000 bed nets distributed in 2008
- 31,556 orphans placed with families by 2005
- 162,752 additional cases of malaria diagnosed
- 264,000 primary school teachers were hired, helping to increase the net primary school enrollment rate from 68.5 percent in 2005 to 83.5 percent in 2009
- 61.5 percent rural access to potable water in 2009, up from 46 percent in 2005
- 378,000 urban residents benefitted from better living conditions as a result of infrastructure improvements
- 25 percent to 40 percent decrease in under-five mortality during 2000–2008 in Ethiopia, Gambia, Malawi, and Rwanda
- 29 percent and 59 percent increases in health insurance coverage for, respectively, poor women of reproductive age and children under age five
- 98 percent vaccination rate for common childhood diseases in 2009, up from 78 percent in 2004
- Improved provision of maternal and child health care has reduced under-five mortality rates to 80 per 1,000 live births in 2008, from 111 in 2003; neonatal mortality has also declined
- 79 percent immunization coverage in 2008, up from 69 percent in 2003
- 200,000 buildings assessed for structural damage in the wake of the earthquake
- 50,000 solar lanterns purchased and distributed, increasing safety, reducing fire hazard, and benefitting more than 200,000 people
- 3,000 rural families built farms and set up rural enterprises that provided them with assured income and employment
- 2.5 million people in poor municipalities benefitted from almost 1,500 rehabilitated schools, 700 new schools, 163 new health centers, 347 small water and sanitation systems, and 461 latrines
- Over 98 percent of India’s children now have access to a primary school within 1 kilometer of their home
- 5 million children out of school compared to 25 million in 2003; transition rates from primary to upper primary school rose from 75 percent in 2002 to 84 percent in 2007
- 12 million households in 90,000 villages have benefitted from rural livelihood programs
- 32,000 poor orphans and vulnerable children benefitted from better living conditions because of additional cash transfers to their households
- 25 percent reduction in malaria-related deaths among children in Western Kenya as a result of bed net usage
- 92 percent of people now have access to pharmaceuticals, up from 77 percent in 2001
- Better access to health care: primary care up by 36 percent and hospital care up by 18 percent; hospital stays fell from 15.3 days to 12.7 between 2004 and 2007
- Backbone of the country’s road transport network improved since 1996, with travel speeds rising from 35 kilometers/hour to 80 kilometers/hour
- 200 kilometers of road upgraded, resulting in savings in vehicle operating costs estimated at US$39 million and a reduction in the average time-to-market from 5 to 3 hours
- 10 percentage-point increase in modern contraceptive prevalence rate, from 37 percent in 2004 to 47 percent in 2009
- 136 health facilities now providing mother-to-child HIV transmission prevention services, up from 9 in 2005, and the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission has risen over the same period from 5 percent to 31 percent
- 842 kilometers of roads—almost one-tenth of Liberia’s road network—worked on during the last several years, and major road corridors rehabilitated or repaired
- 45,000 people across Liberia provided with short-term public-works employment since October 2008
Madagascar
- 5,000 new businesses registered in three regions between 2006 and 2008, and an estimated 10,000 new jobs created
- 400,000 people gained access to safe water through the construction of 627 boreholes, equipped with hand pumps, and 320 gravity schemes
- 12 percentage-point decline in poverty headcount, from 52 percent in 2005 to 40 percent in 2008
- Development of a national government virtual private network, covering an area of 645 kilometers and linking all major cities and all government ministries, departments, and agencies has improved the efficiency of intragovernment communications and business transactions
- 650,000 more people have access to electricity as of May 2010
- 803 public institutions, including 172 schools and 139 health centers, provided with access to off-grid electricity
- 26,000 temporary jobs created, providing around 2 million person-days of work
- 1,700 new businesses created in high-value agriculture, livestock, and small industries, creating 7,000 new jobs
- 69 percent increase in the kindergarten enrollment rate since 2002
- 460 wells rehabilitated
- 11.3 million tons of port traffic in 2009, compared to 8.2 million tons in 2002
- 4.3 million tons of rail traffic in 2009, compared to 3.4 million tons in 1999
- 168,000 workers employed and 118 kilometers of rural roads constructed and/or rehabilitated over the last
two years through a community-driven operation
- 83 percent of the population had full immunization coverage in 2006, up from 43 percent in 1996
- 35 micro-enterprises employing approximately 400 people established and are routinely maintaining
- 2,400 kilometers or 88 percent of the maintainable core road network
- 104,000 people from 214 communities in five major ethnic groups benefitted from a land rights program established in 15 indigenous territories in the historically marginalized Caribbean Coast autonomous regions
- Use of health centers almost doubled, from 20 percent in 2005 to 39 percent in 2009
- 72 percent of the population in the country’s 51 urban centers served through 103,000 private wateri connections and 2,870 standpipes as of December 2008—up from 64 percent in 2001
Nigeria
- 3.4 million beneficiaries from the agricultural sector were able to increase their income by about 63 percent between 2004 and 2009, through access to better equipment
