Miscellaneous Knowledge Notes

683 items available

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https://hdl.handle.net/10986/9388

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Sierra Leone’s Reform Journey to Advancing Female Entrepreneurship and Financial Inclusion
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-03) Behr, Daniela M. ; Cheney, Alexis K.
Access to finance and equal economic opportunities are crucial for female entrepreneurs, fostering business growth and economic participation. Drawing on interviews with key stakeholders involved in the legal reform processes, this Brief examines how Sierra Leone made strides in its reform journey to expand women’s economic rights, including through the Directives on Provision of Financial Services on a Non-Discriminatory Basis of 2021, the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) Act of 2022, the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (NSFI) 2022–2026, and the Employment Act of 2023. The Brief identifies the key drivers of reform: gender champions in government and political will, economic data and technical assistance from the international community, multistakeholder coalitions, as well as grassroots activity amplifying women’s voices and bridging the gap between civil society and lawmakers. Through top-down and bottom-up initiatives working to create lasting change, Sierra Leone has enhanced women’s economic prospects and set a powerful example for other economies in the region seeking to enact similar laws and policies.
Overcoming Intertwined Challenges to Reach Upper Middle Income Status in Bhutan by 2029
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-02-26) World Bank
The document collection focuses on the challenges and opportunities facing a nation striving to achieve upper-middle-income status. Despite recent economic growth and poverty reduction, the country faces structural obstacles, including a small domestic market, high trade costs, and limited private sector job opportunities. This has led to a reliance on the public sector and state-owned enterprises, with limited economic diversification and productivity improvements. The document highlights the need for a coalition of stakeholders, including citizens, civil society, the private sector, and development partners, to implement critical reforms and actions. These reforms aim to promote economic progress, invest in people, and contribute to a more livable planet. The document emphasizes the importance of strengthening the private sector, improving infrastructure, investing in education and healthcare, and promoting sustainable development through renewable natural resources.
Mapping Impact in Mali: Country-Level Impact of Adaptive Safety Nets in the Sahel
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-02-17) World Bank
In the Sahel, adaptive social protection (ASP) is a set of social protection policies, systems, and programs that promote human capital, productivity, and resilience of the poorest and strengthen their capacity to prepare for, cope with, and adapt to shocks. Through the delivery of regular social safety nets, economic inclusion interventions, and shock-responsive programs, ASP has demonstrated strong positive impacts on various dimensions in the Sahel. For the poorest and most vulnerable, it has resulted in improvements in household welfare and food security, productivity, and resilience. More broadly, it has shown significant positive impacts on the economy, society, and future generations.
Vietnam Macro Monitoring, October 2024
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-12-23) World Bank
Gross domestic products (GDP) growth registered 7.4 percent (y/y) in Q3-2024 at Viet Nam, its highest in two years, driven by non-tech exports and the ongoing domestic demand recovery. Typhoon Yagi hit northern Viet Nam in September, leading to significant economic damages of US 3.2 billion (0.7 percent of GDP). Agricultural production was the hardest-hit sector, accounting for 38 percent of the total economic losses. FDI investments expanded robustly, totaling US$ 24.6 billion in the last 12 months, an 8.3 percent increase compared to a year earlier. Inflation continued to moderate, registering 2.6 percent (y/y) in September 2024, from 3.5 percent in August 2024, as transport prices declined, food inflation remained stable and core inflation decelerated to 2.5 percent (y/y). Slow budget disbursement continues to remain a concern, with 59.3 percent of the public expenditure plan disbursed in the first nine months of 2024 (slightly below the disbursement rate of 59.7 percent at the same period last year), including 47.3 percent of public investments executed.
Regional Poverty and Inequality Update Latin America and the Caribbean: October 2024
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-12-20) World Bank
This brief summarizes the main trends related to poverty and inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) using the latest round of harmonized household surveys from the Socio-Economic Database for Latin America and the Caribbean (SEDLAC) created by the World Bank and the Centro de Estudios Distributivos, Laborales y Social (CEDLAS). This brief was produced by the Poverty and Equity Global Practice in the Latin America and Caribbean Region of the World Bank.
