Rwanda steady in policy reforms-WB

Rwanda has continuously improved its policy and institutional reforms towards poverty reduction according to a World Bank review of policies and institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa.In the annual Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) for 2011, Rwanda scored 3.8 out of six points similar to the previous year despite the global economic country’s crisis and external shocks. According to the evaluation, the strong performance was driven by continued reforms in many areas of public policy. The assessment report was launched on June 28 in Paris and connected all World Bank country offices via video conference.“Rwanda continues to perform comparably well in policies for social inclusion and equity,” said Omowunmi Ladipo, World Bank’s Country Manager for Rwanda.She said that Rwanda should be proud of the results announced by the EICV3 where the number of people living under the poverty line reduced 12 per cent.The figure declined to 44.9 per cent in 2010/11 from 56.7 percent in 2005/06 with one million people jumping the poverty line.She identified debt policy and management and financial sector strengthening as potential areas where further policy improvements in coming years could yield increased ratings. Rwanda’s current CPIA score is above the average for all IDA countries and among the top 25 per cent of International Development Association (IDA) countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Rwanda is 0.1 point above Tanzania, 0.7 point above Burundi and at the same level as Kenya and Uganda.Countries are rated on a scale of 1 to 6 for each of the 16 indicators while an overall CPIA score reflects an average for the 16 indicators covering four areas.Indicators considered include, economic management, structural policies, policies for social inclusion and equity and public sector management and institutions.“The CPIA is a valuable tool for governments, the private sector, civil society, researchers, and the media to monitor their country’s progress and benchmark it against progress in other countries,” said Punam Chuhan Pole, World Bank Lead Economist.CPIA has been measuring and tracking the strength of policies and institutions in IDA-eligible countries since 1980.The review shows that Sub-Saharan Africa remained robust in 2011, steadying at 4.7 percent growth, despite a sharp slow down in global economic activity.According to the assessment report, fast-growing and resource-rich countries such as Ghana, Mozambique, and Nigeria, as well as non-resource-rich economies like Rwanda and Ethiopia, all attained growth rates of at least 7 per cent in 2011. The region saw an uptick in overall inflation in 2011, due to rising food and fuel prices; some countries like Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda also saw sharply higher rates for core inflation.However, the review states that the overall CPIA score for African countries is lower than that of other IDA countries with an average score of 3.2 and 3.4, respectively.

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Rwanda steady in policy reforms-WB