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The success of infrastructure projects in low-income countries and the role of selectivity

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  • Limodio, Nicola

Abstract

This research analyzes the success of the infrastructure projects financed by the World Bank, focusing on the causal link between the quality of project implementation and its outcome. The results show that the success of infrastructure projects depends fundamentally on the quality of implementation. Although bad implementation can harm structurally solid projects, good implementation cannot make structurally weak projects successful. This leads to the conclusion that governance and selection of well-designed projects are essential for success and, in order to improve project outcomes, multilateral development banks may need to align their incentives toward this objective and invest more in governance and capacity building.

Suggested Citation

  • Limodio, Nicola, 2011. "The success of infrastructure projects in low-income countries and the role of selectivity," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5694, The World Bank.
    • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:5694
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. Lisa Chauvet & Paul Collier & Andreas Fuster, 2015. "Supervision and Project Performance: A Principal-Agent Approach," Working Papers DT/2015/04, DIAL (Développement, Institutions et Mondialisation).
    9. Denizer, Cevdet & Kaufmann, Daniel & Kraay, Aart, 2013. "Good countries or good projects? Macro and micro correlates of World Bank project performance," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 288-302.
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    Cited by:

    1. Kilby, Christopher, 2013. "The political economy of project preparation: An empirical analysis of World Bank projects," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 211-225.
    2. Kilby, Christopher, 2015. "Assessing the impact of World Bank preparation on project outcomes," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 111-123.
    3. Presbitero, Andrea F., 2016. "Too much and too fast? Public investment scaling-up and absorptive capacity," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 17-31.
    4. Hauke Feil, 2021. "The cancer of corruption and World Bank project performance: Is there a connection?," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 39(3), pages 381-397, May.
    5. Christopher Kilby, 2012. "Assessing the contribution of donor agencies to aid effectiveness: The impact of World Bank preparation on project outcomes," Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics Working Paper Series 20, Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics.
    6. Christopher Kilby & Katharina Michaelowa, 2019. "What Influences World Bank Project Evaluations?," Springer Books, in: Nabamita Dutta & Claudia R. Williamson (ed.), Lessons on Foreign Aid and Economic Development, chapter 0, pages 109-150, Springer.

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    Keywords

    Banks&Banking Reform; Debt Markets; Public Sector Corruption&Anticorruption Measures; Emerging Markets; Housing&Human Habitats;
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