The UK Independent Commission on Aid Impact (ICAI) released a report analysing the coordination and management of the EU’s development spending and focuses on the impact of EU aid in low-income countries through case studies. While the report assesses that many improvements are being made, it highlights concerns over delivery and weaknesses in terms of performance. A Eurodad AidWatch Special Report concludes that much remains to be done to implement aid effectiveness commitments by EU donors, one year on from Busan.

As part of the Debt Management Capacity Building Program managed by CEMLA and financed by CIDA, a joint CEMLA/DRI mission went to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to hold a first national Financing Strategy workshop. This event enabled participants from the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Haiti and the Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation to draft their own debt strategy document structured around 4 main points: how to mobilize financing for development, how to maintain debt sustainability, conducting a cost/risk analysis and reducing long term dependence on external financing. The document is currently being finalised and will be submitted to the Haitian authorities for approval, in time for their 2013-2014 budget.

Organized by UNDESA, in partnership with UN Women and the Government of Austria, this brought together senior experts from national and local governments, civil society organizations, parliaments, women’s organizations and the private sector with representatives of international organizations to develop concrete policy recommendations to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women in response to the profound shifts in international development cooperation. The meeting emphasised that gender equality must be at the heart of future development cooperation efforts and discussed proposals for indicators to measure that this is happening.

DSA results are available on the IMF site from May to September 2012. The results for Zambia, Burkina Faso, Cote D’Ivoire, Samoa, CAR, Mauritania, Afghanistan, Tanzania, Cameroon, Sao Tomé and Príncipe, Malawi, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe and Guinea are similar to those of the previous DSA. Lao People’s Democratic Republic has improved and Samoa has worsened its status.

A joint World Bank/DRI mission visited Nuku’Alofa, Kingdom of Tonga. The objective of the mission was to prepare a reform plan for debt management, and the recommendations were structured around four key areas: Medium Term Debt Strategy, Operational Risks, Coordination and Staff Capacity. The mission prepared a draft to be submitted to peer reviews and then to the Tongan authorities for their comments. A final report is scheduled to be completed by January 2013.

At the request of the Central African authorities, a World Bank/UNCTAD/DRI visited Bangui to formulate a reform plan of the country's public finances. Together with CAR's technical and financial partners, the mission identified 4 key areas around which the plan should be structured: institutional and legal framework, exterior loans procedures, development of domestic financial markets, treasury management and operational risks. A draft reform plan has been submitted to the national institutions and donors for consideration until its final adoption by the authorities.

DFI chaired a session of this conference focussing on the role of South-South cooperation. Featuring panellists from Brazil, China, Mexico and South Africa, the session discussed the comparative advantages of South-South cooperation and what more can be done to enhance evaluation of results. The conference also had sessions on climate finance, philanthropy and social impact investment, recipient country perspectives on different actors, and how these fit with the current focus on maximising results from development cooperation.

DRI coordinated for the World Bank Debt Management Facility (DMF) a regional MTDS training workshop in Dakar, Senegal, facilitated by World Bank and DRI consultants, which attracted 44 participants from 19 Francophone countries and institutions. The workshop introduced participants to the toolkit developed to assist governments to develop an MTDS. The training also familiarised them with the analytical tool through a series of exercises enabling them to quantify and measure the performance of alternative debt management strategies under different shock scenarios.

A joint mission of the World Bank and DRI visited Pristina, Kosovo to evaluate the country's debt management, based on the DeMPA methodology elaborated by the BWIs. As part of the review, the mission held meetings with all the institutions involved in debt management. A draft report has been prepared which has been sent for peer review before being submitted to the country's authorities within the forthcoming weeks.

DRI participated at an MTDS training seminar for trainers in Washington DC. Various Implementing Partners, such as Crown Agents and Commonwealth Secretariat and various economists from different departments at The World Bank participated at the event. The training included presentations and practical exercises, as well as providing feedback to the Bank on further MTDS development.