The Portfolio Improvement Program (PIP) was launched by the World Bank about a year ago to improve the performance of its project portfo- lio. Within that review, the performance of social funds was evaluated for such things as efficiency, targeting, and sustainability. As the largest multilateral development finance agency, the World Bank lends about US$20 billion annually for development all over the world. Its portfolio of 1,500 projects under implementation accounts for close to US$120 billion of commitment on the part of the World Bank. Com- bined with the contributions of cofinanciers, borrowers, and beneficia- ries themselves in terms of their own counterpart financing, the total portfolio of these 1,500.
