The long journey of the EBRD’s Transition Impact: Evaluation Synthesis of the EBRD’s approach to Transition Impact (2017-23)

Article I of the Agreement Establishing the Bank states, “the purpose of the EBRD shall be to foster the transition towards open market-oriented economies and to promote private and entrepreneurial initiative”. Over the last year, EBRD’s independent Evaluation Department (IEvD) and the Impact Team have substantially increased dialogue and exchange. Their common objective is to strengthen the Bank’s approach to transition impact (TI).

The formalization of the concept of TI dates to 1997 and it has been adjusted steadily to the changing context since. In 2016, after a significant overhaul, the current concept of TI emerged with six detailed Transition Qualities (TQs). These TQs incorporate insights on the role of markets and align with the international community’s ambition for the private sector to make major contributions to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Therefore, in the current context set by the key policy commitments1 included in the proposal for apaid-in capital increase, understanding how and why transition occurs and measuring the extent of the Bank’s contribution to it are more important than ever.