About Integrity

What We Do
The Department of Institutional Integrity (INT) investigates allegations of fraud, corruption, coercion, collusion, and obstructive practices related World Bank Group-financed projects.  In addition, it investigates allegations of serious staff misconduct. Besides investigations, INT also helps improve compliance of World Bank policies and prevent corruption by a variety of means, including training Bank staff to detect and deter fraud and corruption in Bank Group projects and improve control and compliance systems.  Since 1999, the Integrity Department has investigated and closed over 2,000 cases.  The Bank publishes an annual integrity report with aggregate data, outcomes and generic descriptions of significant cases.

To ensure the independence of its activities, the Vice President of the Integrity Department reports directly to the President of the World Bank Group. 

Why We Do It
The work of Institutional Integrity contributes directly to the mission of the World Bank Group and to meeting the Millenium Development Goals in 2015.  Reducing fraud and corruption in World Bank projects helps ensure that Bank funds are used for their intended purposes: to alleviate poverty and increase prosperity and stability in our borrowing countries.  Working with others in the international development institutions, our goal is to measurably reduce the amount of development assistance funds lost to fraud, corruption and abuse and increase the quality and results of development efforts. 

Statistics and Outcomes
Aggregate data is released in an annual integrity report.  For perspective, please keep in mind that the World Bank has over 10,000 staff and full time consultants.  It approves approximately 240 projects a year.  It has a portfolio of approximately 1,400 projects, and each project can contain multiple contracts.  

Other World Bank Work on Governance and Corruption
The Integrity Department's work is just one part of the World Bank's extensive anticorruption efforts,  For a description of how the World Bank fights corruption, see issue brief on corruption.

Who We Are
Integrity Department staff are professionals from a range of disciplines. The team includes experts in law, ethics, investigation (at international, national and state level), prosecution, forensic accounting and financial analysis, criminology, research, communications, data management, and staff with experience in country programs and procurement, among other areas.   As is the case with many other Bank staff, designated Integrity Department staff share their knowledge and experiences both internally and externally through publishing, participating as speakers at conferences, and networking with various communities and associations. As of February 2007, Integrity Department staff hails from 25 countries representing all Bank regions, and speaks a total of 26 languages.