Overview

The key to profitable and sustainable development is the selection of viable projects and effective project preparation and financing has become even more critical in recent years. To that end, this seminar focuses on providing the knowledge and skills required to develop an idea into a bankable project ready for financing and implementation.

Through lectures, case studies, and individual and group exercises, participants will have the opportunity to experience what makes projects successful. Participants are also encouraged to bring an example of a project to contribute to class discussions.

Format

The seminars are currently offered both in-person and online simultaneously, at the choice of the participant. This choice must be indicated at the time of registration. A small number of courses are scheduled to be delivered exclusively in person or online, and are indicated as such in the 2024 schedule. In-Person Only seminars usually start at 9:30 am Washington D.C. time. Daily sessions usually end at 4:00 pm. Breaks (including the lunch break) are allocated as appropriate. Online Only seminars will be delivered through five (for 1-week course) or ten (for 2-weeks course) live online sessions via videoconferencing platform. Each session will last approximately 3.5 hours and will be scheduled to start within a time window of 7:00 am – 8:30 am Washington D.C. time. Hybrid In-Person/Online seminars will start at a time most convenient to both in-person and online participants, and will generally follow the In-Person seminar format. We expect the classes to be highly interactive and can include presentations, case studies and exercises.

Course Outline

Project Identification and Preparation

• Meaning & requirements

Project Development Context

• Why this project?
• Investment programming in the public sector
• Project approach to investment
• Economic viability vs. commercial viability

Assessing Project Viability

• Technical, economic and financial analysis
• Fiscal impact
• Cost recovery
• Operations and maintenance

Financing and Approval

External Assistance and Multilateral Development Agencies

Sustainability and Lessons Learned

• Risk analysis
• Institutional aspects
• Environmental considerations

Course Advisors

Gopi Puri – After working in the Indian Steel industry for 17 years, Gopi Puri joined the World Bank, where he directed seminars at the World Bank Institute. Mr. Puri also worked for many years appraising investment proposals at the International Finance Corporation. He has an M.B.A. from The George Washington University and has worked with more than 80 developing countries.

Mehdi Al-Bazzaz is an Economist with BA (honors) from York University in England and a Master degree in development economics from SOAS of London University and a Master in micro-macro Economics from Simon Fraser University (Canada). He was in charge of Project Screening and Approval at the Ministry of Planning in Baghdad – Iraq, followed by a spell as Managing Director of Gulf Development Co. based in Lagos, Nigeria, a subsidiary of the British company with same name. From 1982-2002 he joined the World Bank as a Senior Project Economist at the Economic Development Institute (EDI) at the Bank headquarters in Washington DC. Mr. AL-Bazzaz has had decades of experience in development practices in numerous countries but mainly in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. He also designed and delivered several graduate programs at George Washington University and Georgetown University in Washington DC, and at Loyola University of Chicago in Milan, Italy.