Increasing Accountability and Reducing Corruption: the World Bank’s Anti-Corruption System

As part of its development efforts, the World Bank has a fiduciary duty to ensure that its funds are used for their intended purposes and with due attention to economy and efficiency. In furtherance of this fiduciary duty, the Bank’s anti-corruption measures seek to incorporate processes that ensure standards of good governance and conformity with principles of the rule of law. Indeed, fraud and corruption weaken institutions and divert essential resources from those who are supposed to benefit the most: the poor. Since the mid-1990s, the World Bank has worked to develop a robust sanctions system that is efficient, effective, and fair, offering accused parties a fair process through which they can present their defense. The World Bank has also sought to work with its partners to deter and prevent misconduct from occurring in the first place. This chapter describes the history and evolution of the World Bank’s sanctions system and its efforts to combat fraud and corruption in its development activities.