1. What is the purpose and scope of a Country Partnership Framework (CPF)?
The Country Partnership Framework (CPF) identifies the key objectives and development results through which the WBG intends to support a member country in its efforts to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity in a sustainable manner. It is the central tool that guides the WBG’s support for its member country’s development program. The CPF is intended to determine the selectivity of future investments and country engagement: Objectives and proposed operation, Government demand, Twin goals, and WBG comparative advantages.
2. How can I share my inputs on the development strategy and vision for Pakistan?
Stakeholder consultations are underway and will continue until the end of February 2021. To reach as many stakeholder groups, especially during COVID-19, there is an online survey for the general public to share inputs for the next development strategy for Pakistan, CPF 2022-26. The survey is open from December 15 through February 19, 2021, available in Urdu or English.
In addition, virtual roundtable discussions will be held with a wide range of stakeholder groups, and the schedule for these will be shared on the website. In-person consultations will be limited due to COVID-19 related SOPs.
3. Can I share my inputs in my native language?
There is an online survey in Urdu and English.
4. How do I stay informed of progress and when the CPF is finalized?
The webpage will be updated with public information from the CPF consultations and process. The page is hosted on WBG Pakistan website and provides important information. Please visit the CPF consultations website to see links to many resources on the CPF framework, purpose and process, and expected completion dates. Key documents will be translated in Urdu and English, such as schedule of consultations, summaries from consultation sessions, videos and briefs.
5. How does the CPF differ from the Country Partnership Strategy (CPS)?
The World Bank Group changed the name from the Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) to the Country Partnership Framework (CPF) with new guidance to streamline the process and analytical inputs to guide country engagement.
6. Which organizations are involved in drafting the initial framework of the CPF?
The initial framework for the CPF is jointly prepared by the World Bank Group: The World Bank which includes both the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), International Development Association (IDA); International Finance Corporation (IFC); and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). Together as the World Bank Group, the CPF represents a shared view of how development resources can best support the Government’s effort to achieve its national goals.
7. What are the proposed focus areas for the CPF?
The World Bank Group is seeking your views on how it can best engage in the four focus areas and one cross-cutting area proposed for its upcoming Country Partnership Framework with the Government of Pakistan. Participants of the online survey will be able to share how the World Bank Group can have the most impact on country’s development results over the next five years. The proposed focus areas are:
- Girls and Boys Education
- Growing Healthy
- Green and Clean Pakistan
- Growing Inclusively
- Better Governance for Better Outcomes
8. Can high school and university students participate?
Students of all ages are encouraged to respond to the online survey. University-level students will also be invited to virtual townhalls. The WBG plans to engage with wider range of students in addition to the ones who have engaged with us in the past.
9. Will this consultation exercise make a difference in the path my country takes forward?
The CPF consultation process and its purpose is guided by the WBG Directive, which provides guidance and explains its part in the four steps of country engagement.
Step 1: What are the biggest constraints to reducing poverty and increasing shared prosperity in a sustainable way?
SCDs are built on an analysis of data and existing studies by the WBG and external partners, and aim at identifying the most critical constraints to, and opportunities for, reducing poverty and building shared prosperity sustainably. The SCD’s findings take into account the views of a broad set of stakeholders, including the private sector.
Step 2: What are the most important contributions the World Bank Group can make?
The CPF lays out the main country development goals that WBG aims to help the country achieve and proposes a selective program of indicative WBG interventions for this purpose. Derived from these country development goals are more specific CPF objectives against which the program is monitored during and evaluated at the end of the CPF cycle. CPF objectives are selected to reflect Government priorities, main constraints identified by the SCD, and the WBG’s comparative advantage.
Step 3: How are we doing?
Performance and Learning Reviews (PLRs) are prepared mid-way through the CPF cycle. PLRs identify and capture lessons and determine midcourse corrections in the CPF objectives and program of interventions. They also contribute to and help build the WBG’s knowledge base, into the SCD and CPF.
Step 4: What did we learn?
Completion and Learning Reviews (CLR) identify and capture end-of-cycle learning to contribute to the WBG’s knowledge base, including on how to integrate inclusion and sustainability dimensions into WBG programs. CLR findings are an important input to the preparation of a new CPF.
9. Is the government responsible for the CPF? How does it influence government investment decisions?
The CPF, which is prepared by the WBG, starts from the member country’s vision of its development goals, which is determined by a country-owned and -led strategy process. Then, drawing on the analysis of an SCD, and reflecting the WBG’s comparative advantage and dialogue with the country, the CPF identifies the objectives and development results that the WBG expects to help the country achieve during the implementation period. The CPF then outlines a selective and flexible program that is tailored to the country’s needs.
The Government of Pakistan is not liable for the CPF, however, it helps to identify the strategic objectives for WBG engagement in Pakistan.
10. Are there other resources to learn more about CPFs and how it is used by the World Bank Group?
There are many resources available online, including the WBG Knowledge Platform and websites for the World Bank, IFC, and MIGA. For updates on the WBG consultations in Pakistan, please see here.
11. What is a Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD)?
The Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) informs the strategic dialogue between the World Bank Group and its clients about priority areas for WBG engagement. The SCD is a diagnostic exercise conducted by the WBG in close consultation with national authorities, the private sector, civil society and other stakeholders. It presents a systematic assessment of the constraints a country has to address and the opportunities it can embrace to accelerate progress toward the goals of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity in a sustainable way. It is not limited to areas or sectors where the WBG is currently active or where the WBG expects immediate country demand.
The SCD presents the best possible analysis based upon available evidence. It includes a thorough discussion of the drivers of sustainable poverty reduction and the constraints the country faces in achieving the inclusive growth needed to attain a sustainable reduction in extreme poverty and increase in shared prosperity. The analysis of sustainability accounts for environmental, social and economic sustainability. The SCD identifies a set of priorities through which a country may most effectively and sustainably achieve the poverty reduction and shared prosperity goals.
The proposed WBG Country Partnership Framework and five focus areas are drawn from the most recent SCD conducted from 2019 to September 2020.
12. What is the Pakistan@100: Shaping the Future initiative and how is it related to the CPF?
The Pakistan@100: Shaping the Future initiative is the World Bank Group’s flagship initiative for engagement in Pakistan. The initiative seeks to identify the main changes necessary for Pakistan to become an upper middle-income country by the time it turns 100 years old in 2047. The CPF will draw from the findings and recommendations in the Pakistan@100: Shaping the Future report to inform the World Bank Group’s engagement in Pakistan over the coming years.