The publication BUILDING EFFECTIVE, ACCOUNTABLE, AND INCLUSIVE INSTITUTIONS IN EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA was prepared by a team of World Bank Governance Global Practice staff and consultants (Europe and Central Asia Region - ECA), under the overall guidance of Roby Senderowitsch and Daniel J. Boyce. The project was led by Ermal Vila and Natalia Manuilova, with support from William Gallagher and Patricia Rogers. It also benefited from thoughtful inputs and suggestions by Pedro Arizti. Additional support was provided by Carlos Sabatino and Marielle Emma Wessin Severino.

The World Bank’s Governance Global Practice has been supporting reforms across the region in collaboration with development partners, using three complementary and mutually reinforcing engagements to help bridge the accountability and implementation gaps and restore trust. It engages first through research and analytical work to understand the underlying factors that can influence policymaking and effective implementation; second, through policy dialogue with decision-makers in governments, members of civil society, and the private sector to open the channels of communication and ensure tailored solutions that meet the needs of diverse groups; and finally, 2 Building Effective, Accountable, and Inclusive Institutions In Europe And Central Asia through funding and technical assistance for the design, implementation, and evaluation of public policies. To understand the success factors that could shape the future of ECA’s governance agenda, the World Bank joined forces with the region’s governments and leading development partners—the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), the European Commission, Support for Improvement in Governance and Management (SIGMA, a joint initiative of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development—OECD—and the EU), UN Women, and the Asian Development Bank — to organize ECA’s first Regional Governance Conference, held June 11-12, 2019, in Ankara, Turkey. This book shares the critical lessons discussed at the conference by the more than 500 participants from government, international development partners, academia, the private sector, and civil society. But even more, it captures the shared commitment to expand governance reforms and outlines a regional agenda to achieve effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.

This publication builds on the World Bank’s vast engagement across ECA and on the 2019 Regional Governance Conference. It consists of six chapters, each corresponding to one of the  governance areas around which governments across the world organize their institutional functions. Each chapter contains background and analysis by World Bank specialists, complemented by country case studies authored by regional experts and policymakers.

The recording from the launch could be found here.