Middle East and North Africa | World Bank

Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet (Concept Stage) - Transport Corridors Project - P131550

2013-06-18T04:00:00.000Z

Environmental and social management plan

2013-06-14T04:00:00.000Z

The aims of the Electric Utility Management Project (EUMP) are to improve the performance of the Palestinian power sector through development of new transmission and distribution systems and institutional strengthening of Palestinian Energy Authority (PEA) and regional distribution companies. Negative environmental impacts include: increase in erosion during site preparation and the excavations of foundations; increased erosion along slope areas; compacting of the soil; pollution caused by waste produced during construction; interference with natural drainage and flow of perennial and seasonal rivers; destruction of vegetation in the area to be cleared for installations of substations and in the corridor to be developed under the power line; loss of sensitive habitats; relocation of residents and their dwellings; loss of access to land; disruption to traffic and pedestrian access; presence of non-resident labor and their temporary camps; public and occupational safety; loss of agricultural land; and loss of crops, harvests and fruit trees. Mitigation measures includes: (i) separate and remove or maintain the integrity of the topsoil (A horizon) to at least a depth of 20 cm. The separate removal, storage, and replacement of the topsoil and subsoil (lower horizons) ensure the preservation of the edaphic characteristics of the soil profile, and hence continued soil productivity; (ii) increasing the water retention capacity of soils, decreasing the volume and speed of superficial run-off and training of slopes (through installation of support structures); (iii) after completion of the construction phase, affected soils, should be ploughed and ripped; (iv) construction sites, warehouses and temporary base camps should be kept clean, in order to avoid possible fires; (v) although vegetation can be removed mechanically, it is preferable to use manual labor, especially near the riverbanks and steep slope areas; and (vi) no clearance of vegetation will be permitted within a minimum distance of 15 m from the highest level reached by the waters in rivers and other watercourses.

Jordan - Second Education Reform for the Knowledge Economy Project : procurement plan

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

Jordan - Second Education Reform for the Knowledge Economy Project : procurement plan

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

Lebanon - Additional Financing for the Urban Transport Development Project : procurement plan

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

Middle East and North Africa - First Phase of The Multicountry regional Coordination on Improved Water Resources Management and Capacity Building Program Project : procurement plan

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

Middle East and North Africa - Regional Coordination on Improved Water Resources Management and Capacity Building Project : procurement plan

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

The project Improved Desert Ecosystems and Climate Resilient Oases Project is now in the pipeline.

2013-06-13T04:00:00.000Z

The project Improved Desert Ecosystems and Climate Resilient Oases Project is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

Environmental safeguard guidelines for school rehabilitation sub-projects

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

The objective of the Emergency Labor Intensive Investment Project is to create short-term employment opportunities for unemployed unskilled and semi-skilled workers in selected locations in Egypt. Negative measures includes: air pollution, dust, water pollution, dust, soil erosion, waste management, ecology, and noise pollution. Mitigation measures include: a) control construction by fencing site and spraying water over working area to control dust emissions; b) avoid cutting trees and destruction of green areas, and if necessary, re-vegetation should be arranged and included in the project; c) control construction by fencing site and spraying water over working area to control dust emissions; d) provide appropriate sized bins to collect construction waste and arrange for periodic pick up and disposal; and e) restrict noisy activities to certain hours during the day to avoid disturbance.

Environmental safeguard guidelines for household units rehabilitation sub-projects

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

Official Documents- Amendment to Administration Arrangement with DFID for TF053719

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

Official Documents- Amendment to the Administration Arrangement with the Netherlands for TF053719

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

PPIAF assistance in Egypt

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

As in many developing countries, the government of Egypt faces the challenging task of reconciling budget deficits with a burgeoning need for investment to improve and expand the provision of infrastructure services. In response, Egypt is aiming to leverage private investment to fill public financing gaps that have caused frequent power outages and gridlocked roads, and inhibited economic growth and development. Infrastructure investment in Egypt has stagnated from nearly 12 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 1988 to 5 percent in 2007. With a budget deficit of 8.3 percent last fiscal year, and a forecasted 8 percent this year, the government wants and needs the private sector to shoulder a significant chunk of the infrastructure investment burden. Since 2006 Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF) has played a leading role in the development of an enabling environment that is sufficiently robust to attract private investors to the country. As a result, Egypt is emerging as a regional trailblazer on public-private partnerships (PPPs). The first PPP concession, for the New Cairo wastewater treatment plant, which benefited from upstream technical assistance support from PPIAF, was awarded to Orasqualia in June 2009 and reached financial close in February 2010.

Project Information Document (Appraisal Stage) - Improved Desert Ecosystems and Climate Resilient Oases Project - P128082

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

Project Information Document (Appraisal Stage) - TN-Competitiveness and Export Dev. - P132381

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

Main report

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

The development objective of the Secondary Education Development and Girls Access Program Project for Yemen is to improve gender equity, quality, and efficiency of secondary education in selected districts with a particular focus on girls in rural areas. This restructuring consist of the following changes: (i) revising result indicators; (ii) revising project components; (iii) reallocating proceeds for both the International Development Association (IDA) credit and trust fund with Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) and the British Department for International Development (DFID); and (iv) revising disbursement arrangements. The reallocation consists of transferring the budget originally allocated to the provision of school equipment administration to finance a portion of the United States (US) 1.25 million dollars deficit in civil work activities.

Data sheet

2013-06-12T04:00:00.000Z

Adaptation to a changing climate in the Arab countries : a case for adaptation governance and leadership in building climate resilience

2013-06-11T04:00:00.000Z

Adapting to climate change is not a new phenomenon for the Arab world. For thousands of years, the people in Arab countries have coped with the challenges of climate variability by adapting their survival strategies to changes in rainfall and temperature. Their experience has contributed significantly to the global knowledge on climate change and adaptation. But over the next century global climatic variability is predicted to increase, and Arab countries may well experience unprecedented extremes in climate. Temperatures may reach new highs, and in most places there may be a risk of less rainfall. Under these circumstances, Arab countries and their citizens will once again need to draw on their long experience of adapting to the environment to address the new challenges posed by climate change. This report prepared through a consultative process with Government and other stakeholders in the Arab world assesses the potential effects of climate change on the Arab region and outlines possible approaches and measures to prepare for its consequences. It offers ideas and suggestions for Arab policy makers as to what mitigating actions may be needed in rural and urban settings to safeguard key areas such as health, water, agriculture, and tourism. The report also analyzes the differing impacts of climate change, with special attention paid to gender, as a means of tailoring strategies to address specific vulnerabilities. The socioeconomic impact of climate change will likely vary from country to country, reflecting a country's coping capacity and its level of development. Countries that are wealthier and more economically diverse are generally expected to be more resilient. The report suggests that countries and households will need to diversify their production and income generation, integrate adaptation into all policy making and activities, and ensure a sustained national commitment to address the social, economic, and environmental consequences of climate variability. With these coordinated efforts, the Arab world can, as it has for centuries, successfully adapt and adjust to the challenges of a changing climate.

Tunisia - Gulf of Gabes Marine and Coastal Resources Protection Project

2013-06-11T04:00:00.000Z

Ratings for the Gulf of Gabes Marine and Coastal Resources Protection Project for Tunisia were as follows: outcomes were moderately satisfactory, risk to global environment outcome was substantial, Bank performance was moderately satisfactory, and Borrower performance was moderately satisfactory. Some lessons learned included: involvement of the community is essential to ensure that ownership and commitment to development efforts is maintained and that biodiversity management plans respond to real needs. The inclusion is necessary to focus efforts more on people who need to benefit most, and to strengthen the quality of outcomes. Interaction and linkages among planners and stakeholders are also important in fostering camaraderie, which in turn fosters better stakeholder collaboration. A complex and rigid implementing arrangement does not provide the flexibility critical for testing of new models, quick results and maintaining political and operational independence for piloting innovative approaches. More efficient procurement organization and procedures may avoid some serious delays in project implementation. Frequent training in the Banks procurement procedures during implementation is necessary to avoid delays in procurement aspects. Adequate project staff, with appropriate experience should have adequate knowledge of all the elements of the grant agreement and Project Appraisal Document (PAD), as well as of Bank procedures baseline data should be collected prior to the startup of the activities. For effective project implementation, it is critical to have continuity in leadership in order to sustain the pace of implementation overtime as well as provide continuous direction and encouragement to staff to work toward achieving project outcomes. An effective steering committee can greatly facilitate key decisions and positively impact on project implementation.

West Bank and Gaza - Cash Transfer Project : restructuring

2013-06-10T04:00:00.000Z

The objective of the Cash Transfer Project (CTP) for West Bank and Gaza is to: (i) mitigate the impact of the continued socio-economic crisis on a subset of the extremely poor and most vulnerable households; and (ii) support the Palestinian Authority's (PA) efforts to continue reforms of the CTP. The restructure will bring the following changes: a) closing date to be extended one year from December 31, 2013 to December 31, 2014; and b) reallocation of grant proceeds by a transfer of 330,000 US dollar from category three (project operating costs) to category one (cash transfers).

Egypt, Arab Republic of - Egypt Enhancing Access to Finance for Micro and Small Enterprises : P116011 - Implementation Status Results Report : Sequence 06

2013-06-08T04:00:00.000Z

The project DJ (GEF) Geothermal Power Generation Program has changed to Active

2013-06-07T04:00:00.000Z

The project DJ (GEF) Geothermal Power Generation Program has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project DJ Geothermal Power Generation Project has changed to Active

2013-06-07T04:00:00.000Z

The project DJ Geothermal Power Generation Project has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The development objective of the Geothermal Power Generation Project for Djibouti is to assist the recipient in assessing the commercial viability of the geothermal resource in Fiale Caldera within the Lake Assal region. The project has three components. The first component is drilling program. This component includes the provision of works, goods and consultants' services for: (i) civil engineering preparatory works necessary for the execution of the drilling program (financed by African Development Bank (AfDB); (ii) execution of the drilling program as designed by the geothermal consulting company (jointly co-financed by Global Environment Facility (GEF), International Development Association (IDA) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID); (iii) steel material needed during the execution of the drilling program; (financed by French Development Agency (AFD); and (iv) for the inspection and testing of reservoir flow rates (financed by Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP). The second component is technical assistance for the drilling program. This component comprises the provision of goods and consultants' services to: (i) design the drilling program and well test protocol; (ii) execute the well test protocol and ensure third party certification of the results of the drilling program; and (iii) preparation of a technical feasibility study for the geothermal power plant provided that the geothermal resource is suitable for power generation. The third component is project management. This component involves the provision of goods, consultants' services, including audit and training, and operational costs for the purposes of project management and implementation, including monitoring and evaluation. It will be jointly co-financed by Government of Djibouti (GoDj) and AfDB.

The project Jordan Energy Efficiency has changed to Closed

2013-06-03T04:00:00.000Z

The project Jordan Energy Efficiency has changed to Closed. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Second Emergency Assistance Program for Primary Health Care has changed to Closed

2013-06-02T04:00:00.000Z

The project Second Emergency Assistance Program for Primary Health Care has changed to Closed. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The objective of the Second Emergency Assistance Program for Primary Healthcare for Ira is to increase the access to and improve the quality of basic health services for vulnerable groups, including pregnant women and children. The grant will help to finance the costs associated with improving the availability of basic health services in a fragile social and political environment in four southern Iraqi Governorates, Basra, Thi-Qar, Maysan, and Babil. The focus will be on vulnerable groups, including pregnant women and children, and those suffering from tuberculosis (TB) which has become a growing problem. The project will support these efforts within the context of a direct working partnership between public providers and community representatives through community-based health service delivery. The project is a scale-up of the First Emergency Assistance Program for Primary Healthcare (FEAP-PH), managed by the AMAR Charitable Foundation, and financed by the Bank's Post-Conflict Fund. The project, which closed in November 2010, applied the partnership model in strengthening delivery of primary healthcare services to three southern Iraqi Marshlands Governorates, Thi-Qar, Maysan, and Basra. In the project, a fourth Governorate, Babil, will also be a recipient of the grant assistance. The project will be financed through the World Bank Iraq Trust Fund (ITF) which is administered by the World Bank. The grant will be provided to the AMAR Foundation as recipient and implementing agency. There is no multi- or bilateral agencies co-financing this project.

The project MENA- Desert Ecosystems and Livelihoods Knowledge Sharing and Coordination Project has changed to Active

2013-05-30T04:00:00.000Z

The project MENA- Desert Ecosystems and Livelihoods Knowledge Sharing and Coordination Project has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The objective of the Desert Ecosystems and Livelihoods Knowledge Sharing and Coordination Project for Middle East and North Africa is to strengthen cooperation among selected organizations of beneficiary countries in areas of sustainable management of desert ecosystems. The project has three components. (1) Knowledge management and sharing component will aim to establish and strengthen existing networks between national institutions to encourage management and sharing of knowledge on key issues related to sustainable desert ecosystem management and their associated livelihoods. (2) Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) will focus on: (i) Establishing a programmatic level monitoring system for the MENA-DELP program based on aggregating national project level indicators and results, (ii) establish a specific M&E system for the regional project. (3) Project coordination component will mainly finance project management fees of the Sahara and Sahel Observatory, as well as all costs related to the organization of meetings of the Steering Committee of the project and audit costs.