- 385,000 borrowers and 1.2 million customers were able to access medium-, small-, and micro-enterprise facilities
- 8.4 percent increase in the net enrollment rate for secondary education in Grenada and 34.7 percent for St. Vincent between 2002 and 2008, and a 10 percent increase in the transition rate to secondary education for underserved areas
- 5.9 percent increase in students passing at least five subjects at the Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) exams for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and 9.5 percent increase for St. Lucia
- 62 percent net enrollment in primary schools in Punjab in 2007, up from 45 percent in 2001; primary net enrollment of girls during the same period increased from 43 percent to 59 percent, and girls’ enrollment in rural areas increased from 38 percent to 55 percent
- 4,600 irrigation subprojects irrigated an estimated 186,000 acres of farmland, and around 40,000 acres of formerly barren land is now being used for productive farming purposes
- 750,000 people now have access to a reliable electric supply, with electricity load shedding reduced substantially from approximately 50 percent at peak hours in 2004 to 0 percent in 2010
- Time to start a business cut from 14 days to 3 days, the number of procedures reduced from 8 to 2, and the cost of starting a business dropped from 109 percent to 10 percent of income per capita between 2008 and 2009
- 24 kilometers of sea wall rehabilitated to protect coastal villages, and four bridges rebuilt
- A policy and plan for health care waste management established for the first time
- 84 percent gross primary school enrollment rate in 2008, up from 67 percent in 2002
- 24 percent of children under age five reached by an integrated package of community nutrition activities
- 700,000 people gained access to improved health and sanitation facilities, and 148 health facilities renovated and equipped, between 2004 and 2009
- 360,000 children gained access to basic education as a result of building or rehabilitating more than 920 classrooms between 2004 and 2009
- 55,000 farm households benefitted from the recultivation of 35,000 hectares of irrigated land and the rehabilitation of seven major irrigation schemes between 2004 and 2009
- 90 percent of students completed their basic education (grades 1–9) in 2009, compared to 80 percent in 2005
- 71,000 food-insecure households benefitted from wheat seed and fertilizer distribution in 2008
- 58 percent increase in the proportion of underweight children detected and treated
- 88 percent of trunk and regional roads now in good condition, compared to 51 percent in 2000
- 50 percent decrease in infant mortality (from 99 to 51 deaths per 1,000 live births), and substantial decline in under-five mortality (from 146 to 81 deaths per 1,000 live births) between 1999 and 2010, bringing the Millennium Development Goal target within reach
- 42 community halls repaired or reconstructed
- 368 cyclone-damaged houses repaired and refurbished; 470 cyclone-resistant houses built
- Time needed to register a property reduced from 225 days to 77 and to register a business from 135 days to 25
- 500 solar systems, with a capacity of 117,000 watt peak hours, installed in health centers across the country, improving service delivery and enhancing safety
- 66 percent of Uzbeks report improvements in health care quality, including improved availability and quality of equipment and medicines, and more access to better-trained doctors
- 86 percent of women received antenatal care in 2008, compared to 79 percent in 2004
- 50,000 smallholder farmers have enhanced access to markets with the provision of technology services, farmer organizations, and linkages to agribusinesses
- 91 percent of the majority Kinh population and 80 percent of the ethnic minority population residing in rural areas were living within 2 kilometers of an all-weather road by 2006; in 1998 almost half the rural ethnic minority population experienced considerable isolation during wet seasons
- 30,000 girls attend school as a result of conditional cash transfer schemes introduced in 2008 and 2009
- Taxation reform put in place—an Automated System for Customs Documentation and Administration adopted
- 1.2 million people in nine towns across the country provided access to improved water and sanitation facilities between 1996 and 2000
- 50 percent decrease in number of malaria deaths annually from 2000 to 2008, during a period when the population rose by 30 percent, implying a real decrease of more than 60 percent
The World Bank Group on the Ground
The World Bank Group today operates out of more than 150 offices worldwide. Increased presence in client countries is helping the World Bank Group to better understand, work more effectively with, and provide more timely service to its partners in client countries. More than 90 percent of the World Bank Group’s Country Directors/Country Managers and 41 percent of staff are now based in country offices. The workforce includes people from 170 different nationalities.
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) lends to governments of middle-income and creditworthy low-income countries at low cost to clients.
The International Development Association (IDA) provides interest-free, long-term loans—called credits—and grants to governments of the world’s 81 poorest countries, which have little or no capacity to borrow on market terms. IDA’s lending is financed by contributions to IDA from donor countries. Additional funds come from the World Bank Group and from borrowers’ repayments of earlier IDA credits.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, provides long-term loans, equity, structured and securitized products, and advisory and risk mitigation services to private enterprises in developing and transition countries.