Sex-disaggregating Tax Administrative Data: Experience from Colombia’s Tax and Customs Authority
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-12-06) Gamboa, Luis Fernando; Reyes, Luis Carlos; Tribin, Ana Maria; Komatsu, Hitomi
This Knowledge Note aims to document National Tax and Customs Authority's (DIAN’s) experience in sex-disaggregating income taxpayer data and provide examples of the use of disaggregated data for policy analysis. It offers lessons for other revenue authorities and government agencies planning to sex-disaggregate and analyze administrative tax data. It summarizes the institutional strategies, methodologies used, and challenges encountered in this process based on interviews with experts and government officials. We use the term “sex” to mean biological sex at birth unless explicitly stated otherwise.
The Role of Nature-based Solutions in Disaster Risk Management in Fragile, Conflict and Violence-Affected Countries
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-08-20) World Bank
The World Bank (WB) estimates that, by 2030, up to two-thirds of the global extreme poor will be living in fragile and conflict-affected situations. Of the top 20 countries most vulnerable to climate change, 14 are considered by the WB as fragile and conflict-affected. Households affected by conflict experience greater economic losses and longer recovery time in the aftermath of a disaster. NBS is an umbrella term for a set of interventions that seek to protect, manage, and/or restore natural systems, while addressing multiple development goals such as climate and disaster risk resilience, economic and social prosperity, food security and biodiversity conservation. By providing targeted support and expertise, the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) is instrumental in overcoming the unique challenges of FCV contexts, ensuring that NBS interventions are not only feasible but also effective in building resilience and stability in these vulnerable regions.
Regional Poverty and Inequality Update Spring 2024
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-07-12) World Bank
This is the April 2024 issue of the bi-annual Regional Poverty and Inequality Update for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), which summarizes the main facts related to poverty and inequality in LAC using the new wave of harmonized household surveys from the Socio-Economic Database for Latin America and the Caribbean (SEDLAC). This brief was produced by the Poverty and Equity Global Practice in the Latin America and Caribbean Region of the World Bank.
Convergence in the Sahel: How to Link Humanitarian Cash Assistance and National Social Protection Systems?
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-04-18) Saidi, Mira; Santamaria Ruiz, Claudia
Convergence is the merging or coming together of separate elements. In the realm of social protection, this translates into the effective coordination and alignment of different humanitarian and development initiatives toward a shared national vision. Convergence between humanitarian operations and national social protection systems has gained momentum in the last few years, as reflected in the humanitarian-development nexus. In the Sahel, a growing overlap between humanitarian activities and government interventions is emerging, particularly with the advent of adaptive social protection. Humanitarian assistance tends to operate in emergencies and volatile contexts with short-term horizons. In contrast, national social protection systems, including regular social safety nets, typically are longer term, more predictable, and focus on issues such as structural poverty rather than emergencies. However, both types of interventions share a broad goal to protect the poorest and most vulnerable and to promote their resilience to future shocks. Hence opportunities to better connect humanitarian assistance to the national social protection system do exist, particularly in the context of protracted crises.
Does Fiscal Policy Have a Role in Improving Child Well-Being in Ethiopia?
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-04-01) Ambel, Alemayehu A.; Belete, Getachew Yirga; Fiala, Oliver
Taxes, government spending, and public transfers affect the well-being of children and adults, albeit in different ways. There is, however, a dearth of empirical evidence on the impact of these policies on the well-being of children in low-income countries. This policy brief summarizes a recent study by Ambel, Belete, and Fiala (2024), which investigates the effects of fiscal actions on poverty and inequality among children in Ethiopia. The study applies the Commitment to Equity for Children (CEQ4C) methodology on survey data integrated with administrative data. It finds that the fiscal system in Ethiopia is progressive, poverty-reducing, and equalizing for children. However, there are observed differences in the effects of some of the fiscal policy components, as many of these effects are stronger for girls and children in rural areas. The study also highlights the essential role of public services in improving children’s well-being.