INFORMING THE APPROACH OF MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO USE OF COUNTRY SYSTEMS

The document argues that while using country systems (UCS) respects sovereignty and promotes national ownership, MDBs are hindered by financial, reputational, and technical risks. It recommends moving away from 'one-size-fits-all' safeguards toward tailored approaches, strengthening local capacity, and empowering MDB country offices to manage risks more effectively.

• The use of country systems (UCS) provides several benefits, including respecting national sovereignty by avoiding external conditionalities, increasing the sustainability of projects through national ownership, and strengthening domestic systems by exposing and correcting deficiencies.
• MDBs face significant financial and reputational risks when adopting UCS, as domestic systems may be more susceptible to financial mismanagement or abuse and may lack the stringent safeguards MDBs use to prevent environmental or social violations.
• MDB procurement guidelines often conflict with the development goals of borrowing governments, such as promoting industrialisation or supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, and may be designed to benefit companies from non-borrowing member countries.
• There is a tension between MDB headquarters, which prefer parallel systems for risk mitigation, and country offices, which often advocate for UCS due to their familiarity with the local environment and stakeholders.
• Different countries exhibit varying attitudes toward UCS: South Africa considers it non-negotiable, Morocco is pragmatic and willing to compromise on specific functions, and Kenya is open to a 'hybrid' system acknowledging its domestic shortcomings.
• To improve UCS uptake, MDBs should replace 'one-size-fits-all' approaches with tailored strategies, leverage technology for procurement transparency, and use innovative mechanisms like the World Bank's Programme for Results (PfR).
• Effective capacity building for UCS must be holistic, focusing on strengthening entire systems rather than individuals, and should include the capacity of civil society to ensure government accountability.

APA

Prinsloo, C. (2017). INFORMING THE APPROACH OF MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO USE OF COUNTRY SYSTEMS. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/GA_Th1_PB2_prinsloo_20170901.pdf

Chicago

Prinsloo, Cyril. INFORMING THE APPROACH OF MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO USE OF COUNTRY SYSTEMS. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2017. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/GA_Th1_PB2_prinsloo_20170901.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Prinsloo |first1=Cyril |title=INFORMING THE APPROACH OF MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO USE OF COUNTRY SYSTEMS |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=August 2017 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/GA_Th1_PB2_prinsloo_20170901.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{prinsloo2017informing, author = {Prinsloo, Cyril}, title = {{INFORMING THE APPROACH OF MULTILATERAL DEVELOPMENT BANKS TO USE OF COUNTRY SYSTEMS}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2017}, month = aug, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/GA_Th1_PB2_prinsloo_20170901.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }