The influence of the World Bank on policy formation, policy implementation, and private education : A systematic review of the literature

Abstract

While much literature has been produced about the World Bank, there has not been a systematic discussion of what is known about how the World Bank influences policy formation and policy implementation-and how it uses that influence to advance its agenda related to private education. This background paper seeks to clarify, based on a systematic review of 77 publications, what is known about the World Bank in these areas. Three kinds of findings are discussed. The first section highlights 11 kinds of pathways through which the World Bank influences policymaking. Namely, these pathways are: Loans, conditionalities, pilot projects, technical assistance, loan-related reports and studies, research, general publications, certification, coordination of foreign aid, international events, and national actor recruitment and socialization. The second findings section contains a discussion of those themes that emerged organically for why the implementation of World Bank-supported policies often faces serious obstacles in practice. The final findings section then turns to focus specifically on the issue of private education. Here, the kinds of private education that have been advanced over time by the World Bank are clarified. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings and by suggesting areas where the literature on the World Bank can be improved. As noted, in only about half of all retained studies do authors clearly discuss their theoretical orientation (54% of studies) or their methodological strategies (44%) for understanding the work of the World Bank.