Development Impact Group

A One World Bank Initiative to Drive Development Impact

The future of development holds immense promise—powered by science, driven by data, and grounded in evidence. As we face new opportunities to accelerate progress, the need for smarter, more adaptive approaches has never been stronger.

LEADS — Learn. Adapt. Scale. — is a One World Bank Group initiative that brings this vision to life. Created by the Development Economics Vice Presidency (DEC) and implemented in close collaboration with Regional Vice Presidencies, Verticals, IFC, and other global partners, LEADS equips project teams and government counterparts with the tools, methods, and mindsets to learn in real time, adapt course, and scale what works.

At its heart, LEADS is about closing the gap between intention and impact.

The LEADS Model

LEADS is a structured yet flexible framework anchored in three pillars:

1. Flexible Design

Projects are restructured from rigid blueprints into adaptive, evidence-informed plans:

• Embedding proven solutions from global evidence at entry;
• Building in testable alternatives for future adaptation;
• Enhancing project design to increase expected effectiveness.

2. Science-Based Adaptive Delivery

Implementation integrates scientific learning and A/B testing methods:

• Improving readiness for delivery;
• Reducing implementation delays;
• Increasing impact through trial-and-adopt learning loops.

3. System-Wide Enablers

Impact is scaled by building the institutional infrastructure for adaptive delivery:

• Promoting portfolio-level adoption via AI tools (e.g., ImpactAI), real-time data systems (e.g., MEGA), and embedded field support;
• Supporting governments to build data standards, digital architecture, and supportive legislation to take things to scale.

LEADS Impact Spotlight

LEADS is changing how development is designed and delivered.

·       💰 $280M in efficiency gains identified across 50+ projects ($18B in financing) from LEADS workshops alone in AFE (2024) and AFW (2025).

·       ⏱️ 5–6 quarters faster delivery in projects using adaptive, evidence-informed approaches, getting results to the ground faster (see Working Paper).

·       📈 Up to 2x greater impact through trial-and-adopt methods that rigorously test and scale what works (Driving Revolutionary Ideas into Practice).

LEADS isn’t just improving projects—it’s setting a new standard for development delivery.

The LEADS Journey

A New Development Standard

LEADS is helping the World Bank Group become the institution it asks its clients to be: evidence-informed, adaptive, and accountable for results.

By combining DEC’s research leadership with the regional and vertical teams’ delivery muscle, LEADS is turning aspirations into impact—one learning loop at a time.

It’s not just about building better projects.
It’s about building systems that improve themselves.

Building a Culture of Learning

LEADS is more than a framework for project design and delivery—it's a platform for continuous learning across the institution.

To support this, LEADS provides a growing library of toolkits, presentation decks, templates, and curated evidence that feed into the World Bank’s regional Academies and other staff learning initiatives. These materials help project teams, government counterparts, and new staff internalize adaptive methods, apply real-time learning strategies, and integrate scientific tools like A/B testing into their work.

By linking operational teams with cutting-edge knowledge and ready-to-use resources, LEADS strengthens both individual capacity and institutional systems—so learning isn’t just encouraged, it’s embedded.

May 2024 – AFE LEADS | Cape Town

The launch of LEADS in Eastern and Southern Africa (AFE) marked the beginning of a movement.

In Cape Town, 33 projects from 16 countries—representing $12.8B in financing — and 250 leaders came together to redesign for greater impact. Evidence-informed changes led to an estimated $238M in efficiency gains across the portfolio (see Up Front Story).

What emerged was not just smarter design—but sustained support. Since the workshop:

• Teams received personalized support to design and integrate adaptive learning approaches into their projects;
• At least 9 projects are advancing full impact evaluations, while others are supported via the AFE M&E Community of Practice;
• Knowledge-sharing activities like AFE Results Day, webinars, and evidence digests are planned to strengthen the learning ecosystem across AFE;
• Replicable ideas—from flexible agricultural subsidies and literacy apps to local procurement for school meals—are now being scaled regionally.

