Country Assistance Strategy (CAS)

The Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) is the most important World Bank country document. It is tailored to the needs and circumstances of each country and lays down the World Bank Group's development priorities, as well as the level and type of assistance the Bank will provide for a period of three years.

The CAS preparation is a participatory process. Before its adoption, key elements of the strategy are discussed with government representatives; and to ensure the widest possible involvement, public dialogues are also held, with Internet-based discussions taking place in many countries.

However, the CAS is not a negotiated document. Any differences between the country's own agenda and the Bank's strategy are highlighted in the CAS document. A progress report is issued in the intervening year.

Profile of Country Assistance Strategy for Chad, FY2004-2006

The over-arching objective of the Chad’s Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) for the period 2004 - 2006 is to help Chad make the best possible developmental use of its new oil revenues (and public resources more broadly) as it strives to attain the Millennium Development Goals. The CAS has two main pillars:

1. Strengthen governance, including institutional arrangements for public resource management and service delivery, the rule of law, and environmental and social safeguards for oil exploitation
2. Enhance non-oil economic opportunities while reducing sources of vulnerability, notably for the poor, in part by ensuring a conducive macroeconomic framework and alleviating infrastructure constraints.

These two pillars reflect the Bank's comparative advantage, and are fully consistent with the Strategic Framework for IDA's Assistance to Africa and with IDA's Regional Integration Assistance Strategy (PDF) for the CEMAC region.

The strategy for Chad sets out planned lending and non-lending support to the country from the World Bank Group over the period FY04-06, including base-case IDA lending of around US$128 million over the three years. It uses a results-based framework to establish how new lending and the existing portfolio will contribute to achieving the outcomes proposed in the CAS. The following measurable improvements are expected by the end of the CAS period:

• Public resources, particularly oil revenues, will be managed transparently and accountably.
• Key aspects of the rule of law will be strengthened.
• Producers will be able to get products to market more cost-effectively and agricultural productivity will have increased.
• Key infrastructure, such as paved roads, electricity and urban sanitation will have improved. Communities and vulnerable groups will be empowered in local development initiatives and the delivery of selected basic services (health, education and water) will be improved.

Base case lending will be conditional on satisfactory implementation of the PRSP (PDF), governance measures, and IDA portfolio quality. Serious breaches of the oil revenue management program in particular would trigger a low-case lending scenario. A high-case lending scenario would be triggered by stronger performance on expenditure management.

For more detailed information, please refer to Chad CAS 2004-2006 (PDF).

Regional Integration Assistance Strategy for Central Africa, 2003 - 2008

In addition to the Chad Country Assistance Strategy, Chad also receives Bank assistance through the Regional Integration Assistance Strategy for Central Africa.  The regional strategy includes IDA funding for various technical assistance and infrastructure investments from July 2003 through June 2008, designed to improve trade links and enhance the economic integration of six Central African countries.  The geographical area, designated as the Communaute Economique et Monetaire de l'Afrique Centrale (CEMAC), is comprised of Chad, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon.

While the ultimate goal of poverty reduction remains primarily a national responsibility, the Bank's strategy is based on the premise that regional integration can contribute to poverty reduction by:

	Strengthening the links between the poorer landlocked countries and their more prosperous coastal neighbors
	Helping to establish the basis for faster economic growth.

The strategy includes plans to build new roads and improve existing ones, modernize and integrate the financial sector, and speed up transaction time at the ports and customs. This will facilitate the movement of goods, people, and capital and reduce transaction costs.

There are inherent risks to a regional assistance strategy. The greatest risk being the possibility of political tensions degenerating into internal civil strife or conflict between countries.  For more information, please refer to Regional Integration Assistance Strategy for Central Africa (PDF).