The project Second Education Development Policy Loan has changed to Active

2013-05-30T04:00:00.000Z

The project Second Education Development Policy Loan has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The wave of democratization that the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has experienced since the start of the Arab Spring has also reached Morocco, although its experience has been a reasonably peaceful one with social demonstrations taking place regularly across the country during 2011 and only sporadic outbursts of violence noted. This social movement started with calls for political change, a curbing of corruption and a more inclusive development process. In March 2011, the King of Morocco proposed a broad and comprehensive package of political reforms that were approved in a constitutional referendum held on July 1, 2011. The new constitution sets the basis for a more open and democratic society, provides mechanisms for the construction of a modern state of law and institutions, and lays the foundation for extended regionalization. These changes have followed on the heels of other reforms already undertaken since the current King came to power. Successive national governments have overseen an impressive political, economic and social transformation, with a marked acceleration of structural reforms in recent years. Sound macroeconomic management has produced solid foundations, and the country was on a recovery path from the stagnation of the 1990s when a series of adverse external shocks hit the economy, starting with the 2008 financial crisis. However, as shown, none of these factors provided total immunity to the rising tide of dissatisfaction and to the pressure from the outstanding development issues and challenges. The program aims to strengthen the schools sector's institutional arrangements in the short term, in ways that in the medium term will: (i) increase access to school education, especially for rural girls and boys at the lower secondary level; (ii) improve the quality of teaching and learning in primary and lower secondary education; and (iii) enhance efficiency in decentralized governance of the schools sector.

The project WBG - PRDP Support V has changed to Active

2013-05-30T04:00:00.000Z

The project WBG - PRDP Support V has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The Fifth Palestinian Reform and Development Plan Project (DPG V) is a standalone operation aimed at supporting the Palestinian Authority (PA) in implementing some of the reform priorities under its National Development Plan (NDP) as well as some recently emerged reform priorities. DPG V will support the reforms designed under the NDP in two broad areas: (a) strengthening the PA's fiscal position; and (b) laying the institutional foundations for improved governance and transparency in the public sector. The operation supports efforts seen as crucial by the PA to overcoming the urgent fiscal issues, reducing the PA's reliance on foreign assistance for recurrent expenditures while increasing the efficiency of government expenditure programs. In addition, the operation supports improving governance and transparency in the areas that are important for better management of public finances. DPG V, as envisaged in the 2012-2014 interim strategy note, remains a key instrument aimed at supporting the PA's strategic priorities, advancing the policy dialogue, and also providing essential financing for the PA's budget.

The project GZ-Second Municipal Development Project has changed to Active

2013-05-25T04:00:00.000Z

The project GZ-Second Municipal Development Project has changed to Active. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The objective of the Second Municipal Development Project for West Bank and Gaza is to improve the Recipient's municipal management practices for better municipal transparency and service delivery. There are four components to the project, the first component being municipal grants for capital investment. This component will allocate performance-based grants for capital investment service provision, per mandate of municipalities defined in the local council's law no. 1 of 1997, for sectors described as eligible in the Operations Manual (OM) as well as for operating expenditures for municipalities in Gaza, and will be implemented in two cycles of approximately 18 months each. The second component is the support to municipal innovations and efficiency. This component pilots learning and innovation for municipal development, including implementation of Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) policy decisions. The third component is the capacity building for municipalities and Municipal Development and Lending Fund (MDLF). Finally, the fourth component is the project implementation support and management costs. This component will finance goods and consultants services for monitoring and evaluation, outreach and communication and local technical consultants for the engineering supervision of component one and the MDLF management fee.

The project Micro and Small Enterprise Revitalization Project has changed to Dropped

2013-05-21T04:00:00.000Z

The project Micro and Small Enterprise Revitalization Project has changed to Dropped. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Second DPL in support of the Plan Maroc Vert has changed to Closed

2013-05-21T04:00:00.000Z

The project Second DPL in support of the Plan Maroc Vert has changed to Closed. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The development objective of the Second Development Policy Loan in support of the Plan Maroc Vert Program for Morocco is to increase the agri-food sector's productivity and diversification with the goal of maintaining higher rates of agricultural growth and employment. The Development Policy Loan (DPL) is a key component of the current Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) (FY10-FY13). It also contributes directly to the three pillars around which the World Bank's program is structured: 1) growth, competitiveness, and employment; 2) service delivery to citizens; and 3) sustainable development in a changing climate. The program supports an ambitious Government initiative in the agriculture sector and builds on extensive dialogue between the World Bank and the Government of Morocco (GoM) and is underpinned by a large body of analytical work and sector operations. The program has benefited from a broad range of analytical work recently completed by the World Bank and others. The program also builds on the outcomes and experience from past and ongoing World Bank operations in water and irrigation, integrated rural development, human development, and public sector administration reform.

The project TN-Local Governance is now in the pipeline.

2013-05-15T04:00:00.000Z

The project TN-Local Governance is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Virtual Market Place for MENA SME Export Development is now in the pipeline.

2013-05-14T04:00:00.000Z

The project Virtual Market Place for MENA SME Export Development is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Yemen: Preparation of SREP Investment Plan is now in the pipeline.

2013-05-09T04:00:00.000Z

The project Yemen: Preparation of SREP Investment Plan is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project MA-Partnership for Market Readiness is now in the pipeline.

2013-05-02T04:00:00.000Z

The project MA-Partnership for Market Readiness is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

World Bank - IMF Chorus Concert

2013-05-01T17:00:00.000Z

The World Bank-IMF Chorus is presenting it's spring concerts of favourite choruses from around the world on:

- Tuesday, May 7 at 1pm in IMF HQ2 Conference Hall
- Wednesday, May 8 at 1pm in the WB MC Atrium

Admission is free - guest passes needed for non-Bank & IMF badge holders.

http://www.wbimfchorus.org/

The project Financial Infrastructure Project is now in the pipeline.

2013-04-05T04:00:00.000Z

The project Financial Infrastructure Project is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Additional Financing for Social Fund for Development IV is now in the pipeline.

2013-04-04T04:00:00.000Z

The project Additional Financing for Social Fund for Development IV is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The objective of the Fourth Social Fund for Development Project for Yemen are to (i) improve access to basic services; (ii) enhance economic opportunities; and (iii) reduce the vulnerability of the poor. These objectives will remain the same for the additional financing. The additional financing will scale up Labor-Intensive Works (LIW) Program and introduce two new subcomponents to: (i) support LIW targeted to unemployed youth; and (ii) introduce cash-for-work opportunities for youth and women in the delivery of social services. It will provide financing of: (i) labor-intensive works that provide income opportunities and work experience to young people and at the same time improve the communities' access to public infrastructure, and (ii) social services to be provided by young people and women at the community level that provide income opportunities and work experience to young people and women and at the same time improve the communities' access to basic social services.

The project Lebanon Fiscal Management Reform 2 is now in the pipeline.

2013-03-19T04:00:00.000Z

The project Lebanon Fiscal Management Reform 2 is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project EGYPT Energy/Social Safety Nets Sector Reforms Technical Assistance is now in the pipeline.

2013-03-07T05:00:00.000Z

The project EGYPT Energy/Social Safety Nets Sector Reforms Technical Assistance is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

The project Gov't and Civil Society Organization Partnership is now in the pipeline.

2013-02-28T05:00:00.000Z

The project Gov't and Civil Society Organization Partnership is now in the pipeline. To see more information, see the project information in the World Bank project database

World Bank Explores Ways to Help Lebanon Counter Impact of Regional Turmoil

2012-09-20T17:58:45.000Z

Beirut, Lebanon September 20, 2012 - The World Bank Group is committed to extending technical and financial support to the Lebanese Government as it addresses economic and social challenges compounded by regional instability. The strong message of support came from the Bank’s Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa, Inger Andersen as she wrapped up a two-day official visit to Beirut on Thursday.

“Lebanon is going through difficult times, some of this driven by factors beyond its control,” Andersen said. “In all my meetings with senior officials, with the private sector and with representatives of civil society, we discussed these multiple challenges but we also talked about opportunities in Lebanon which can be exploited to spur growth and create inclusive job opportunities.”

Andersen was accompanied on this trip by Ferid Belhaj, a Bank executive and lawyer by profession, who assumed his post as Country Director for Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iran and Iraq on September 17, 2012. Belhaj’s predecessor, Hedi Larbi, was also part of the delegation.

The team met Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Minister of Finance Mohammad Safadi, and Minister of Energy and Water Gebran Bassil. The delegation also heard from key private sector actors and civil society representatives about the difficulties they are facing, especially the inadequate economic infrastructure services that are impeding growth.

“Naturally, I took this opportunity to thank the Lebanese authorities for their cooperation and excellent relationships we had during the four years I spent in Lebanon,” said Larbi, who has held the Country Director position since December 1, 2007. “We discussed with government officials the development challenges Lebanon is facing and how the Bank can further help Lebanon address the priority structural and fiscal reforms to gradually restore fiscal stability and put the country on a more sustainable and inclusive growth path.”

“This visit and the time afforded us by the many officials and citizens we have met, has been a timely reintroduction for me to Lebanon,” said Belhaj. “I realize I come to this post at a particularly challenging time but this multiplies the World Bank’s energy to work in partnership to mobilize the resources needed to achieve Lebanon’s social and economic objectives.”

Before assuming his Middle East post, Belhaj, a Tunisian national, was Country Director the World Bank’s Pacific Department, where he scaled up Bank engagement in small and fragile states. Between 2007 and 2010, he was the Bank’s Special Representative to the United Nations in New York, where he engaged with UN agencies on agendas, ranging from climate change to fragile and post-conflict states and the global financial, economic and food crises.

Contacts:

Beirut: Mona Ziade (+961)1-987800 ext 239 mziade@worldbank.org

Washington: Lara Saade, (202) 473-9887 lsaade@worldbank.org;
For Broadcast Requests: Natalia Cieslik, (202) 458-9369, ncieslik@worldbank.org

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World Bank Warns Of Deepening Palestinian Fiscal Crisis

2012-09-19T06:00:00.000Z

Calls for immediate donor action coupled with freeing of untapped West Bank resources

JERUSALEM, September 19, 2012 – The World Bank's latest report on the Palestinian economy warns of a deepening fiscal crisis in the Palestinian territories, calling on donors to act urgently. In parallel, the report emphasizes that only strong private sector investment will drive sustainable growth and underscores how many layers of physical, administrative and security restrictions now constrain the private sector. Palestinian access to Area C of the West Bank is a key to unlocking some of this private sector opportunity.

The World Bank published its Palestinian Economic Monitoring Report today, a document prepared twice a year to inform the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), a forum of donors to the Palestinian Authority (PA). The AHLC is due to meet in New York on September 23.

Entitled Fiscal Crisis, Economic Prospects: The Imperative for Economic Cohesion in the Palestinian Territories, the report highlights the untapped resources of the West Bank as a potential source of private sector growth, particularly urgent against the background of economic slowdown, reduced donor aid, and few positive prospects in the broader political environment.

Noting the damaging economic effects of geographical fragmentation, the report underscores the significance of Area C which is the only contiguous land in the West Bank, connecting 227 smaller separate and heavily residential areas. This 60% of the West Bank, which remains under full Israeli control, holds most of the agricultural lands, natural resources, and land reserves of the West Bank. Putting these resources to work can provide an economic foundation for growth in important sectors of the economy, says the report. Access to Area C has the potential to play a central role in the development of businesses such as construction, telecommunications, agriculture, and tourism.

“Donors do need to act urgently in the face of a serious fiscal crisis facing the PA in the short term,” said Mariam Sherman, World Bank Country Director for the West Bank and Gaza. “But even with this financial support, sustainable economic growth cannot be achieved without a removal of the barriers preventing private sector development, particularly in Area C.”

Sherman stressed that “the most important message of this report is that economic cohesion is not achievable when the areas in which people have to operate and go about their business are crisscrossed by impediments.”

To access the full report, please visit: www.worldbank.org/we

Contacts:
In Washington: Dale Lautenbach, +1(202)-473-3405, dlautenbach@worldbank.org
In Jerusalem: Mary Koussa, +(972) 2 2366500, mkoussa@worldbank.org

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Strengthening Awareness and Building Capacity Through the Deauville Action Plan on Asset Recovery

2012-09-11T08:00:00.000Z

AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY:

Leonard McCarthy, Integrity Vice President, The World Bank Group

Arab Forum on Asset Recovery

Doha, Qatar

September 11, 2012

Your Excellencies, esteemed guests, and ladies and gentlemen:

On behalf of the Stolen Assets Recovery (StAR) initiative – and on behalf of the World Bank Group – it is a great pleasure to join in welcoming you to this important conference.

