Independent Evaluation of Quality Assurance across the Project Cycle of the African Development Bank Group (2012-2017)

This report presents the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the independent evaluation of Quality Assurance across the Project Cycle for both public and private sector operations of the African Development Bank Group (the Bank), during the period 2012-2017.

The evaluation seeks to determine the extent to which the Bank’s quality assurance (QA) processes are appropriate; comply with QA standards; address risk management; and contribute to organizational learning as well as to the achievement of development outcomes.  Its results are expected to inform the ongoing reforms of the corporate processes at the Bank. The evaluation builds upon two stand-alone evaluations: (i) Quality at Entry and (ii) Quality of Supervision and Exit of Bank Group Operations. It also analyzes the quality assurance processes for compliance with the Bank’s Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS).

The evaluation assessed as positive the direction of travel of the recent reforms undertaken by the Bank related to QA and development effectiveness. However, some gaps were noted in the QA framework in relation to best practices, such as in applying the dimensions of independence, contestability and verification. It also noted challenges in adhering to existing Bank procedures, like inconsistent use of project briefs and mid-term reviews. The evaluation noted a high project-to-task manager ratio, compared to similar organizations, and that the number of specialist (risk, legal, fiduciary, ESS) staff to support QA was not commensurate with the growth of the Bank’s portfolio.

The evaluation makes various recommendations to the Bank to enhance its QA system. These include:

• reducing the number of required steps in the review process, while enhancing the relevance and effectiveness of the various reviews,
• setting differentiated pathways for the approval of operations based on risk, and
• strengthening resource allocation and incentives for project quality at entry, supervision and completion.

It also makes recommendations to strengthen contextual factors that interact with the Bank’s quality assurance system, such as improving the readiness of regional member countries and their capacity for public investment management.