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MDB Fundamentals

Plain-language definitions of every MDB Fundamentals term that shows up in government tender work.


MDB Fundamentals

Bank-Executed Operations

Procurement carried out by the MDB itself using its own staff and budget, rather than by the borrowing country, typically covering the bank's internal consulting and technical assistance needs.

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MDB Fundamentals

Blended Finance

The strategic combination of concessional public or philanthropic funds with commercial finance to make development projects financially viable and attract private capital to markets it would not otherwise enter.

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MDB Fundamentals

Borrowing Country

A member country that receives loans or grants from an MDB to finance development projects and is responsible for repaying the loan and ensuring procurement under the project follows MDB rules.

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MDB Fundamentals

Co-Financing

An arrangement in which two or more financiers, such as MDBs, bilateral donors, or private lenders, jointly fund a single development project, each contributing a defined share of the total cost.

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MDB Fundamentals

Concessional Loan

A loan provided to a developing country government on below-market terms, including low interest rates and long repayment periods, used by MDBs to finance projects in lower-income countries.

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MDB Fundamentals

Country Partnership Framework

A multi-year strategic document that defines an MDB's development priorities, planned lending, and operational engagement with a specific borrowing country for a three-to-five-year period.

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MDB Fundamentals

Country Procurement Assessment

A diagnostic review conducted by an MDB to evaluate a borrowing country's national procurement systems, laws, and institutional capacity before and during project financing.

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MDB FundamentalsDPF

Development Policy Financing (DPF)

A World Bank lending instrument that provides direct budget support to governments in exchange for policy and institutional reforms, rather than financing a discrete project with its own procurement tenders.

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MDB Fundamentals

Donor-Funded Project

A development project financed by one or more external donors, such as MDBs, bilateral aid agencies, or foundations, whose procurement rules govern how contracts are tendered and awarded.

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MDB Fundamentals

Executing Agency

The government body or institution with overall accountability for an MDB-financed project's results, which may delegate day-to-day procurement to one or more implementing agencies.

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MDB Fundamentals

Grant Financing

Non-repayable funds provided by an MDB or donor government to a developing country for a specific project, generating procurement opportunities that follow the grantor's procurement rules.

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MDB FundamentalsICR

Implementation Completion Report (ICR)

A structured evaluation document prepared jointly by the World Bank and the borrowing country at project close, assessing whether the project achieved its objectives and what lessons should inform future operations.

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MDB Fundamentals

Implementing Agency

The government ministry, department, or entity in a borrowing country that is responsible for running procurement and delivering project outputs under an MDB-financed project.

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MDB FundamentalsIPF

Investment Project Financing (IPF)

The World Bank's main lending instrument that finances discrete projects such as roads, schools, and power plants, and which triggers the formal procurement rules that govern nearly all World Bank tenders.

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MDB Fundamentals

Member Country

A country that has joined an MDB by subscribing to its capital and accepting its Articles of Agreement, gaining the right to borrow, vote on bank decisions, and have its nationals participate in financed procurement.

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MDB FundamentalsMDB

Multilateral Development Bank (MDB)

An international financial institution jointly owned by member governments that lends to developing countries to fund infrastructure, social programmes, and economic development projects.

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MDB Fundamentals

Non-Borrowing Member Country

A member country that contributes capital to an MDB and participates in its governance but does not borrow from it, typically a higher-income country whose nationals remain eligible to compete for MDB-financed contracts.

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MDB FundamentalsODA

Official Development Assistance (ODA)

Concessional grants and loans from governments and multilateral institutions to developing countries, intended to promote economic development, a large share of which flows through MDB projects that generate procurement opportunities.

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MDB Fundamentals

Parallel Financing

A financing arrangement in which two or more donors or MDBs each independently fund separate, defined components of a single programme, applying their own procurement rules to their respective components.

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MDB Fundamentals

Post Review

An MDB oversight mechanism in which the bank examines completed procurement processes after contract award to verify compliance, rather than approving each step in advance as in prior review.

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MDB Fundamentals

Procurement Complaint Mechanism

The formal process through which a bidder can challenge a procurement decision on an MDB-financed project, triggering a review by the implementing agency and potentially by the MDB itself.

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MDB Fundamentals

Procurement Risk Framework

The structured methodology MDBs use to assess the risk of procurement failure on a project, determining how much oversight the bank will apply and which contracts require prior review.

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MDB FundamentalsPAD

Project Appraisal Document (PAD)

The World Bank's primary project design document, approved by its board before a loan or grant is authorised, setting out project scope, cost, procurement arrangements, and risk assessment.

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MDB FundamentalsPIU

Project Implementation Unit (PIU)

A dedicated team established within a borrowing country's implementing agency to handle the day-to-day procurement, financial management, and reporting requirements of a specific MDB-financed project.

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MDB FundamentalsPMU

Project Management Unit (PMU)

A coordination and management team established for an MDB-financed project that typically spans strategic oversight, procurement, financial management, and stakeholder coordination across all project components.

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MDB FundamentalsTA

Technical Assistance (TA)

Advisory, training, and capacity-building services funded by MDBs or donors to help borrowing countries design projects, strengthen institutions, and build the skills needed to implement development programmes effectively.

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MDB Fundamentals

Trust Fund

A pooled financing mechanism administered by an MDB on behalf of one or more donor governments, used to fund technical assistance, grants, and specialised project components outside the bank's core lending programme.

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