And it is an honor to salute the foundation of the Arab Forum on Asset Recovery.

It is significant that the word “justice” is central in the logo for this Forum – symbolizing the moral, legal and social imperatives that inspire this event.

Justice will not be complete until the funds looted by corrupted officials have been returned to the people to whom they rightfully belong.

The title of our gathering, the Arab Forum on Asset Recovery, has more than symbolic significance.

This must be an Arab Forum on the imperative of asset recovery. This is an opportunity for the countries of the Arab world to take ownership of this priority.

Restoration of the wealth they truly own is a vital factor in restoring social cohesion among the countries of the Arab Spring

In a strong signal of determination, the Arab world has committed itself to taking this mission forward. By following through, the Arab community will “raise the bar” for good governance in the countries where democracy is now taking root.

The return of these stolen assets is – obviously – not an Arab-only issue. This Forum is the place for partnership and collective action – bringing together the G8, the Deauville Partners, and officials from throughout this region to coordinate our action-steps.

This forum convenes at a critical moment: when public expectations are high, and when the thirst for justice is acute – but when the actual return of assets remains limited.

Although we have made progress, the public has elevated expectations for quick and decisive action. The same social media that helped propel the Arab Spring are now monitoring the actions of the region’s new governments – and are watching what we do here this week. Some of today’s public expectations for speed may be hard to meet – yet the demand for accountability is surely legitimate.

For countries in transition, managing public expectations will be difficult. No one knows better than they do that their public legitimacy is at stake as they seek to rectify historical abuses.

Achieving results can be accomplished, because the legal and institutional frameworks that now exist are adequate to the task – even if they can be further strengthened. The key factor that is missing, however, is the technical capacity to use those frameworks as effectively as possible.

In this context, the StAR initiative is honored to be one of the co-convenors of this conference.

As a joint initiative of two global bodies – the World Bank and the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime – we can deliver knowledge and guidance about worldwide best practices, uniting expertise in law enforcement, legal processes and judicial procedures.

As you may know, StAR’s work is built atop three pillars:

advocacy;
partnerships to foster collective responsibility and promote action; and
technical support, to create channels for information-sharing, and to build capacity on asset recovery.

StAR is ready to help you in the development of a coordinated strategy and operational steps – including improving domestic coordination; integrating and improving mutual legal assistance approaches; and providing training programs for practitioners. We can serve as a facilitator for governments, in all aspects of asset recovery.

Through an active “quiet diplomacy,” StAR has been engaged with Arab countries in transition – including Egypt, Tunisia and Libya – in seeking the return of assets from various jurisdictions, most represented here today.

What the Forum can ultimately deliver belongs first and foremost to all of you.

Both the Deauville process and other international fora – not least the Conference of State Parties of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, convened in Marrakesh last year – have already provided clear roadmaps. Vital and necessary steps have already been taken.

Still, we need to collectively change gears and to make concrete progress on international cooperation in pursuing ongoing cases.

From the StAR perspective, allow me to add some ideas about the way forward.

This Forum must be an opportunity to “raise the bar,” operationally. We need to ensure that – there will be the appropriate depth of dialogue among policymakers, criminal-justice practitioners and public advocates.

The test will be the actual return of stolen assets. We hear assertions that the legal frameworks are now in place and that practitioners are actively mobilized. Results, however, are still limited.

Western and regional financial centers should take a more pro-active approach. Taking a “wait and see” attitude is too passive, especially for countries that have adopted stronger anti-money-laundering laws. Take action on your own; open your own proceedings; pro-actively reach out to transition countries. Make sure that all the needed resources are mobilized to conduct your own investigations and to reply swiftly to requests for assistance.

Of course, financial centers can only conduct successful proceedings if they receive evidence of the illegal origin of the assets.

The transition countries requesting asset-tracing, seizure and recovery must be more pro-active in bringing evidence, seeking requests and closing the gap – linking specific assets to specific criminal behaviors.

We often hear that mutual legal assistance processes are broken. This is an exaggeration. Due process is, of course, critical. But once the legal process has run its course, with all its safeguards met, stolen assets must be returned.

Our experience is this: What is too often described as excessive bureaucratic delay is actually a reflection of a lack of mutual understanding – and a lack of effort by practitioners (on both sides) to engage their counterparts before filing requests for assistance. Such a full engagement will only happen if practitioners are strongly supported and encouraged in “going the extra mile”.

We have a unique opportunity here this week. Policymakers and international institutions can reinvigorate the political will to achieve results. We can identify remaining barriers and begin to remove them. We can build trust and improved understanding among practitioners managing the cases.

In practical terms:

We can examine where we all stand in using the international cooperation and confiscation frameworks – and we can be creative in how we use and improve them.

We can make sure that domestic coordination and exchange of information is effective – and we can identify the remaining gaps.

We can identify technical-assistance needs and address them in a coordinated fashion.

And we can discuss, bilaterally, actual international cooperation cases, to agree on priorities and action plans.

Success in resolving cases and returning assets will define our success.

As you prepare to take advantage of the resources that this conference brings together, StAR will mobilize all its expertise to support you, helping build trust among practitioners through quiet diplomacy.

I am confident that this conference will honor the aspirations of the people who have fought so hard to win their freedom. . .

and that the Arab Forum on Asset Recovery will fulfill the hopes of people everywhere who yearn to see that justice will be done.

Thank you very much.

Improving Employability for First Time Job Seekers

2012-09-10T12:00:00.000Z

New Entrants to Work Program (NEW)

Beirut, September 10, 2012 - The Government of Lebanon (GOL) launched today an innovative program to improve the employment prospects of first-time job seekers. The $2.2 million New Entrants to Work (NEW) Program will be managed by the National Employment Office (NEO) under the supervision of the Ministry of Labor with technical and financial assistance from the World Bank. The launch was held at the Grand Serail and participants included public organizations and civil society representatives, private sector experts, academics, and members of the media.

The NEW program offers unemployed first-time job seekers life skills training, counseling, and placement services combined with twelve months on-the-job training (OJT) in a private firm. The OJT training will support soft and life skills through using coaching and job-search techniques. Employers who employ first time job seekers will be reimbursed fully for the twelve months of social security contributions that they would have paid to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF).

“One of the major challenges facing the Lebanese economy is the creation of jobs for the youth, and namely for the graduates” said Najib Mikati, Prime Minister. “Making use of the skills, expertise and talents in Lebanon is an absolute necessity in order to reach high and sustainable growth rates to improve the productivity, reduce the migration and reinforce coexistence and civil peace.

Building on the strength of Lebanon’s NGO sector and its vibrant private sector, the program aims to promote public-private partnerships in addressing Lebanon’s youth employment issues.

“This initiative represents the building block of a road map to remove the obstacles facing the creation of new jobs for the youth and reducing unemployment,” said Salim Jreissati, Minister of Labor. “It will not only help young people find a job but will also provide them with much needed training on life skills, soft skills and on the job training.”

The combination of financial incentives for employers, targeted training for workers (especially in life-skills), and intermediation (placement in jobs) is expected to have a positive impact on the employability of first-time job seekers. It will enhance their labor market opportunities, and ultimately contribute to reduced migration of skilled youth. A rigorous impact evaluation design has been imbedded in the program to guide policy-makers in scaling up the program.

“The labor market in Lebanon is characterized by high unemployment, particularly of youth, and long transitions from school or university to work,” said Haneen Sayed, World Bank Human Development Coordinator and Task Team Leader of the program. “Youth unemployment in Lebanon stood at close to 34 percent in 2010, and it takes almost one year for first time university graduates to find a job.”

Specific outcomes of the NEW program include:

· Breaking initial barriers in the transition from school/university to work;

· Improving the skills of 1,600 first time job seekers in a 75-hour comprehensive training program that comprises learning modules geared to job search coaching and placement assistance, competency life skills, team work, soft-skills, and communication training;

· Linking of training content with the requirements of the private sector in order to raise employability of young, first-time job seekers;

· Enhancing intermediation services (job placement); and

· Capacity enhancement of the NEO.

“The NEW Program is designed with clear eligibility and selection criteria for both participants and employers,” said Jean Ai Fadel, Director General of NEO. “It will be based on cost-efficient procedures of registration, enrollment, payment, and monitoring systems. At the NEO, we are proud to be launching this program which will contribute to building our capacity, as well as deepen our cooperation with NGOs and the private sector.”

Contacts:

In Washington: Lara Saade, (202) 473-9887, lsaade@worldbank.org;

In Beirut: Zeina El Khalil, (961) 1 987800 ext. 234, zelkhalil@worldbank.org

For more information, please visit: http://www.worldbank.org/lb

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Crossing Boundaries

2012-09-06T23:45:00.000Z

As prepared for delivery

Friday, September 7, 2012

World Conservation Congress

Jeju, Korea

Rachel Kyte, Vice President, Sustainable Development

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen - I am honored to have been asked to make the keynote address at this vital gathering of conservation thinking, leadership and action. I am particularly delighted to be here as I had the privilege and honor to work at IUCN a number of years ago. It feels good to be back again!

This Congress brings together some of the world’s smartest thinkers on the policy and practice of conservation and environmental protection. If anyone is going to guide the world in new ways of thinking and acting, it is this group of 7,000 or more which traverses all spheres - private, public, civil society, multilateral, large, small, left, right.

You, as a group, are not at the fringes of decision-making - you are at the very heart of it. Your scientific research, dedication, pursuit of better policies and connections to community all go towards much better, more informed decision-making.

Over the last few years I have had the opportunity to cross some of the boundaries that very often define our perceptions and determine the work in our institutions. My perspectives changed as I moved from IUCN to working with private companies during my time at the World Bank’s private sector arm - the IFC - and they’re changing again now as Vice President for Sustainable Development at the World Bank.

Today, I am convinced that we will have to make a bigger effort to cross boundaries – between our organizations, across public and private sectors and within civil society - so that we reach a better future for our planet.

Let’s take a look at just some of the evidence of environmental decline before us. Evidence is one of the many things that the World Bank and IUCN share.

· The number and size of populations of the world’s species have decreased by almost a third over the last 100 years and this is projected to continue decreasing

· Over 60 percent of ecosystems are in worse shape now than 50 years ago

· 85 percent of ocean fisheries are fully exploited or over-exploited or depleted

· The condition of coral reefs has deteriorated by 38 percent since 1980

· 80 percent of people live in areas where the quality of rivers is threatened

· Climate change is worsening everything. Flood disasters increased by 230 percent and drought disasters by 38 per cent in the 20 years to the early 2000s.

At the same time that this assault on nature has been occurring, we have enjoyed an unrivalled period of economic growth which has seen 660 million people lifted out of poverty in the past 20 years. Don’t get me wrong - we are not saying we need to stop growth to protect nature. Rather, we are calling for a different kind of growth - a greener and more inclusive growth.

An indispensable part of this will be realizing the potential of ecosystems within our economies and to put nature at the foundation of economic strategies. Nature needs to be firmly on the agendas of finance ministers and discussed in board rooms with the focus on building the public-private partnerships to invest in our natural wealth.

Are we ready to do this? Increasingly the World Bank Group is. Now let me share with you three reasons for my cautious optimism that others are ready too.

Firstly, governments are increasingly stepping up - whether by increasing the number and extent of areas under protection or by better recognizing the value of nature and ecosystem services.

Governments, however, are facing daily trade-offs - for example - building a road through a park so that farmers can have better access to markets and/or conserving a road-less national park. Or, they’re weighing up a marina in a mangrove area to boost tourism versus protecting it for its fish breeding, storm protection and carbon storage values.

Effective conservation cannot and will not be driven just by conservation for conservation’s sake. Fortunately, governments increasingly recognize that maintaining and, eventually, accounting for their natural capital comes down to a question of social and economic development. There may not be simple win-wins all the time; but there may be approaches that can come close enough.

We are seeing more and more good examples. In the State of Acre in the northwestern corner of Brazil, the State Government has been making a concerted effort to bring services to its dispersed rural population and to move away from a growth model based on extraction of forest products and expansive agriculture. Where previously 90 percent of Acre’s timber extraction was illegal, now the majority comes from approved forest management plans. Real GDP has increased by over 44 percent and deforestation rates have declined by 70 percent. Acre is showing that safeguarding a state’s natural wealth will also help lift its people out of poverty.

In Liberia, the government has installed a chain of custody system for exporting logs that is helping reduce illegal logging and bringing in much-needed funding for conservation. The Government is also enforcing fishing regulations and arresting vessels found to be fishing illegally.

