March 2009: The World Bank’s Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) has released a report on “Climate Change and the World Bank Group,” which finds, among other issues, that fuel pricing is a key policy affecting emissions and identifies the absence of important information for the design and management of emissions-related policies.

The report constitutes the first phase of a broader analysis of the Bank’s impact in combating climate change. This phase, titled “Evaluation of World Bank Win-Win Energy Policy Reforms,” has focused on policies that combine gains at the country level with globally beneficial greenhouse gas reductions, namely the removal of energy subsidies and promotion of end-user energy efficiency. A response of the Management to the IEG’s findings is also included. [The Report]