1. Regional Initiatives for Improving Governance A Look at Francophone Africa BBL discussion 22 May 2007

2. Why regional, South-South approaches? Demand from partners for access to networks of expertise Evidence from capacity development work that we have relied too heavily on foreign technical assistance Evidence that countries learn more from experiences of other countries Can weak demand-side institutions in one country be bolstered by peers in neighboring countries?

3. The power of peers Peer experience can be more relevant to country realities Peer expertise: Supporting the knowledge economy and consulting industries in African countries Peer support from colleagues across the border who have been there, done that Peer pressure from cross country comparisons and regional trend leaders

7. Questions for discussion Are regional approaches more promising than country-specific ones? What instruments do we have to support these initiatives? What is the optimal role of the Bank?