Resourcing International Organisations
Lead Researcher: Dr Bernhard Reinsberg
Over the past decade, donor governments have provided financial support to international organisations like the World Bank and the United Nations in the form of 'trust funds'. These special funding vehicles allow donors to restrict their contributions for supporting specific countries, sectors, or themes. Worries have grown that trust funds undermine the capacities of international organisations to deliver on their mandates while increasing the cost of aid delivery. Through his research, Dr Bernhard Reinsberg contributes to a better understanding of the reasons underlying the rapid growth of trust funds while at the same time suggesting ways to deploy these funds in a manner that balances legitimate donor interests and sustainable development needs.
Through several knowledge exchange and impact events, Benhard helped raise awareness for the issue among development partners. He spoke as invited expert on trust funds at conferences at the German Development Institute (DIE/GDI) in Bonn, the Norwegian evaluation office (NORAD) in Oslo, and the World Bank Donor Forum in Paris, a meeting that brings together decision-makers from the development ministries of all major donors and therefore helped inform negotiations between these donors and the World Bank on the effective design of trust funds. In addition, based on research on trust funds on climate change, he provided expert advice as part of an advisory team for a study commissioned by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.