The World Bank and IMF introduced the PRSPs as a framework for developing poverty reduction strategies at country level after determining in September 1999 that nationally-owned participatory poverty reduction strategies should provide the basis of all their concessional lending and for debt relief under the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Countries would develop a poverty reduction strategy in consultation with civil society and other stakeholders, and put this forward to the IMF and World Bank in the form of a Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP). The Boards of the IMF and the World Bank accept a PRSP on the basis of a coherent policy strategy, which will be assessed jointly by the Bank and Fund staff in terms of its objectives and policy content. Further, the Boards are required to review the extent to which governments have consulted with civil society and how governance issues will be addressed. The initiative was warmly welcomed by civil society organizations and governments alike. The notion of "national ownership" and "participatory processes" were the most attractive aspect of the initiative.

The African Learning Group on the PRSP is a forum sponsored by ECA to facilitate African peer learning on the experience with the PRSP in Africa. The Learning Group looks at five clusters of issues: content of growth strategies; PRSP-related financing and public expenditure management; legitimacy of the PRSP participatory process; capacity requirements; and donor policies and modalities.

The focus of the work of the PRSP-LG is on sharing of best practices, identification of national capacity gaps, formulation of recommendations of the required actions by various stakeholders (African governments, civil society organization, African research institutions, and private sector) to address these gaps, and advocacy for change in aid modalities and approaches. The Learning Group also aims to stimulate dialogue on transforming development relations between African countries and their key external partners for increased aid effectiveness and enhanced development impact. Each annual meeting of the PRSP-LG is informed by succinct country reports prepared by African experts on the key PRSP-related issues confronting the country.

Learning Group participants include government officials and experts directly involved with the PRSP process, private sector actors, representatives of African research institutions, and civil society actors who are well placed to influence and contribute to this process. Representatives of bilateral and multilateral donors are invited to participate in an observer status and/or as resource persons.

We envisage this Learning Group as a mechanism through which Africans could ensure the relevance of the PRSP approach to Africa's development challenges.

The most pressing development challenge we face in Africa is poverty reduction. Therefore strategies to reduce poverty should by definition, be at the heart of our national development plans in Africa. But these strategies should not be translated narrowly to mean only investments in the social sectors. They should encompass policies designed to maintain the macroeconomic disciple, bolster agriculture productivity, support infrastructure development, strengthen institutional capacity, and improve the management of public expenditures. In the long run, the fight against poverty will only be won through such policies that can guarantee broad-based economic growth.

 Meetings / Activities
----------------------------
PRS/MDGs Tools
----------------------------
 Electronic Knowledge Sharing Network  
----------------------------