To manage trade-offs, governments need better information on the economic and social effects of their decisions. More and more governments are embracing the need to use natural capital accounts alongside GDP. At the World Bank Group, we are working with countries from Botswana to the Philippines to put the value of natural capital into the center of their economic decision making. After the 50:50 Campaign at Rio, 62 countries have signed on to support natural capital accounting along with the heads of close to 90 companies. These companies are doing this for competitive reasons - they need to be able to value their assets over the long term.

That brings me to the second reason for my optimism -- the growing leadership coming from parts of the private sector, be they small businesses and local entrepreneurs or Fortune 500 companies.

I see real traction emerging from the advent of rigorous performance standards and principles for corporate behavior. For example, we are beginning to see evidence that the revised IFC Performance Standard on Biodiversity is driving major change both at corporate headquarters and, more importantly, on the ground.

Companies working in developing countries are increasingly investing in biodiversity expertise, in community development, environmental restoration and long-term conservation capacity building. The big shift is that companies are beginning to see this as more than reputational risk management and rather as a way to improve their operations and manage business risk, a key part of creating value. Mainstreaming nature conservation across their operations makes good business sense. Why? Because many companies depend on freshwater, genetic resources, climate regulation, and natural hazard protection to run their businesses successfully and to see their profits grow.

As well as making good business sense, conserving nature and maintaining the resilience of ecosystems upon which people and business depend, allows companies to build trust in the communities in which they operate and among stakeholders abroad. This creates something many call a “social license to operate”.

We are beginning to see more and more companies engage with conservation organizations and external experts to better understand the environment in which they are working. This has inspired some companies to go beyond the minimization of project impacts but also to consider how they might contribute to conservation more broadly.

One example is Rio Tinto which launched its biodiversity strategy at this Congress in 2004. That strategy committed the company to making a Net Positive Impact on biodiversity through its operations. For the past seven years, the company has been piloting the strategy - working alongside government, conservation groups and civil society in Madagascar to build public sector capacity, develop livelihood alternatives, and establish offsets to conserve high biodiversity value areas.

Other examples include Shell in Gabon and Peru LNG which have been working together with the Smithsonian Institution to develop science-based assessment and monitoring of project impacts.

I also see the first few encouraging examples from the finance sector in integrating nature and ecosystem services protection into their investments.

That takes me to my third reason for optimism - that the need for action is overcoming global political sclerosis.

Rio+20 confirmed for me that while at the global level we lack political leadership today to gain consensus, global inaction is being overwhelmed by the ideas, the innovation and the real commitment to action from smart policymakers, city mayors, community leaders and CEOs.

Like-minded coalitions across sectors emerged on almost all issues. People gravitated to ideas and approaches that promised action - whether that was about ocean health, natural capital accounting, access to sustainable energy or reducing short-term climate pollutants.

For the more than 1000 business executives who attended Rio, the message was that action on sustainability is all about future markets, future products, future employees, future investors, and competitiveness linked to sustainability as shared value.

There was an almost overwhelming sense that while we need global governance for ultimate speed and scale, we cannot afford to wait for international agreements to do what everyone knows needs to be done. For every square bracket negotiated, a species is lost and that window of opportunity gets smaller and smaller.

…………………

So, while I have these reasons for cautious optimism --- I am also speaking from a place of urgency. To address the challenges ahead, each and every one of us will have to cross boundaries and we in the conservation community will need to move collectively outside our comfort zones. To this end, I have three appeals.

First to governments: Governments have responsibilities to their citizens that are measured in units of finance – jobs, tax receipts, GDP. We are not naïve: There can be and will be tensions between conservation and development; that’s why public servants need to be armed with the tools and information they need to make fully informed decisions. And that’s why those of you here who work in government should unpack the economic benefits of conservation and translate them into real numbers through natural capital accounting to transform conservation from a discrete sector to an engine of inclusive green growth.

Second to the Private Sector: To be part of the solution, companies need to raise the profile of nature conservation in their boardrooms and recognize the value of nature to their bottom lines. On the ground, companies need to commit to best management practices which will sometimes mean working beyond their immediate project areas to offset impacts and to secure supply chains. This raises technical, political and governance challenges which is why companies need to reach out and offer a hand in partnership to governments, to conservation organizations and even to each other. We hear from the private sector the need for a level playing field when it comes to best practice in biodiversity management. A coordinated and loud voice from industry groups towards government regulators might be part of the solution.

We also need to find ways to bring to scale financial instruments like green bonds, conservation banking, subsidy reform, license to operate agreements for generating new potential sources of support so that good practice can be rewarded with access to capital.

Third to Civil Society: Very often, civil society, conservation organizations and academic institutions are the backbone of any commitment to conserving nature.

But it is important to remember that it’s governments that have the main responsibility for the stewardship of natural assets. These are their citizen’s natural assets; governments must manage them. The rest of us – civil society, donors and philanthropists – must work together, provide them support while demanding transparency and holding them to account, so that they can do more and do it better.

We in the conservation community need to see the private sector as full partners for solutions and not just a threat or a fundraising opportunity. For example, in public private partnerships - if we were able to develop aggregated offsets, is the conservation community collectively ready to provide the means for verification?

Across all these areas of engagement, the World Bank Group stands ready to do its part and to do more:

We entered the debate on green growth in May 2012 through our report ‘Inclusive Green Growth: The Pathway to Sustainable Development’. We want to contribute, in particular by focusing on the inclusiveness of green growth, on the importance of sound fiscal policies - like the removal of inefficient fuel subsidies - and on ensuring that nature considerations are taken into account in economic decision-making. Our work on green growth is, importantly, supported by the Korean Government.

With new energy and emphasis around Natural Capital Accounting stemming from Rio, it is crucial to keep up the political support and momentum, attract key new country partners, and visibly demonstrate action - including through our global partnership called WAVES.

We also want to do more to streamline nature considerations into our own operations by coordinating the implementation of the IFC’s Performance Standards and the World Bank’s operational policies. And I expect that the Bank Group will work more on aggregated offsets as a means of bringing public and private interests together to conserve at scale within a transparent framework.

We are also working on enhancing environmental law enforcement to ensure that the benefits of nature accrue to national economies and local communities - not thugs and organized crime.

Conclusion

Ladies and Gentlemen, as we begin this Congress:

· Let’s agree that we need to do more, better and with more far-reaching consequences

· Let’s together move away from our ardent attachment to old ideologies, old attitudes that stop us from finding solutions together. What we need today is innovation, communication and partnerships between governments, communities, financial institutions, companies and conservation organizations.

· The type and range of solutions will be as diverse as species and ecosystems. Just as nature is not just a set of charismatic species, we will need more than a set of boutique projects and anecdotes to show large-scale impact. We will need to prioritize without devaluing any one community’s chance of life. We will need brave thinkers at the table, all types of partnerships, people with the humility and patience to make them work. Who better than those of us already humbled by the glory of nature and the complexity of its life support?

· Let’s cross our boundaries together.

· I look forward to being with you every step of the way.

Transform, Innovate, and Connect: A New Strategy for Information and Communication Technology

2012-07-25T12:15:00.000Z

July 25, 2012

The World Bank Group aims to help developing countries use ICT for greater development impact.

A dramatic increase in use of mobile phones and the Internet; plunging prices of computing and mobile internet devices; the increasing prevalence of social media: these are some of the rapid changes seen in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector over the last decade.

The World Bank Group’s new strategy for the ICT sector for the period 2012-2015 reflects this new context. It aims to help developing countries use ICT to transform delivery of basic services, drive innovations and productivity gains, and improve competitiveness.

“Information and communication technologies can help reduce poverty, boost economic growth, and improve accountability and governance,” explains World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development Rachel Kyte.

Three Priority Areas

The new strategy emphasizes the transformative potential of ICT – in areas such as accountability, energy, and health – while maintaining a steady focus on ICT-enabled innovation and ICT infrastructure. Bank Group support will be directed to three priority areas:

Transformation: Making development more open and accountable, for instance, by facilitating citizen feedback to governments and service providers; and improving delivery of services, such as education, health, and financial services.

Innovation: Developing competitive IT-based service industries and fostering ICT innovation across the economy – with a focus on job creation, especially for women and youth.

Connectivity: Leveraging private investments to help scale up affordable access to broadband – including for women, disabled citizens, disadvantaged communities, and people living in remote and rural areas.

“The World Bank Group’s new strategy will help our client countries take advantage of the opportunities that ICT offers across all sectors of the economy, drawing on our unique expertise in public-private partnerships in the ICT sector.”

Working with client countries

The new strategy builds on the Bank Group’s experience working with client countries on ICT sector reforms, infrastructure development, and electronic government:

Over the 2000s, Bank support for ICT sector reforms helped attract an estimated $30 billion in private investment for mobile network infrastructure in the least developed countries. The IFC’s $2.3 billion in telecommunications infrastructure investments and MIGA’s $550 million in political risk guarantees also supported private investment in mobile service providers in difficult and high-risk environments.
Bank Group support for ICT applications has grown rapidly over the last decade, and over 70 percent of the 1,700 projects in the Bank’s active portfolio now have ICT components.
Since 2007, the Bank Group has intensified its support for public-private partnerships for broadband and high-speed Internet, helping bring down retail prices and increasing the take-up of services, in some instances by a factor of 10.

Stakeholders from 17 low- and middle-income countries and four OECD countries provided inputs for the new strategy through a series of face-to-face and online consultations. The document also draws on a review by the Bank Group’s Independent Evaluation Group.

For Rashad-Rudolf Kaldany, IFC Vice President for Global Industries, “The Strategy recognizes the vital role of the private sector in improving access to information infrastructure and services in developing countries.” He explains that “IFC works with the private sector as an advisor, financier, and standard setter to help unlock the potential of ICT for development.”

Jose Luis Irigoyen, the World Bank’s Director for Transport, Water, and Information and Communication Technologies, underlines how “ICT offers new tools to directly address poverty by providing access to information, contributing to pro-poor market developments such as microfinance and mobile money, and equalizing opportunities in rural areas.”

Collaborating across the Bank Group

Under the new strategy, the World Bank, IFC, and MIGA will work together to assist countries in unlocking the opportunities offered by ICT.

For instance, the World Bank will provide support for appropriate policy, legal, and regulatory frameworks, as well as catalytic investment in ICT backbone infrastructure; IFC will provide financing and advisory services to mobile operators; and MIGA will provide guarantees to support the roll-out of telecommunications networks and services.

“MIGA has contributed to the rapid growth of access to ICT services in emerging countries by mitigating the political risk of investments,” says Michel Wormser, MIGA’s Vice President and COO.

He adds that, “Under the new WBG strategy, MIGA will make available its insurance capacity to further accelerate ICT investments in higher-risk countries, notably fragile and post-conflict countries, where ICT will be key to growth, job creation, sharing of knowledge, and governance.”

The ICT strategy will adopt a new approach to implementation, including country diagnostics to help prioritize Bank Group interventions at the country level and leverage more partnerships with external sources of expertise. A results-based framework will be used to track progress.

In this video, Rachel Kyte, Vice President for Sustainable Development, speaks about how
the World Bank will leverage ICTs in its work.

RELATED RESOURCES

Promoting Economic Growth through Trade and Integration

2012-07-25T11:00:00.000Z

High-value production requires highly skilled workers

RAMALLAH, July 25, 2012 – Only a dynamic and rapidly growing private sector will be able to provide the jobs needed by the expanding Palestinian population and generate the revenues required to fund essential government services.

According to a World Bank report released today, Towards Economic Sustainability of a Future Palestinian State: Promoting Private Sector-Led Growth, the removal of Israeli restrictions on access to markets and to natural resources continues to be a prerequisite for the expansion of the Palestinian private sector. However the report argues that there is much that can be done now to improve the business environment in order to support a future Palestinian state.

“The Palestinian Authority has made steady progress in many areas towards establishing the institutions required by a future state but the economy is currently not strong enough to support such a state,” said John Nasir, Lead Economist and Lead Author of the study. “Economic sustainability cannot be based on foreign aid so it is critical for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to increase trade and spur private sector growth.

The report asserts that future growth of the Palestinian economy will depend upon how well it can integrate into the world economy and take advantage of its main riches: its well educated and entrepreneurial population and its location as a gateway between the Arab World and Europe. A Palestinian state could seek to emulate the outward-looking models of the East Asian countries, with trade as the main driver of future growth. High value-added services are particularly promising given the high levels of education and good infrastructure in West Bank and Gaza.

The report explains that to increase trade the PA will need to improve its trade infrastructure to lower costs and increase efficiency. The first step is for the PA to decide what kind of trade regime would work for a future state. This will allow it to plan and develop its trade infrastructure, including the legal environment. Commending ongoing work, the report urges the PA to continue efforts to improve the legal and regulatory environment by passing new legislation and developing the ability to regulate markets. Developing and improving customs operations will also help facilitate trade.

