© Patricia Davies/World Bank

The Bank increased its outreach and accessibility in client countries with a number of initiatives this year, including expansion of its Public Information Centers worldwide. It also launched a number of Web-based information resources, and continued its work through the Global Development Learning Network (see “The World in One Room”).

DEVELOPMENT INFORMATION SERVICES IN CLIENT COUNTRIES

Transparency, accountability, and the sharing of information promote good governance and are essential for sustainable development. To increase all three, the World Bank is strengthening its Public Information Centers and services worldwide. By providing access to information on Bank projects and development in general, the centers encourage public participation in dialogue and help citizens make informed decisions about issues affecting their lives. In 2004 more than 90,000 people used public information services, and the number is expected to triple in 2005.

Public Information Centers are located in 75 capital cities throughout the world. Staff help visitors find information through a variety of methods, depending on the technology available. Staff also respond to public inquiries, listen to public concerns, and arrange seminars, dialogues, Webcasts, and radio programs that address development topics. Where Internet access remains limited, the Bank, in partnership with local learning institutions, has set up more than 60 satellite centers to provide countrywide access to information.

Fiscal year 2005 saw the establishment of five new Development Information Centers, which operate as clearinghouses for information on development from various organizations, including the Bank. These partnerships between the Bank, other multilateral development banks, civil society organizations, academic institutions, and government agencies are transforming the goal of disseminating and sharing information crucial to the sustainability of development into a reality. (See www.worldbank.org/publicinformation.)

CLIENT CONNECTION WEB SITE

Client Connection, a secure Web site for World Bank borrowers and project-implementing agencies, was launched in September 2003 to promote informed decision making and reduce the cost of doing business with the Bank. Since then, over 4,000 users in more than 130 countries have registered with Client Connection. Users can access public Bank information, secure information on their loan portfolios, and check on the status of procurement, disbursement, and repayment transactions through a user-friendly, client-focused interface.

Informal feedback and client surveys show a high level of satisfaction with the service, and daily usage rates have steadily increased. Clients welcome the transparency of the Web site and the ease of access to portfolio information, and many report that it has increased efficiency and reduced costs. New features will be added in the coming years, allowing online requests for the withdrawal of loan funds and other financial transactions. (See http://clientconnection.worldbank.org/.)

MULTILINGUAL WEB SITES

The Bank's public Web site, with more than 1.5 million visitors a month, has become a primary conduit for communication and knowledge dissemination. Roughly a third of the Web site visitors are from non-Anglophone countries and make up the Bank's fastest-growing audience online. In an effort to better reach these clients and support the Bank's new Translation Framework, the Bank initiated the Multilingual Web Pilot in fiscal 2005. The pilot created a new corporate Web site in French and expanded the existing Arabic and Spanish Web sites to include material beyond regional information. Three months after relaunching the Web sites, visitor numbers doubled to the Arabic and French sites and increased by one-third to the Spanish site. The Bank also publishes Russian and Chinese Web sites. (See http://www.worldbank.org/.)

YOUTH WEB SITE

Youthink! is the World Bank's online resource for students, teens, and kids on development and global issues. Written in age-appropriate language, Youthink! tackles development subjects by exploring those angles that young people care about and can relate to. Youthink! also invites young people to share their thoughts, opinions, and experiences by submitting material for publication to the Web site. (See http://youthink.worldbank.org/.)

AIDS MEDIA CENTER WEB SITE

The Bank launched the innovative AIDS Media Center in fiscal 2005 to provide journalists in developing countries with a global source for the most recent HIV/AIDS news, information, and analysis, and to help increase the accuracy, quality, and effectiveness of their reporting on the disease and related issues. The strength of the Web site comes from its broad coalition of contributing partners, including the BBC Trust, the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, InterNews, the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Kaiser Family Foundation, One World, the Panos Institute, PlusNews (run by the Integrated Regional Information Network of the United Nations), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, the World Health Organization, and a growing list of regional journalists' associations. (See http://www.aidsmedia.org/.)

THE WORLD IN ONE ROOM