African countries need to improve the performance of their public sectors if they are going to achieve their goals of growth, poverty reduction, and the provision of better services for their citizens. Between 1995 and 2004, the Bank provided some $9 billion in lending and close to $900 million in grants and administrative budget to support public sector capacity building in Africa. This evaluation assesses Bank support for public sector capacity building in Africa over these past 10 years. It is based on six country studies, assessments of country strategies and operations across the Region, and review of the work of the World Bank Institute, the Institutional Development Fund, and the Bank-supported African Capacity Building Foundation.

Describes activities within the ACOPAM programme aimed at enhancing the organizational capacities and economic activities of grassroots organizations in the Sahel region. Focuses on cereal banks, small-scale irrigation, gender and microfinance, land management and cotton marketing.

This publication is an outcome from a seminar in Abidjan in 1997 with the aim to explore the problems and prospects for the establishment of a new partnership between Sweden and Africa. The seminar was attended by scholars, development bankers, government officials and civil society activists from all parts of sub-Saharan Africa, and development cooperation officials and academics from Sweden and the other Nordic countries.