With over $6M in funding needs for data collection and technical support over five years, AFE is actively mobilizing resources through IDA allocations, trust funds, and strategic donor engagement.

May 2025 – AFW LEADS | Lomé

LEADS expanded to Western and Central Africa (AFW) with a powerful message: this is not business as usual.
In Lomé, over 200 leaders from 11 countries brought 20 investments worth $5.3B across IDA, IBRD, and IFC portfolios (event page).

Participants left the event with redesigned delivery models, trial-and-adopt plans, and evidence-informed implementation strategies. Examples include:

• Niger’s $1B LAMP project redesigning irrigation systems and testing water fee systems based on impact evidence from Mozambique;
• Ghana’s PFM4SD initiative integrating performance-based incentives for public financial management;
• Togo’s SWEDD+ team is preparing a trial on economic inclusion for adolescent girls, grounded in best-practice bundles;
• Husk Power Systems—an IFC client—launching a real-time impact evaluation of mini-grid electrification in Nigeria as part of the M300 initiative.

The event was also a showcase of regional innovation: from Togo’s Data Lab to Mali’s Kabakoo Academies. Tools like ImpactAI and Data360 were introduced to integrate real-time learning into operations.

May 2025 – Europe | Berlin

In Berlin, LEADS reached the European Union, where government representatives managing 27 cohesion policy operations gathered to leverage adaptive design and data for real-time policy learning for jobs, skills, innovation and the digital transition.

In partnership with the European Commission, the initiative aimed to:

• Design trial-and-adopt strategies for policy innovations;
• Promote data system integration and digital architecture for policy learning;
• Establish regulatory and institutional support for adaptive program cycles and policy experimentation.

Europe LEADS confirmed that LEADS is not just a tool for low- and middle-income countries—it is a global model for smarter public spending.

November 2025 – India LEADS | New Delhi

India LEADS marked the start of a new way of doing development in India: putting evidence, learning, and jobs at the center of how large programs are designed and delivered.

In New Delhi, six flagship World Bank–supported programs—together representing $9.7 billion in financing—brought government leaders, Indian universities, global partners, and World Bank teams together to co-design how real-time evidence would shape delivery across cities, skills, MSMEs, forests, women’s employment, and health.
What emerged was not just stronger project design—but a shift in how programs will be run. By the end of the workshop:

• All six teams produced formal Expressions of Interest setting out agreed evaluation and learning strategies with government, researchers, and operations;
• Evaluation designs were finalized and are now being embedded directly into live projects, ensuring learning starts from day one;
• Faculty from IIT Delhi, IIM Bangalore, ISB, and Ashoka are already influencing project design and data systems;
• Adaptive delivery systems—integrated data, experimentation, and feedback loops—are being built into programs to allow rapid course-correction and scaling of what works.

India LEADS has launched a sustained evidence engine for India’s development portfolio—ensuring that billions in public investment translate into more jobs, higher productivity, and stronger accountability across the country.

January 2026 – Tokyo LEADS | Japan

Tokyo LEADS marked the first regional LEADS convening for East Asia—bringing JICA, ADB, JADE, and the World Bank together around a shared commitment to make large-scale investments more measurable, adaptive, and cost-effective. In Tokyo, projects focusing on infrastructure, air pollution, health, resilience, and governance saw project teams and researchers working side-by-side to test assumptions, refine delivery strategies, and embed impact evaluation into active portfolios.

What emerged was not a conference, but a pipeline for better projects. Over three days:

• Project teams moved through trial-and-adopt clinics to build evaluation and learning strategies tailored to their operations;

• JICA and ADB staff received technical training in data, impact evaluation, and adaptive implementation;

• New measurement tools and methods for infrastructure and environmental programs were introduced;

• Cross-country and cross-institution collaboration created a shared evidence base for scaling what works across Asia.

Tokyo LEADS established a regional platform for continuous learning and policy-relevant evidence, ensuring Asia’s largest development investments were guided not just by plans—but by proof.