The report celebrates the Palestinian economy’s main resource, its people, who are highly educated and entrepreneurial. That said, for the Palestinian economy to improve its competitiveness and move towards higher value-added products, particularly services, investment in the education system is key to better link learned skills to the needs of the private sector.

“While Israeli restrictions remain the biggest impediment to investing, and most growth comes from donor-funded government spending, there are still positive actions that the PA can take now that will both lay the ground work for a sustainable economy and contribute to growth today and in the future,” said Mariam Sherman, World Bank Country Director.

To download this report or for more information on the World Bank program in West Bank and Gaza, please visit: www.worldbank.org/we

Contacts:
In West Bank and Gaza: Mary Koussa, 972- 2-2366500, mkoussa@worldbank.org
In Washington: Lara Saade, 202- 473-9887, lsaade@worldbank.org

For more information on World Bank activities, please visit:
http://www.worldbank.org/we

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‘Maximizing Mobile’ Report Highlights Development Potential of Mobile Communications

2012-07-17T15:00:00.000Z

July 17, 2012

The new World Bank study says that about three-quarters of planet’s population now has access to a mobile phone.

Around three-quarters of the world’s inhabitants now have access to a mobile phone and the mobile communications story is moving to a new level, which is not so much about the phone but how it is used, says a new report by the World Bank and infoDev, its technology entrepreneurship and innovation program.

The number of mobile subscriptions in use worldwide, both pre-paid and post-paid, has grown from fewer than 1 billion in 2000 to over 6 billion now, of which nearly 5 billion are in developing countries. Ownership of multiple subscriptions is becoming increasingly common, suggesting that their number will soon exceed that of the human population.

Innovation in Action

In India, the state of Kerala’s mGovernment program has deployed over 20 applications and facilitated more than 3 million interactions between the government and citizens since its launch in December 2010.

Kenya has emerged as a leading player in mobile for development, largely due to the success of the M-PESA mobile payment ecosystem. Nairobi-based AkiraChix, for example, provides networking and training for women technologists.

In the West Bank & Gaza, SoukTel’s JobMatch service is helping young people find jobs. College graduates using the service reported a reduction in the time spent looking for employment from an average of twelve weeks to one week or less, and an increase in wages of up to 50 percent.

The report,Information and Communications for Development 2012: Maximizing Mobile, says more than 30 billion mobile applications, or “apps,” were downloaded in 2011 – software that extends the capabilities of phones, for instance to become mobile wallets, navigational aids or price comparison tools.

This trend is also benefiting developing countries where people are increasingly using mobile phones to create new livelihoods and enhance their lifestyles, while governments are using them to improve service delivery and citizen feedback mechanisms.

"Mobile communications offer major opportunities to advance human and economic development – from providing basic access to health information to making cash payments, spurring job creation, and stimulating citizen involvement in democratic processes,” says World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development Rachel Kyte.

She adds that the challenge now is “to enable people, businesses, and governments in developing countries to develop their own locally-relevant mobile applications so they can take full advantage of these opportunities.”

A mobile revolution

This new report, the third in the World Bank’s series on Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for Development, analyzes the growth and evolution of mobile telephony, and the rise of data-based services, including apps, delivered to handheld devices.

The report explores the consequences for development of the emerging “app economy,” especially in agriculture, health, financial services and government, and how it is changing approaches to entrepreneurship and employment.

For Tim Kelly, lead ICT policy specialist at the World Bank and one of the authors of the report, “The mobile revolution is right at the start of its growth curve: mobile devices are becoming cheaper and more powerful while networks are doubling in bandwidth roughly every 18 months and expanding into rural areas.”

“We have included the latest available data and indicators for the mobile sector for more than 150 economies in the report,” explains Shaida Badiee, director of the World Bank’s Development Data Group, adding that, “the spread of mobile phones means we now have data that can be used for cross-country comparisons.”

Developing mobile applications

The report emphasizes the role of governments in enabling mobile application development. In the agriculture sector, for instance, many of the mobile services that are being developed – such as information services for Senegalese farmers or a traceability scheme for coffee-growers in Colombia – are reliant on public funding and are still in pilot stages.

“Government support is needed to develop sound business models, foster ICT skills, and ensure that the infrastructure is in place and affordable,” explains Kelly.

The study also highlights how mobile innovation labs – shared spaces for training developers and incubating start-ups – can help bring new apps to market. For instance, infoDev, in collaboration with the Government of Finland and Nokia, has established five regional mobile innovation labs (mLabs) in Armenia, Kenya, Pakistan, South Africa, and Vietnam.

Click to Read
IC4D 2012:
Maximizing Mobile

“Most businesses based around mobile app technology are at an early stage of development, but may hold enormous employment and economic potential, similar to that of the software industry in the 1980s and 1990s. Supporting the networking and incubation of entrepreneurs is essential to ensure that such potential is tapped,” says Valerie D’Costa, program manager of infoDev.

The study benefits from research funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Government of Finland, the Korea Trust Fund for ICT4D, and UKaid.

Infographic: Maximizing Mobile

The developing world is now more mobile that the developed world, and the near ubiquity brings new opportunities. Click to view the full infographic.

Report highlights

Tim Kelly, one of the authors of the report, presents highlights from the report in the following video:

RELATED RESOURCES

Maximizing Mobile 2012 Infographic

2012-07-17T15:00:00.000Z

Click the images to download high-resolution files

An Additional US$22.3 Million in Budget Support

2012-07-03T14:11:42.000Z

Washington, July 3, 2012 – The World Bank transferred on June 28, 2012 a US$22.3 million to the Palestinian Authority from the Palestinian Reform and Development Plan Trust Fund (PRDP-MDTF), a multi-donor budget support mechanism administered by the Bank.

The funds contributed by the governments of Australia and the United Kingdom will help support the urgent budget needs of the Palestinian Authority (PA), providing inter alia support for education, health care and other vital social services for the Palestinian people and for the economic reforms currently underway.

The World Bank PRDP MDTF was established on April 10, 2008, when an agreement was signed between the World Bank and the Palestinian Authority during the 2008 World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings. It is a central component of a World Bank effort to support the ongoing Palestinian Reform and Development Plan and the National Development Plan. Currently, the PRDP-MDTF donors are the governments of Australia, France, Kuwait, Norway, and the UK.

With the new tranche release, the PRDP-MDTF will have disbursed US$834 million.

For further information on the PRDP MDTF and the World Bank’s program in the West Bank and Gaza, please visit: www.worldbank.org/we

Contacts:
In Washington: Dale Lautenbach, (202) 4588517, dlautenbach@worldbank.org
In West Bank and Gaza: Mary Koussa, (972) 2-2366500, mkoussa@worldbank.org

Zoellick to Join Harvard’s Belfer Center, Peterson Institute

2012-06-27T13:00:00.000Z

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2012—Robert B. Zoellick today said he would join the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University and the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington DC after he steps down as World Bank Group President on June 30.

Zoellick will become the Peterson Institute’s first Distinguished Visiting Fellow as well as also becoming a Senior Fellow at the Belfer Center at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.

“I appreciate the opportunity to engage with the scholars and practitioners at Harvard’s Belfer Center and the Peterson Institute for International Economics,” said Zoellick. “I hope to work on the intersection of economics and security, applying history to policy questions of today. Both institutions have been at the cutting edge of research and policy development, and I have benefited greatly from both in the past.”

As the 11th president of the World Bank, Mr. Zoellick turned around an institution in trouble in 2007, recapitalized the Bank, and expanded financing for the poorest countries following the food, fuel and financial crises of recent years. He modernized the Bank by making it more accountable, flexible, fast-moving, transparent, and focused on good governance and anti-corruption. He has increased representation of developing countries in governance and staffing and encouraged developing countries to set their own priorities rather than have them dictated from the Bank. His record has also been marked by an increased role for the private sector through the bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), which under his leadership has recruited sovereign wealth funds and pension funds to invest in poor countries, especially in Africa.

Before his term at the Bank, Mr. Zoellick served as Vice Chairman, International, of the Goldman Sachs Group as well as Managing Director and Chairman of Goldman Sachs’ Board of International Advisors from 2006-2007. Previously, he was Deputy Secretary of State in 2005-2006 and a member of the Cabinet as U.S. Trade Representative from 2001 to 2005.

From 1985 to 1993, he served at the Treasury and State Departments in various posts, as well as White House Deputy Chief of Staff. He was the lead U.S. official in the "Two-plus-Four" process of German unification in 1989-90 and served as "sherpa" for the preparation of the G-7/8 Economic Summits in 1991-92.

Mr. Zoellick graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Swarthmore College in 1975 and earned a J.D. magna cum laude from the Harvard Law School and a Master of Public Policy (MPP) from the Kennedy School of Government in 1981.

Contacts:

In Washington: Frederick Jones, (202) 473-9336, fjones@worldbank.org

For Broadcast Requests: Mehreen Sheikh, (202) 458-7336, msheikh1@worldbank.org

World Bank Regional Vice President Visits West Bank and Gaza

2012-06-21T15:23:59.000Z

Calls for continued support to Palestinian citizens

JERUSALEM, June 21, 2012 – World Bank Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa Inger Andersen concluded her first official visit to West Bank and Gaza with a firm commitment that the global development institution will continue to support the delivery of economic and social services to the Palestinian people.

Andersen visited a number of World Bank projects designed to improve the quality of life for all Palestinians and to equip young Palestinians with skills to secure a better future.

Seeing the Gaza Emergency Sewage Treatment project, Andersen was impressed by the progress made for the benefit of Gaza's residents: “Despite the challenging circumstances, the work has moved beyond the important initial stage of dealing with immediate health and environment threats and is now tackling long-term solutions for wastewater management," she said. "It is critical that we maintain our focus on development efforts with sustainable outcomes – the partnership demonstrated in this program is a great example."

Andersen also visited a number of projects in the tertiary education system. "What I saw were demonstrable improvements to the learning process itself with students using multimedia tools and engaged in programs designed to be relevant to the job market. This is key to the critical employment challenge across the region. We are proud of these forward-looking projects.”

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and Minister of Finance Nabil Kassis met Andersen and Mariam Sherman, World Bank Country Director for the West Bank and Gaza. They discussed the latest economic developments and future cooperation.

“The World Bank is very concerned about the deepening fiscal crisis in West Bank and Gaza," said Andersen. "A crucial challenge facing Palestinians is how the private sector can be invigorated to provide the many jobs so urgently needed. But of course we recognize that until fundamental changes are made that enable freer movement of people and greater access to resources, efforts to improve investment will remain frustrated.”

During the two-day visit Andersen met a range of senior officials including the Governor of the Palestine Monetary Authority Jihad al-Wazir, representatives of civil society and the private sector and members of the donor community.

“In an environment of protracted uncertainty, the conditions for a well-functioning economy remain extremely challenging,” said Sherman. “The Bank program has adopted a mix of complementary approaches supporting line ministries at the central level and local governments and NGOs at the local level where service provision is critical. Our strategy of engagement supports private sector led-growth and focuses on strengthening public institutions to efficiently manage public finances while ensuring services to citizens."

___________
Andersen, a Danish national, joined the bank in 1999. Prior to becoming Vice President of the Middle East and North Africa, she served as Vice President of Sustainable Development. Andersen’s country experience is extensive, including five years in Sudan, where she also became a student of Arabic. Andersen also worked at the United Nations for 12 years, including in UNDP’s Regional Bureau of Arab States.

Contacts:
In Washington: Dale Lautenbach, 202-473-3405, dlautenbach@worldbank.org
In West Bank and Gaza: Mary Koussa, + (972) 2-2366500, mkoussa@worldbank.org

For more information on the World Bank Program in West Bank and Gaza, visit: www.worldbank.org/we

Innovative Fund to Boost Food Security and Farmer Livelihoods is Launched

2012-06-18T19:04:43.000Z

New Approach to Financing Innovations in Food Security and Agricultural Development Unveiled at G20 Summit in Mexico

AgResults: Innovation in Research and Delivery

LOS CABOS, Mexico (June 18, 2012) – An innovative initiative that will enhance global food security and improve the livelihoods of developing country farmers through prizes and other market-based incentives was announced today by G20 Leaders. With a results-driven funding model that rewards innovators for tackling some of the biggest problems in food security and agricultural development, AgResults addresses global challenges in food security and agriculture by generating market-oriented solutions. The initiative aims to achieve significant improvements in the wellbeing of the poor and vulnerable in developing countries with a fund of up to $100 million, to be administered by the World Bank. The governments of Australia, Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, as well as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, are supporting this effort.

