The report of the client assessment organised by DFI for the African Development Bank is due to be published in February. The report finds that the AfDB is “a preferred partner” of its African clients compared to other funding organisations, and makes recommendations on strategy, resources, delivery, private sector support, becoming a “Policy Bank”, and reinforcing engagement with stakeholders, based on clients’ suggestions, to assist the Bank to become the preferred partner of its clients under its long-term strategy for 2013-22.

DFI conducted the final debt policy support mission to support the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning in South Sudan. The mission, funded by the joint donor Capacity Building Trust Fund, had three aims: to finalise the South Sudan Debt Policy for approval by the Government; to finalise plans for institutional strengthening and capacity-building support on debt management to be provided to Government institutions as well as Parliament; and to provide any updated short-term advice on current borrowing issues.

The EU Council adopted a decision authorising eleven Member States - including the 4 biggest Eurozone economies Germany, France, Italy and Spain to go ahead with enhanced cooperation on a common system of financial transaction tax. A subsequent Commission proposal for a Council Directive implementing the enhanced cooperation in the area of financial transaction tax should follow in due course. Check progress on the Robin Hood Tax website.

DFI presented lessons from experience at a seminar organised by DfID, together with presenters from DfID Afghanistan and Sierra Leone. The seminar discussed key lessons about the need to tailor MA processes to different countries (eg MICs, LICs and fragile states), closer collaboration between MA and New Deal processes, generating political commitment by donor and recipient governments, enhancing inclusion of parliaments and civil society, and capacity-building needs. The DFI presentation is available here.

A working paper from the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) studies the evolution of development assistance in the changing global context of the last ten years, analysing the various types of funding available now to developing countries and providing specific examples in case studies.

DFI has produced a set of briefing/training papers for low-income policymakers on the pros and cons of international bonds, credit ratings and PPP/Private Financing Initiative deals, as well as on best practices in mobilising funding through these mechanisms. They are the first in a series of briefings on innovative financing mechanisms (including advocacy and implementation notes, and case studies of country experiences) which will be produced during 2013-14.

New Rules for Global Finance has established a coalition with issue-specific campaigns on bank legislation, commodity/food speculation and hedge funds, tax havens and shadow banking, and sovereign debt, to monitor more closely the work of the FSB and G20 on regulating global private financial flows. To support the coalition, it has expanded and updated the www.fsbwatch.org website as well as the www.new-rules.org website, and appointed “translators” to provide concise user-friendly summaries of FSB and other documents for advocacy purposes. DFI will help New Rules to facilitate meetings in April in Washington to plan a Global Financial Governance report, assessing the governance, accountability, transparency and impact on inclusive and sustainable development of the G20, IMF, World Bank and FSB; as well as a meeting in Basel in June to plan more specific activities on the FSB and G20.

As part of their decisions in the Tokyo Annual meetings of the BWIs, Francophone LIC Ministers agreed that more technical work was needed to support their decision-making and advocacy. This will begin in Q1 2013 with the establishment of a network among LIC Ministries of Finance for rapid information sharing on experiences of innovative and private finance; and will continue in Q2 2013 with the holding of a meeting of senior officials to discuss key instruments and mechanisms for innovative and private financing.

The UK Independent Commission on Aid Impact (ICAI) released a report analysing the coordination and management of the EU’s development spending and focuses on the impact of EU aid in low-income countries through case studies. While the report assesses that many improvements are being made, it highlights concerns over delivery and weaknesses in terms of performance. A Eurodad AidWatch Special Report concludes that much remains to be done to implement aid effectiveness commitments by EU donors, one year on from Busan.

As part of the Debt Management Capacity Building Program managed by CEMLA and financed by CIDA, a joint CEMLA/DRI mission went to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to hold a first national Financing Strategy workshop. This event enabled participants from the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Haiti and the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation to draft their own debt strategy document structured around 4 main points: how to mobilize financing for development, how to maintain debt sustainability, conducting a cost/risk analysis and reducing long term dependence on external financing. The document is currently being finalised and will be submitted to the Haitian authorities for approval, in time for their 2013-2014 budget.