ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a discussion of the broader institutional changes that have taken place at the World Bank since the early 1990s. This is followed by a discussion of the Bank’s approach to environmental management, its core interests in providing environmental assistance to China, and the contentious issue of its policy influence at the national level. The chapter examines the local implementation of three World Bank environmental projects in the provinces of Liaoning, Yunnan and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The chapter concludes by assessing the donor’s contribution to improving local environmental capacity. The World Bank Group consists of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development founded in 1944, and its four affiliates – the International Finance Corporation, the International Development Association, the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes, and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.
