Publications & Documents

This paper presents findings from research on how blended finance actors use and define different key concepts, and what implications these understandings have for evaluators. By increasing awareness of key terms and their use, the paper can contribute to facilitating the evaluation process, simplifying the communication of findings and results, and ease collaboration between different actors. It provides a useful framework for thinking about core concepts related to blended finance, differences in how these are used today, and the implications this has for evaluation methods and approaches. The work will be of interest to monitoring and evaluation departments, development finance institutions, international financial institutions, impact investors, private foundations and others interested in blended finance and its role in contributing to sustainable development. This paper is the first in a series of three working papers from the OECD/DAC EvalNet Working Group on Evaluating Blended Finance.

This paper clarifies the various definitions of additionality currently in use, and explores the relationship between additionality and key evaluation terms, such as impact and causality. It concludes that additionality should be assessed both ex ante and ex post, and that the presence of additionality will depend on institutional structures and on how different public and private interests are addressed. The paper further argues that the relevance of evaluation methods will depend not only on the applied financial and non-financial instruments but also on the types and dimensions of additionality to be evaluated. Several examples of different approaches to assessing additionality are analysed. The analysis provides a useful foundation for thinking through these issues, and will be of interest to both evaluation and blended finance actors. This paper is the second in a series of three working papers from the OECD/DAC EvalNet Working Group on Evaluating Blended Finance.

In a climate of heightened debt vulnerabilities, countries in sub-Saharan Africa struggle to fill the gap in infrastructure finance, which is paramount to achieving their sustainable development objectives. At the same time, the infrastructure financing landscape in the region has become increasingly diverse and challenging to navigate. This paper reviews the role of Development Assistance Committee (DAC) members in supporting countries to address mounting infrastructure needs while avoiding and mitigating potential debt crises. The first part of the paper provides an overview of the infrastructure needs in sub-Saharan Africa. The second part presents the changes in infrastructure financing, highlighting the dominant roles of domestic government and non-DAC lenders. The third part explains how infrastructure finance can be a potential driver for the debt build-up in the region; but that the quality of spending and the diversity of financing providers can be mitigating factors. The fourth part includes policy recommendations for DAC members.

The Economic Outlook for Southeast Asia, China and India is a regular publication on regional economic growth, development and regional integration in Emerging Asia. It focuses on the economic conditions of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. It also addresses relevant economic issues in China and India to fully reflect economic developments in the region. The Outlook comprises two main parts, each highlighting a particular dimension of recent economic developments in the region. The first part presents the regional economic monitor, depicting the economic outlook and macroeconomic challenges in the region. The second part consists of a special thematic chapter addressing a major issue facing the region. The 2021 edition of the Outlook addresses reallocation of resources to digitalisation in response to COVID-19, with special focuses on health, education and Industry 4.0. During the COVID-19 crisis, digitalisation has proved critical to ensuring the continuity of essential services. The use of e-commerce, digital health tools and on-line education all accelerated sharply during the pandemic in Emerging Asia. However, there is still a lot of work to be done, for the region to be able to get the full benefits of digitalisation.

India is home to a dynamic and vibrant community of civil society organisations (CSOs). Indian CSOs are often innovating to bridge development gaps and cater to the needs of marginalised and vulnerable groups. Historically, India is a pioneer of triangular co‑operation with first projects dating back to India’s independence in 1947. Over the past decade, triangular co-operation has gathered momentum at the global level and India has been a champion of this. A specific Indian model of triangular co-operation is emerging through which India and its partners aim to leverage domestic development innovations and the strengths of India’s diverse landscape of civil society organisations by scaling up bilateral co-operation and partnerships via triangular initiatives. Especially in African and neighbouring Asian countries there is a high demand to learn from Indian innovations and expertise, as they are considered to be easier to adapt to the local contexts. This paper provides insights into different ways of engaging in triangular co‑operation with India and sets out opportunities as well as challenges in enhancing triangular co-operation in the future with a broad range of CSO and government partners.

Dynamiques du développement en Afrique tire les leçons des expériences des cinq régions du continent – Afrique australe, centrale, de l'Est, du Nord et de l'Ouest – pour développer des recommandations en matière de politiques publiques et partager les bonnes pratiques. Étayé par les plus récentes statistiques, son décryptage des dynamiques de développement vise à permettre aux leaders africains de réaliser la vision stratégique de l’Agenda 2063 à tous les niveaux : continental, régional, national et local. L'édition 2021, dorénavant publiée en début d’année, explore le potentiel de la transformation digitale pour créer des emplois de qualité et réaliser l'Agenda 2063, en vue de renforcer la résilience des économies africaines face à la récession mondiale déclenchée par la pandémie de COVID-19. Le rapport cible quatre types d’action publique pour soutenir la transformation digitale de l'Afrique : réduire la fracture digitale ; soutenir l'innovation locale ; dynamiser les travailleurs indépendants ; et accélérer l'harmonisation, la mise en œuvre et le suivi des stratégies digitales. Cette édition comprend un nouveau chapitre examinant les perspectives de financement du développement de l'Afrique face à la crise économique mondiale de 2020. Dynamiques du développement en Afrique a pour vocation de nourrir le débat entre les membres de l’Union africaine, ainsi qu’avec les citoyens, entrepreneurs et chercheurs. Son ambition est de participer à une nouvelle coopération entre pays et entre régions, qui soit tournée vers l’apprentissage mutuel et la préservation de nos biens communs. Ce rapport est le fruit de la coopération entre la Commission de l’Union africaine et le Centre de développement de l’OCDE.