AgResults uses pull mechanisms to encourage innovation through results-based payments such as prizes that are typically paid out when certain objectives or milestones have been met. Such financing mechanisms have seen success in generating innovation and market-oriented solutions in other domains such as healthcare, and AgResults aims to deliver similar gains in global food security and agricultural development.

AgResults was born out of the realization that there is a great need for increased investment in global food security and agriculture, in particular from the private sector. The FAO estimates that world food production must double by 2050 to feed a growing world population, while nearly a billion people suffer from a lack of crucial micronutrients in their diet—a hidden hunger that inhibits the development of children and reduces adult productivity. Recognizing these gaps, leaders at the June 2010 G20 Summit in Toronto committed to exploring innovative, results-focused ways of harnessing private sector innovations in food security and agricultural development in developing countries. This commitment involved a two-year effort by committed partners to develop AgResults, culminating in today’s launch of the initiative in support of the Summit priority of enhancing global food security. AgResults addresses this priority directly through new funding and a focus on bringing new, innovative approaches to bear on global food security issues.

In the coming years, AgResults will launch a series of pilots that address some of the biggest problems in global food security and agricultural development. The initiative’s portfolio of pilots will represent a diverse mix of agriculture and food security issues, testing different types of pull mechanisms in different regions globally. The initial set of pilots, focusing on maize production in Sub-Saharan Africa, include:

· Incentivizing the adoption of on-farm storage technology for smallholder farmers;

· Encouraging innovative distribution of a breakthrough technology to reduce aflatoxin contamination; and

· Building a market for new vitamin A-enhanced varieties of maize.

Additional pilots will be explored in the coming years, potentially including livestock vaccines and fertilizer innovation as well as new ideas related to increasing crop yields, decreasing post-harvest losses, increasing livestock productivity and improving nutrition.

For further information, please visit www.worldbank.org/cfp/agpm

Contacts:

In Washington: Amy Stilwell, (202) 458-4906, astilwell@worldbank.org

In Mexico: Fernanda Zavaleta, 52-55-5480-4252, fzavaleta@worldbank.org

For Broadcast Requests: Natalia Cieslik, (202) 458-9369, ncieslik@worldbank.org

Global Mobility Unaffected by Financial Crisis, as Remittances Remained Resilient

2012-06-13T13:00:00.000Z

WASHINGTON, June 14, 2012 – The global financial crisis of 2008/09 has not sent migrant workers streaming back home, despite worsening employment prospects and anti-immigration rhetoric in some destination countries, says a new book on migration and remittances, published by the World Bank.

In fact, migrants may have mitigated some of the pain of the crisis as they tend to work for lower wages, receive fewer benefits and rely relatively little on the state, says the ‘Migration and Remittances during the Global Financial Crisis and Beyond’ book.

“During the crisis, remittances continued to provide a steady source of foreign currency to developing country economies at a time when foreign aid remained flat and foreign direct investment declined sharply,” said Otaviano Canuto, Vice President, Poverty Reduction and Economic Management, at the World Bank.

Removing restrictions on human mobility may help enhance financial flows among nations and alleviate some of the adverse effect of the crisis, says the book. With migrant workers projected to remit about $399 billion to their home countries during 2012, compared to $372 billion in 2011, remittances are the most tangible link between migration and development.

Although many of the 215 million international migrants are facing worsening employment prospects in some destination countries, particularly high-income Europe, their cash support to families in their home countries has remained resilient, posting, in 2009, the only decline in recent memory. Even then, remittances decreased by a modest 5.2 percent, in sharp contrast with the precipitous declines seen in global private capital flows.

“The resilience of remittances is good news for developing countries as they remain one of the less volatile sources of foreign exchange earnings, particularly for the less developed countries. At the household level, these cash transfers are, in many cases, the only lifeline for families in the home countries,” said Hans Timmer, Director of Development Prospects at the World Bank.

However, despite many years of recording ever-increasing volumes of remittances, leveraging this rather large and growing source of funds for socio-economic development remains a key challenge, with the vast majority of remittances used for maintaining families and for the purchase of consumer goods.

The book, which is the first comprehensive study of remittances during the global financial crisis, is a compilation of 45 separate studies that identify and discuss remittance practices across the world and possibilities for the future. Each study is authored by a different expert who analyzes certain countries and certain aspects of remittances, ranging from patterns of remittance flows to usage of remittances received by communities and households.

The book is co-edited by Dilip Ratha, Manager of the Bank’s Migration and Remittances Unit; Ibrahim Sirkeci, Professor of Transnational Studies and Marketing at Regent’s College, London; and Jeffrey Cohen, Associate Professor of Anthropology at the Ohio State University, USA, who also co-author the book’s first chapter on remittance flows and practices during the crisis.

“Contrary to expectations, we found no evidence of return of migrants, even as the financial crisis reduced employment opportunities in the United States and Europe, with many countries, such as Spain, offering financial incentives to encourage migrants to return,” said Sirkeci.

Migration, in fact, was a strategic response to the financial crisis. Like any political or environmental catastrophe, the financial crisis caused human insecurity and people in developing countries responded by crossing borders or moving domestically to survive the impact of the crisis.

“Remittances have remained resilient and, barring the decline in 2009, have maintained a healthy growth momentum. However, since the book went to press, the global economy continues to experience serious bouts of volatility, which could affect migrant earnings and, hence, remittances,” said Ratha.

For receiving countries, a key factor behind the resilience in remittances is the diversification of migrant destinations.

Countries in South Asia and East Asia with many migrants in the United States, Europe and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries continued to register increased remittance inflows. One study in the book concludes that only a prolonged global slowdown would cause a decline in remittance flows to India, the largest recipient of remittances in 2011, with $64 billion.

In contrast, Latin America and the Caribbean region, whose migrants are concentrated in the United States, suffered a dramatic decline in remittances throughout the financial crisis. Mexico, the world’s third largest recipient of remittances ($24 billion in 2011), saw a significant decline in remittance inflows from the United States during the crisis. A similar strong impact was found in El Salvador. Both cases underline the fact that many Latin American countries were vulnerable to the effects of crisis, with a special impact on the urban youth in these countries, who face more difficult labor market prospects and declining opportunities to migrate.

Studies related to the effect of the crisis in the European Union on remittance-receiving countries found that Spain has been the fastest-growing immigration destination for the past decade and is now the fifth largest remittance-sending country, after the United States, Saudi Arabia, Russia and Switzerland.

In the East Asia and Pacific region, remittances account for as much as 12 percent of GDP, as in the case of New Zealand and Pacific island economies, while remittances have been keeping the national economy afloat in the Philippines for the past three decades.

Also, due to the depreciation of local currencies of many remittance-recipient countries, such as India, Mexico, and the Philippines, migrants from those countries turned to investment-oriented remittances in South Asia and East Asia where goods, services, and assets suddenly became significantly inexpensive and affordable.

The book recommends that countries develop policies that reduce restrictions on human mobility and develop programs to facilitate the use of remittances for long-term investments and promoting entrepreneurship. Such changes, tailored to both host and recipient country needs, can strengthen the contribution of remittances to development.

Eliminating the complexity of transactions and reducing transaction costs would also help increase the volume of remittances utilizing official channels, to enable many small nations, in particular, to reap the socio-economic benefits of migrant earnings.

The book is available for purchase at http://publications.worldbank.org/18826

The latest migration and remittances data are available at www.worldbank.org/migration

Interact with migration experts at http://blogs.worldbank.org/peoplemove/

Contacts:

In Washington: Indira Chand +1 (202) 458-0434, +1 (703) 376-7491, ichand@worldbank.org

For TV/Broadcast: Natalia Cieslik +1 (202) 458-9369, ncieslik@worldbank.org

World Bank Support Targets Drought Recovery in Djibouti

2012-06-12T22:22:48.000Z

Four new projects to focus on social safety nets, access to water and electricity, education reform and rural development

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2012 – Four new World Bank projects will help Djibouti prepare for future emergencies and continue to build the foundations for inclusive and sustainable development. The Board of Directors of the World Bank today approved $19.2 million in funding for strengthening drought resilience, with expanded social safety nets and an improved power grid, and providing the citizens of Djibouti with the skills and opportunities they need to thrive and prosper, through rural development and educational reform.

“Djibouti has been facing one of the worst droughts recorded in 60 years, having missed rainfalls for the last four consecutive years,” says David Craig, World Bank Country Director for Djibouti. “The drought has created urgent needs among the poor and vulnerable that, if not quickly addressed, could lead to the loss of human life, and the destruction of vital infrastructure.”

The US$5 million Social Safety Net grant will complement the emergency drought assistance programs launched in 2011 by supporting the scale up of social safety nets for poor and vulnerable households. The grant will provide short-term employment opportunities for men and women in community-based labor-intensive works. This will be combined with a nutrition program to leverage the additional income earned to improve the general health status of participating families.

The US$5.2 million in additional financing for the Power Access and Diversification project will strengthen the resilience of the country’s power supply to natural catastrophes through the creation of heavy fuel oil and diesel security stocks. The stocks will ensure that during times of severe natural disasters, such as the current drought, enough electricity can be generated to satisfy the increased demand resulting from the more intensive water pumping needed to reach the lowered water tables.

In view of the critical role education plays in development, the US$6 million Institutional Capacity and Management of the Education System project will support ongoing reforms to improve the quality of the education system and its relevance to the country’s development needs. "Our project is designed to help implement the ten-year National Education Strategy the government launched in 2010,” says Safaa El Tayeb El-Kogali, Senior Economist at the World Bank. “It will focus on improving the management of the educational system through institutional reorganization, the introduction of new management tools, and the training of teachers and staff.”

Along with education reform, rural development has been a primary focus of the World Bank’s long-term assistance strategy for Djibouti. The US$3 million in additional financing for the Rural Community Development and Water Mobilization grant will extend the reach of the ongoing project and provide technical assistance and support to a range of investments in community subprojects, with special emphasis on income-generating activities appropriate to the respective rural environments. In line with the overarching goal of helping Djibouti recover from the current crisis affecting the Horn of Africa, and to build the capacities to withstand future ones, the project will also focus on developing drought resilience in vulnerable and rural communities.

Contacts:

In Washington: Irene Sitienei, 202-458-0175, isitienei@worldbank.org

The World Bank Supports Employment and Judicial Reforms in Morocco

2012-06-12T21:19:47.000Z

WB Urges Developing Countries to Strengthen Domestic Fundamentals, to Weather Global Economic Turmoil

2012-06-12T17:00:00.000Z

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2012 – Developing countries should prepare for a long period of volatility in the global economy by re-emphasizing medium-term development strategies, while preparing for tougher times, says the World Bank in the newly-released Global Economic Prospects (GEP), June 2012.

A resurgence of tensions in high-income Europe has eroded the gains made during the first four months of this year, which saw a rebound in economic activity in both developing and advanced countries and an easing of risk aversion among investors. Since May 1^st, increased market jitters have spread. Developing and high-income country stock markets have lost some 7 percent, giving up two-thirds of the gains generated over the preceding four months. Most industrial commodity prices are down, with crude and copper prices down by 19 and 14 percent, respectively, while developing country currencies have lost value against the US dollar, as international capital fled to safe-haven assets, such as German and U.S. government bonds.

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So far, conditions in most developing countries have not deteriorated as much as in the fourth quarter of 2011. Outside of Europe and Central Asia and the Middle-East and North Africa, developing country credit default swap (CDS) rates, a key indicator of market sentiment, remain well below their maximums from the fall of 2011.

“Global capital market and investor sentiment are likely to remain volatile over the medium term – making economic policy setting difficult. In this environment, developing countries should focus on productivity-enhancing reforms and infrastructure investment instead of reacting to day-to-day changes in the international environment,” said Hans Timmer, Director of Development Prospects at the World Bank.

Increased uncertainty will add to pre-existing headwinds from budget cutting, banking-sector deleveraging and developing country capacity constraints. As a result, the World Bank projects that developing country growth will slow to a relatively weak 5.3 percent in 2012, before strengthening somewhat to 5.9 percent in 2013 and 6.0 percent in 2014. Growth in high-income countries will also be weak, 1.4, 1.9 and 2.3 percent for 2012, 2013 and 2014 respectively – with GDP in the Euro Area declining 0.3 percent in 2012. Overall, global GDP is projected to rise 2.5, 3.0 and 3.3 ⁽¹⁾ percent for the same period.

This baseline scenario remains the most likely outcome. However, should the situation in Europe deteriorate sharply no developing region would be spared. Developing Europe and Central Asia is especially vulnerable because of its close trade and financial ties with high-income Europe, but the world's poorest countries will also feel the fall out – especially countries that are heavily reliant on remittances, tourism or commodity exports or that have high-levels of short-term debt.

