We examine whether project restructuring improves World Bank project performance. Using panel data on Implementation Status and Results (ISR) ratings, we combine two-way fixed effects with the PanelMatch estimator to address concerns that restructurings are endogenously timed. Restructurings consistently raise ISR ratings, and these gains persist across successive reporting cycles. Timing and scope both matter: early restructurings generate durable improvements, while late interventions yield shorter-lived boosts bounded by project horizons. Level One restructurings produce larger effects than Level Two adjustments. These patterns show that adaptation works best when it is timely and substantive. More broadly, restructuring should be viewed not as a reactive correction but as an ordinary mechanism of adaptive management -- a structured learning process that transforms performance signals into actionable design updates, reinforcing institutional flexibility and credible mid-course correction.
| Repository name | URI |
|---|---|
| Reproducible Research Repository (World Bank) | https://reproducibility.worldbank.org |
Paper exhibits were reproduced on a computer with the following specifications:
• OS: Windows 11 Enterprise
• Processor: Intel(R) Xeon(R) Gold 6226R CPU @ 2.90GHz
• Memory available: 16.0 GB
Runtime: 1.5 hours
Most data used is limited-access and not included in the reproducibility package. Once users have access to all the data, to reproduce the findings, a new user needs to:
main.R script and run the code.main.do do-file and run the code.Some data is restricted and has not been included in the reproducibility package. For more details, please refer to the README file.
| Author | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Ze Han | World Bank | zhan1@worldbank.org |
| Lisandro Martin | World Bank | lmartin1@worldbank.org |
| Juan Jose Leguia | World Bank | jleguia@worldbank.org |
2025-12-09
| Location | Code |
|---|---|
| World | WLD |
The materials in the reproducibility packages are distributed as they were prepared by the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this event do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank, the Executive Directors of the World Bank, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the materials included in the reproducibility package.
| Name | URI |
|---|---|
| Modified BSD3 | https://opensource.org/license/bsd-3-clause/ |
| Name | Affiliation | |
|---|---|---|
| Ze Han | World Bank | zhan1@worldbank.org |
| Reproducibility WBG | World Bank | reproducibility@worldbank.org |
| Name | Abbreviation | Affiliation | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reproducibility WBG | DECDI | World Bank - Development Impact Department | Verification and preparation of metadata |
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