| Background on Country Assistance Strategies A Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) is the World Bank's business plan for a particular country. 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 the 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.
More information on CASs in general is available at: World Bank CAS website.
Uganda Joint Assistance Strategy (UJAS)
In Uganda, eight bilateral and multilateral development partners—including the World Bank Group—have aligned their support to the Poverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP; Uganda’s version of the PRSP) in one “joint” strategy. The Uganda Joint Assistance Strategy (UJAS) is one of the first collaborative CASs for the World Bank. The rationale for the UJAS is to improve development effectiveness through a joint programming approach aimed at improving results on the ground and reducing the government’s transaction costs.
The UJAS was prepared collaboratively in 2005 by the World Bank Group, the African Development Bank (AfDB), Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID). Austria, Denmark, the European Commission and Ireland have signed up to the UJAS since its inception and more development partners are preparing to join.
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A “glossy” version of the UJAS has been published in May 2006. Click here to download the pdf-file. |
“The UJAS demonstrates the commitment of all partners to work together to improve the lives of the people of Uganda”, says Judy O’Connor, World Bank Country Director for Uganda. The strategy is centered on three principles:
o Supporting implementation of the country-owned and led revised PEAP to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), o Collaborating more effectively, both among development partners and with the government, o Focusing on results and outcomes (including managing resources, improving decision-making for development results, and strengthening systems for monitoring and evaluation).
The World Bank Board discussed the UJAS on January 17, 2006. Click here to see the World Bank version of the UJAS with more details of World Bank support to Uganda during the UJAS period (2005-2009).
For more information on aid harmonization visit: http://www.aidharmonization.org/ |
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