“Where possible, developing countries need to move to reduce vulnerabilities by lowering short-term debt levels, cutting budget deficits and returning to a more neutral monetary policy stance. Doing so will provide them with more leeway to loosen policy, should global conditions take a sharp turn for the worse,” said Andrew Burns, Manager of Global Macroeconomics and lead author of the report.

The full report and accompanying datasets are available at www.worldbank.org/globaloutlook

Regional Highlights

Growth outlooks for each country are available in the full report at:

www.worldbank.org/globaloutlook

Growth for the East Asia and Pacific region is on a moderately easing trend, with GDP gains for the region dropping to 8.3 percent in 2011 from 9.7 percent in 2010. The recent deterioration in global financial conditions is expected to add to pre-existing headwinds, including relatively weak demand from the high-income world, and a slowing phase in China to moderate regional growth to 7.6 percent in 2012, before broader global recovery lifts exports and growth for the region in 2013 to 8.1 percent, easing to 7.9 percent in 2014. China’s GDP is expected to accelerate from 8.2 percent in 2012 to 8.4 percent by 2014.

Notwithstanding the economic downturn in the Euro Area in the fourth quarter of 2011, developing Europe and Central Asia posted strong (5.6 percent) growth in 2011, driven by robust domestic demand and good harvests in countries such as Russia, Romania and Turkey. However, severe weather conditions in early 2012, capacity constraints in some countries, deleveraging by European banks, and the renewed turmoil in high-income Europe are projected to slow regional GDP growth to 3.3 percent this year, before a modest recovery begins with growth firming to 4.1 and 4.4 percent in each of 2013 and 2014.

Growth in the Latin America and the Caribbean region eased to 4.3 percent in 2011, from 6.1 percent in 2010, due to the pronounced slowdown in the region’s larger economies. In Brazil, GDP slowed sharply to 2.7 percent in 2011 (7.5 percent in 2010), as investment growth and private consumption eased. The region’s short-term outlook is clouded by a weak external environment, and capacity constraints in select economies. Regional GDP is expected to decelerate to 3.5 percent in 2012, firming to 4.1 percent and 4 percent in 2013 and 2014, respectively, while growth in Brazil is projected to remain below potential at 2.9 percent in 2012, before accelerating to 4.2 percent in 2013 and 3.9 percent in 2014.

Uncertainty, volatility, and political change continue to characterize conditions in the Middle East and North Africa region. Aggregate GDP grew by 1 percent in 2011, down from 3.8 percent in 2010. Regional growth is projected to remain weak at 0.6 percent for 2012, mainly reflecting the influence of sanctions on growth in Iran, and continued GDP declines in Syria and Yemen. As these elements fade in importance, growth for the region should step up to 2.2 percent in 2013 and 3.4 percent in 2014. Egypt’s economy is projected to move out of negative territory to 1.4 percent growth in 2012, rising to 4.6 percent in 2014. Growth is also expected to pick up strongly in Jordan and Lebanon, while oil prices, which are projected to average near $107/bbl in 2012, will benefit the region’s oil exporters.

Growth in South Asia slowed to 7.1 percent in 2011, from 8.6 percent in 2010, as headwinds from the Euro Area crisis caused a steep deceleration in exports and a reversal of portfolio inflows. Growth in India was particularly weak due to monetary policy, stalled reforms, and electricity shortages, which, along with fiscal and inflation concerns, cut into investment activity. Policy uncertainties, fiscal deficits, entrenched inflation, and infrastructure gaps will continue to weigh negatively on investment activity and are expected to limit regional growth to a relatively modest 6.4 percent in 2012, 6.5 percent in 2013, and 6.7 percent in 2014. India will see growth (measured at factor cost) increasing to 6.9, 7.2 and 7.4 percent in fiscal years 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15, respectively.

Economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa remained robust in 2011 at 4.7 percent. Excluding South Africa, growth in the rest of the region was stronger, at 5.6 percent, making it one of the fastest growing developing regions. Higher commodity prices and improved macroeconomic and political stability in recent years has supported increased private investment flows to the region, with promising prospects in the medium term. As global demand firms and domestic demand remains robust, regional growth is expected to strengthen to 5 percent in 2012, 5.3 percent in 2013 and 5.2 percent in 2014.

Contacts

In Washington: Merrell Tuck-Primdahl +1 (202) 473-9516, +1 (202) 476-9897, mtuckprimdahl@worldbank.org;

Indira Chand +1 (202) 458-0434, +1 (703) 376-7491, ichand@worldbank.org

In London: Derek Warren + 44 (20) 7592-8402 , dwarren1@worldbank.org

For TV/Broadcast: Natalia Cieslik +1 (202) 458-9369, ncieslik@worldbank.org

(1) Using purchasing power parity weights, global growth would be 3.3, 3.9 and 4.2 percent for 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively.

Globalization: Made in the Americas

2012-06-08T00:30:00.000Z

AS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY

Inter-American Dialogue 30^th Anniversary Dinner

Remarks of Robert B. Zoellick, President, World Bank Group

June 7, 2012

Introduction

Thank you for the honor of your invitation to commemorate the 30^th Anniversary of the Inter-American Dialogue.

The origins of this Dialogue stretch back to a discussion between Peter Bell and Abe Lowenthal on a park bench.

Peter and Abe were disturbed by the breakdown in inter-American exchanges during the Falklands/Malvinas war, and by the lack of ties with the rising democrats of Latin America. So they discussed bringing together leaders from across the hemisphere to set a new inter-American agenda. The Dialogue held its first ad hoc conference in late 1982.

Today, 30 years later, Latin America’s very success offers the opportunity to remake that Hemispheric partnership around new pillars:

· A revived free trade policy that will aid structural reforms for growth in all our countries;

· An energy transformation, ending the Hemisphere’s energy dependency;

· A new diplomacy infused with private sector pragmatism to solve public problems;

· Shared security; and

· The first Democratic Hemisphere.

For the United States, this new agenda could enable us to rely on a great, home-grown asset – Hispanic-Americans – as the vanguard of U.S. connectivity in a new Western Hemispheric economy.

This Dialogue can – and I believe will – help drive this change: to create a “Globalization: Made in the Americas.”

Under Peter Hakim’s and now Michael Shifter’s energetic leadership, the Inter-American Dialogue has become the leading U.S. center for policy analysis, exchange, and communication in the Western Hemisphere.

The idea at the heart of the Dialogue remains very much the same as that which emerged from the conversation on the park bench: that through dialogue and shared vision, interested citizens across the hemisphere together can plant the seeds of new policy ideas and practical proposals for progress in the Americas.

So tonight, let’s put that idea to work.

A Different Vantage Point

Just two months ago, the leaders of the Western Hemisphere met in Cartagena for the Summit of the Americas. Colombia was an excellent host, and the Summit showcased the country’s many hard-won achievements.

But the news reports were, frankly, disappointing. Aside from the behavior of some Secret Service agents, the coverage focused on disagreements about Cuba and drugs. Some even suggested this would be the last Summit of the Americas. The agenda seemed stuck in a time warp.

So when Carla Hills asked if I could join you this evening, I thought the best way to celebrate the Dialogue’s Anniversary was to offer new possibilities for the Americas in a fast-changing global economy.

My vantage point on our hemisphere is different from many U.S. contributors to the Dialogue. I am not a specialist in Latin America.

Like many of my U.S. foreign and security policy colleagues, much of my energy has been concentrated on the issues of Europe and the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Southwest Asia.

Yet because of my economic background, Latin America and Canada have loomed larger on my global map.

In the 1980s and early 90s, working with Secretary of Treasury and State James Baker, we were immersed in issues of Latin American debt and reforms for growth, the Canadian and North American FTAs, and Central American security and democracy.

In 2001, as U.S. Trade Representative, we were fortunate to build on that experience, negotiating FTAs with Chile, Colombia, Peru, Panama, the five countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic. Together with NAFTA, these FTAs cover 54 percent of the economy of our hemisphere, not including the United States, offering an underutilized web of free traders that could support deeper integration in the Americas – even hemispheric free trade and democracy.

Five years as President of the World Bank Group has added to this perspective.

Why am I stressing this global outlook on Latin America? Because, while working on the issues of our region, I have urged my Latin counterparts to look globally, too.

Instead, for too many years, the dialogue within our hemisphere seemed constrained by a North-South framework. The United States loomed large – whether as a hegemon, source of support, market, model, danger, or even frustrating land of inattention.

On development, debt, investment, competition, and trade, Latin Americans need to see the wider horizon – especially to benchmark with East Asia. And beyond East Asia, Latin America has a new role to play in building multiple engines of growth with other emerging markets. It is time to break out of that North-South construct.

Consider Canada’s experience in combining regional integration with global reach: of course, Canada’s FTA with the United States in 1988 deepened the two countries’ economic integration – but in addition, the competitive adjustment driven by that accord made Canadian business more competitive globally.

A new hemispheric partnership requires leaving old habits, old mindsets, and old models of dependency behind.

That partnership will necessitate a new mix of partners, public and private.

That partnership should be the next challenge for the Summit of the Americas and this Dialogue.

Latin America’s Record of Gains

Latin America’s recent record of gains now puts it in a position to remake the Hemispheric partnership.

The numbers tell the story.

Between 2003 and 2010, the income of the average Latin American increased by more than 30 percent. A silent revolution in macro-financial policy has strengthened the economic immune system of many countries. We saw the payoff after the fall of Lehman Brothers: Sound policies in Latin America enabled expansions to offset the downturn without the aftershocks that now threaten Europe.

About 73 million Latin Americans have been lifted out of poverty since 2003. Today, almost a third of the region’s population is considered middle class.

Latin America is breaking a pattern of persistent inequality, including through an increase in women’s involvement in the economy, particularly from poor families. Colombia and Peru have buttressed this trend by boosting opportunities for people of African and indigenous origin, seeking to overcome divisions that populists have exploited.

Mexico and Brazil have led in developing well-targeted conditional cash transfer programs that have revolutionized public assistance. These programs couple income grants for poor families with incentives for health check-ups and keeping children in school. Mexico’s Oportunidades program has probably done more for women’s health than anything in the country’s history.

These are safety net programs that appeal to a fiscal conservative: They cost only about half a percent of GDP. The World Bank has helped export this model to 40 other countries, ranging from Pakistan to the Philippines.

Latin America is “going global.” As the global trade negotiations have stalled, leading Latin American free traders have tried to keep up the momentum. Mexico has FTAs with 59 countries; Chile with 43.

Colombia offers a leading example of how a democracy can combine security, development, and good governance to overcome narco-traffickers, kidnappers, and terrorists. Peru demonstrates how sound economic policy and political commitment across administrations can reverse years of stagnation.

Brazil’s influence is expanding – through its companies, agricultural and mining experience, development work, peacekeeping in Haiti, and interest in Africa. Brazil’s leaders of the left have also turned a page in history by sticking with democracy. Rising leaders of the left in other Latin American countries have seen the benefits for the poor of Brazil’s example, compared to authoritarians who tear down institutions to consolidate personal or party power.

Looking Ahead

So what’s ahead for Latin America?

Latin America’s per capita income is still only at 30 percent of the U.S. level.

To climb higher, Latin American economies will need to leap beyond the so-called middle income trap. Many developing economies make early rapid gains. But then productivity and growth tend to slow.

This is a global challenge. In 1960, the World Bank ranked 101 economies as middle income; by 2008, almost half a century later, only 13 had made it to high income levels – and one was Greece.

Many Latin American countries will need to translate the commodity boom into broader, more diversified economies. This region has lived through roller-coaster booms and busts before.

Higher productivity is the antidote to the middle income trap.

Since the 1980s, Latin America has underinvested in infrastructure – electricity, roads, bridges, ports, transport – and maintaining and operating these services. Currently, Latin America spends 2 to 3 percent of GDP on infrastructure, less than half the rate of investment in East Asia.

Public-private infrastructure partnerships not only offer a source of financing, but also better design, maintenance, and operations to deliver high-quality services on time.

Colombia has experimented with PPPs in urban water supply and sanitation. Mexico’s new Highway Concession Program has mobilized PPP projects of around $11 billion, expanding the country’s major toll roads network by some 25 percent.

Latin America has to anticipate its human capital needs. The region is aging rapidly: today, about 11 percent of Brazil’s working age-population are seniors; by 2050, it will be nearly half.

Latin America also needs to improve the results of its investments in education. By age 15, the learning achievement of the average Latin American student lags two years behind his or her developed country counterparts.

Latin America is recognizing that gender equality is smart economics. Today, women in Latin America outnumber men in schools and universities. Working age women represent roughly 40 percent of the entire labor force in the region.

To continue to grow, the region will need more competition and innovation in the service sector. Competitive services increase productivity. They supply the ‘software’ of integration: transport, where delays and losses can impose significant costs; information technology, because accurate data and effective communication is vital; financial services, to create a supportive business environment; and logistics systems, which are a driver of business competitiveness.

