Quality and impact of programs facilitated by the Global Development Learning Network

Knowledge is central to the World Bank's mission of reducing poverty and improving the living standards of people in the developing world, In 1997, the World Bank launched the World Bank Learning Network (WBLN) which piloted technologies to link the World Bank's offices electronically with partner facilities worldwide. In 2000, the World Bank and several partner institutions formed the Global Development Learning Network (GDLN). Within a year, this network comprised 28 centers, each with two-way video-conferencing capabilities and Internet access, and within four years it had nearly tripled in size, to 70 centers, and involved partners from public, private, and non-governmental organizations.