Welt Bank

Development Forum

"The Development Forum is an electronic venue for dialogue and knowledge-sharing among members of the development

community. Its focal point is an ongoing and expanding series of electronic Development Dialogues on key issues and challenges

facing the development community and the world's poor, with a particular emphasis on learning from the experience of those who

face these challenges in their daily lives."

"The Forum has its roots in the growing recognition by the World Bank and others in the development community that knowledge

and information are vital tools of sustainable development, that our clients and other stakeholders from developing countries can and

should be active contributors of high-value information on development issues, and that focused dialogue can facilitate cooperation

among development agencies and others involved in development in a way that enhances their effectiveness."

"The focal point of the Forum is an ongoing series of Development Dialogues. The Dialogues sponsored by the Forum vary in their

content, format and duration. However, they all share a common goal -- to foster increased dialogue and knowledge-sharing on

development issues, in an inclusive, collegial atmosphere." There are moderated and un-moderated discussions. Some are all

accessible both through the World Wide Web and by email so that colleagues with limited Internet access can participate. Others

are closed to particular groups where these constitute learning program cohorts.

Development Dialogues in the Forum are sponsored by the World Bank or by other organizations around the world and have

included included Transparency International, Center for International Private Enterprise; Panos Institute, London; Bretton Woods

Project; New Policy Institute; Estonian Infrastructure and Transit Development Foundation; Regional Office for Africa of the

Association des Universités Francophones (AUF); and UNIFEM.