Multilateral Aid Review summary - The Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG)

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Contribution to UK development objectives	Strong
	+	Valuable position focussing on innovative methods of catalysing private investment in infrastructure. It is flexible and embraces change in meeting objectives.
	+	PIDG-supported projects have attracted $10.5 bn of private investment commitment. These are projected to provide new or improved services to over 50 m people with an additional 13.5 m receiving services by 2013.
	_	Tightly focussed facilities, so not delivering across the whole spectrum of development.
	+	The PIDG renewable energy investments and proposals represent a targeted climate change response.
	_	The PIDG has made no effort to date to target investments at women and girls or to report using gender disaggregated data
	_	No formal policy on prioritising fragile states.



Organisational strengths	Strong
	+	Well structured objectives and strategy to fulfil mission. Strong monitoring and evaluation processes. Staff recruited on merit.
	+	Procurement follows EU/WB procedures, rigorous independent reviews conducted regularly and annual external audits. Projects are intended to achieve commercially viable returns.
	+	Robust systems for predicting and monitoring the development impact of projects.
	_	Weak partnership with civil society. Donor country offices including DFID are poorly sighted on PIDG work.
	+	Strong performance, transparent trust arrangements with extensive MOUs governing funding commitments, annual external audits, funding linked to strategies.
	_	Disclosure policy not yet fully developed. More information could be made available on websites.
	_	Little proactive efforts made to bring information to potentially interested parties.


Capacity for positive change	Likely
	+	Good track record of responding to donors’ priorities, developing new businesses to respond to changing needs.
	_	Protracted negotiations for fund manager for two facilities. Slow action on gender and transparency.
	_	Increased risk as PIDG facilities explore scaling up and new frontiers.