A New Agenda

What do these challenges mean for a new hemispheric partnership? What should have been the news coming out of Cartagena?

Let me offer five ideas.

First, the Western Hemisphere needs to revive an activist free trade and economic reform policy, globally and regionally. We need fresh approaches.

The United States will be cutting agricultural subsidies, especially given high prices, and eliminating protection for ethanol. Why not deploy these to prod others?

Service sector liberalization can boost productivity, open new businesses, create new jobs, and cut the “Latin cost” that many countries impose on their own businesses. Why not deploy this economic need to revive a mutual interest in negotiation?

A strong self-interest can drive this renewed call for liberalization. Latin American economies still need much investment and more robust capital markets – especially in local currencies – that can help Latin American entrepreneurs and family-owned businesses to expand.

Infrastructure investments require capital goods and services, as Panama’s 21st Century Canal project is demonstrating. Why not dismantle barriers to lower the cost of infrastructure expansion?

Better logistics make economies more competitive. The World Bank’s 2012 Logistics Performance Index estimated that Latin American logistics costs are between 16 and 26 percent of GDP – that’s two to four times the average in Europe or East Asia.

The World Bank has helped Colombia and Peru to implement a “single window” approach to customs clearance and border management. In Brazil and Peru, the Bank has worked with international freight forwarders to connect rural, remote villages and small businesses to export through national postal services; in the first six months, more than 300 small firms in Peru became exporters, most for the first time.

Even as the WTO works toward a Trade Facilitation agreement, the Americas could develop an accord that points the way.

Brazilian officials are focused on exchange rates. Yet to really boost growth the target should be productivity. Better infrastructure can help, and so can more efficient and effective public services. The World Bank Group has launched a deeper partnership with the Governors of the Northeastern states of Brazil to overcome these impediments. Over time, however, the United States and its free trade partners should be working with Brazil to rebuild the case for a hemispheric initiative to realize the benefits of trade liberalization and economic reforms.

It takes two to tango, and this agenda requires changes on the part of the United States, too. The United States is no longer leading the open trade agenda, as it relies increasingly on defensive measures. The United States has its own high costs of trade – antiquated ports and laws to protect special interests.

The United States should work with its current free trade partners in the Americas to deepen ties of development, reform, and investment.

The current architecture of US FTAs in the hemisphere offers a solid legal framework, but it needs to evolve into a home for an ongoing dialogue – across countries and with business, academic, civil society, and environmental communities – to see what else can be done to lower costs and barriers and create opportunities.

The United States and its partners could explore progressive integration across the FTAs, for example by expanding provisions to cumulate inputs among partners while qualifying for free trade.

The United States needs to make its hemispheric FTA network dynamic, linked to business and investment policies, and improved governance.

A new concept of an FTA network in the Americas could also support inclusive and sustainable development as the foundation for open societies and borders.

Second, innovation in the energy sector, led by the United States, could transform energy security for North America, the Hemisphere, and the world.

In 2008, imports supplied 70 percent of US oil demand. By 2020, PFC Energy estimates that imports could be down to 40 percent of US oil demand – or even 20 percent if Canadian oil is counted as part of the home market. If natural gas for Canada and the United States is added, U.S. net energy imports from the rest of the world could drop to five percent of U.S. demand. That’s an amazing game-changer in energy.

If Mexico opens PEMEX to real outside investment, the outlook is even brighter. With the discovery of the giant deep offshore PRESAL oil and gas fields, Brazil can play a major role in supplying oil and gas in the region.

Yet there is a need to connect these energy supplies – through infrastructure – with countries in Central America and the Caribbean that have suffered from high prices and limited access. Increased efficiency and alternative sources could help the energy poor, too. It’s long past time for a hemispheric energy policy – blending consideration of inclusive growth, the environment, and indigenous communities’ interests.

Third, this new Hemispheric partnership needs to break old patterns of diplomacy. There are now vibrant private sectors all across the hemisphere. The challenges of overcoming the middle income trap and structural reforms to boost productivity need private sector advice and solutions. All across the developing world, the World Bank is encountering a new pragmatism about involving the private sector in areas that used to be public monopolies: infrastructure; education; healthcare; skills training; delivery of public social services. Advanced economies such as the United States should be taking note, too.

Yet government-business dialogues can be stilted showcases. The Summit of the Americas – and perhaps the Dialogue – should review which approaches work better and why. With some guidance, businesses can better connect possibilities with policies. Governments can commit to responses, commitments, openness, and results.

Fourth, the new Hemispheric agenda should help all 35 countries overcome security threats to growth and opportunity.

The fragile governments of Central America are at risk of being overwhelmed by crime and violence linked to drug trafficking, organized crime, gangs, and firepower. Spain, which has roughly the same population as Central America, has about 400 murders per year; in 2010, Central America had over 18,000.

The region pays a heavy economic price for this insecurity – as much as 8 percent of GDP. The basic legitimacy of governments and institutions is fraying: About half of Central Americans say a military coup could be justified when crime levels are high.

Experiences from Medellin and Rio de Janeiro have shown that the best way to attack criminal insecurity is through an integrated approach: combining stepped-up policing, prevention, and community investments. Quick turnarounds are possible. Strong regional cooperation is indispensable.

The United States has an unfortunate pattern of ignoring dangers in Central America until they explode. This time U.S. diplomacy should work with Mexico, Colombia, and Panama to develop a coherent strategy – not band-aids. As in Colombia, the Central American private sector must also be part of the solution. And the United States should also take responsibility for the drug habits of its public that fuel demand for narcotics from the south.

Fragility in the Caribbean is another soft spot. But small economies can be competitive in many sectors. Accelerating integration in the Caribbean can share services, add to resilience, and boost economic prospects.

Latin America should also be looking toward a greater role in global security – through practical steps, not the old G-77 policies of the past. My friend and former colleague, Bernie Aronson has proposed, for example, that Brazil could lead by voluntarily ending its uranium enrichment program and then calling on other nations – including Iran – to follow its example. If Brazil wants to help shape the 21^st Century, leadership in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons – with an idea and action – would send a powerful signal.

Fifth, the debate over Cuba at Cartagena sounded like hollow echoes from another era. Look ahead, not back.

Chavez’s days are numbered. If his subsidies to Cuba and Nicaragua are cut, those regimes will be in trouble. The democrats of Latin America – left, center, and right – should be preparing. The calls for democracy – for an end to intimidating thugs, human rights, fair elections, and rule of law – should come from all its capitals.

There will soon be an opportunity to make the Western Hemisphere the first Democratic Hemisphere. Not a place of coups, caudillos, and cocaine -- but of democracy, development, and dignity.

This transformation will not be achieved by the Calvo doctrine. By divisive populists. By corruption. By acquiescence. By silence.

You know well that if Latins leave the work to Washington and Ottawa, the opponents of liberty and human rights will play the cards of gringoism and neo-imperialism. Trump them.

Conclusion

For the United States, a new partnership in the Western Hemisphere offers opportunities for renewal at home, too.

All the debates about macroeconomic issues – fiscal and monetary policies – as important as they are, risk inattention to microeconomic incentives, structural reforms in the United States.

Energy. Infrastructure. Education. Human capital. Competition. Environment. Innovation. The United States also needs to clear away old rigidities on these new fundamentals.

The United States also needs to draw on the energies, intelligence, and drive of all its citizens.

As my friend Luis Alberto Moreno of the Inter-American Development Bank has pointed out, the 50 million strong Hispanic community in the United States is a growing market, source of entrepreneurship, and resource for a Hemispheric economic strategy. At over $1 trillion, the purchasing power of Latinos in the United States is larger than the economies of every Latin American country except Brazil.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are between two and three million Hispanic-owned businesses in the United States. Many are small. But they create jobs, earn revenues, and pay taxes.

As Latin America grows, the Hispanic businesses in the United States offer an incredible asset. Hispanics in the United States could be in the vanguard of a new Western Hemispheric economy.

Small and medium-sized Hispanic-American businesses will need help to expand their entrepreneurialism – information about markets, financing, and risk management services. To be most effective, this assistance should be decentralized – perhaps drawing on local chambers of commerce in cities and states where most Hispanic businesses can be found. The Small Business Administration, OPIC, Ex-Im Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the World Bank could then deploy their resources to help.

The world economy is still struggling to recover from the worst blows since the 1930s. Europe is a danger zone. U.S. leadership remains vital to get through the storm, to reach a new world economy of multiple poles of growth.

This is why the news coming out of the Cartagena Summit was disappointing.

This is not a time for drift, for old North-South debates, for retreat behind borders, old mindsets, or out-dated dependencies.

This is a time for the New World to again inspire novel thinking – about development, growth, structural reforms, rule of law and human rights, democracy, and security.

This Dialogue should aim high: To have the Western Hemisphere shape this next era of globalization – so that future historians will title the next chapter, not “The Passing of the New World,” but “Globalization: Made in the Americas.”

Cities to Face Sharply Rising Costs for Garbage Treatment

2012-06-06T15:30:00.000Z

New report points to 70% global increase in urban solid waste

WASHINGTON, June 6, 2012 – A new, far-reaching report on the state of municipal solid waste around the world predicts a sharp rise in the amount of garbage generated by urban residents between now and 2025. The report estimates the amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) will rise from the current 1.3 billion tonnes/year to 2.2 billion tonnes/year, with much of the increase coming in rapidly growing cities in developing countries. The annual cost of solid waste management is projected to rise from the current $205 billion to $375 billion, with cost increasing most severely in low income countries.

The report, What a Waste: A Global Review of Solid Waste Management, for the first time offers consolidated data on MSW generation, collection, composition, and disposal by country and by region. In itself, this is an accomplishment because, as the report states, reliable global MSW information is either not available or incomplete, inconsistent, and incomparable. Nevertheless, the authors of the report point to a looming crisis in MSW treatment as living standards rise and urban populations grow.

“Improving solid waste management, especially in the rapidly growing cities of low income countries, is becoming a more and more urgent issue,” said Rachel Kyte, Vice President, Sustainable Development at the World Bank. “The findings of this report are sobering, but they also offer hope that once the extent of this issue is recognized, local and national leaders, as well as the international community, will mobilize to put in place programs to reduce, reuse, recycle, or recover as much waste as possible before burning it (and recovering the energy) or otherwise disposing of it. Measuring the extent of the problem is a critical first step to resolving it.”

The report notes that municipal solid waste management is the most important service a city provides. In low-income countries, MSW is often the largest single budget item for cities, and one of the largest employers. A city that cannot effectively manage its waste is rarely able to manage more complex services such as health, education, or transportation. Improving MSW is one of the most effective ways of strengthening overall municipal management.

The report shows that the amount of municipal solid waste is growing fastest in China (which surpassed the US as the world’s largest waste generator in 2004), other parts of East Asia, and part of Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Growth rates for MSW in these areas are similar to their rates for urbanization and increases in GDP. There is a direct correlation between the per capita level of income in cities and the amount of waste per capita that is generated. In general, as a country urbanizes and populations become wealthier, the consumption of inorganic materials (e.g. plastics, paper, glass, aluminum) increases, while the relative organic fraction decreases.

“What we’re finding in these figures is not that surprising,” said Dan Hoornweg, Lead Urban Specialist in the Finance, Economics, and Urban Development Department of the World Bank and eco-author of the report, “What is surprising, however, is that when you add the figures up we’re looking at a relatively silent problem that is growing daily. The challenges surrounding municipal solid waste are going to be enormous, on a scale of, if not greater than, the challenges we are currently experiencing with climate change. This report should be seen as a giant wake-up call to policy makers everywhere.”

The authors of the report say an integrated solid waste management plan is needed in cities to approach solid waste in a comprehensive manner. Key to such a plan is consultation and input from all stakeholders, including citizen groups and those working on behalf of the poor and the disadvantaged. Public health and environmental protection aspects of any such plan are also critical.

The report also spells out policy recommendations for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, many of which emanate from inefficient solid waste management practices. Post-consumer waste is estimated to account for almost 5% of total global GHG, while methane from landfills represents 12% of total global methane emissions. The report says that a number of practical approaches could be applied in most cities, including:

· Public education to inform people about their options to reduce waste generation and increase recycling and composting;

· Pricing mechanisms (such as product charges) to stimulate consumer behaviour to reduce waste generation and increase recycling;

· User charges tied to the quantity of waste disposed of, with (for example) consumers separating recyclables paying a lower fee for waste disposal; and/or

· Preferential procurement policies and pricing to stimulate demand for products made with recycled post-consumer waste.

For a link to the report, click here: http://go.worldbank.org/BCQEP0TMO0

Contacts:

In Washington: Roger Morier, +1 202 473 5675, rmorier@worldbank.org

For Broadcast Requests: Natalia Cieslik, +1 202 458 9369, ncieslik@worldbank.org