Water and Development : An
Evaluation of World Bank Support, 1997-2007, Volume 1

The amount of available water has been
constant for millennia, but over time the planet has added 6
billion people. Water is essential to human life and
enterprise, and the increasing strains on available water
resources threaten the mission of institutions dedicated to
economic development. The ultimate goal is to achieve a
sustainable balance between the resources available and the
societal requirement for water. In this evaluation the
Independent Evaluation Group (IEG) examines all the
water-related projects financed by the World Bank between
fiscal 1997 and the end of calendar 2007. Bank activities
related to water are large, growing, and integrated. They
include water resources management, water supply and
sanitation, and activities related to agricultural water,
industrial water, energy generation, and water in the
environment. Through both lending and grants, the World Bank
(the International Development Association and the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, or
IBRD) has supported countries in many water-related sectors.
This evaluation examines the full scope of that support over
the period from fiscal 1997 to the end of calendar 2007.
More than 30 background studies prepared for the evaluation
have analyzed Bank lending by thematic area and by activity
type. The evaluation is by definition retrospective, but it
identifies changes that will be necessary going forward,
including those related to strengthening country-level
institutions and increasing financial sustainability.