Africa Region Findings & Good Practice Infobriefs

415 items available

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http://hdl.handle.net/10986/9389

These briefs report on ongoing operational, economic, and sector work carried out by the World Bank and its member governments in the Africa Region.

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Learning from the Extreme Poor : Participatory Approaches to Fostering Child Health in Madagascar

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2007-08) Blanchard, Caroline ; Godinot, Xavier ; Laureau, Chantal ; Wodon, Quentin

Definitions of poverty in developing countries used by most development organizations focus on household income or consumption that falls below a given threshold, such as one dollar per capita per day, and on other quantified indicators. While such definitions have the merit of providing a standard by which to measure progress, the very poor use quite different terms and ideas to communicate what extreme poverty means to them. This paper discusses learning from the extreme poor in the form of participatory approaches to fostering child health in Madagascar.
Enticing Investors : To Make a Serious Dent in Poverty, Africa Must Attract More Foreign Capital

(Washington, DC, 2007-06) World Bank

The nearly 750 million people who live in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are among the world's poorest. To foster the economic growth required to create jobs, raise living standards, and hasten development, SSA nations need to attract more foreign capital, which, by enhancing imported technology and the transfer of know-how, has proved instrumental in raising productivity in many countries.
Bankable Assets : Africa Faces Many Obstacles in Developing Financial Systems

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2006-07) Christensen, Jakob ; Gulde, Anne-Marie ; Pattillo, Catherine

Sound, deep, and efficient financial sectors are vital for high sustained, private sector-led growth. But financial sectors in their current form pose major problems for the economies of sub Saharan Africa (SSA). Insufficient access to credit by small and medium- sized enterprises constrains their ability to expand and limits countries' growth potential. Most households cannot build formal savings, so their ability to escape poverty by investing in education or housing is limited.
Credit Alternatives in Rural Finance : Rinancial Leasing

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2006-05) Kloeppinger-Todd, Renate ; Nair, Ajai

Enterprises use credit to acquire productivity-enhancing assets. Rural enterprises in developing economies, however, often lack access to the credit they need. Key reasons for this lack of access include the low level and scattered nature of economic activity in rural areas, the enterprises' lack of collateral, inadequate capacity among the country's lenders to lend in rural areas, and legal and policy environments that discourage lending to rural enterprises. Traditionally, leasing has served as an alternative to credit for urban enterprises, but generally it has not been a feasible option for rural enterprises. This paper argues that rural leasing can be viable and highlights the key factors to facilitate successful rural leasing, including the advantages of leasing, an enabling environment, and institutional support. The paper concludes that leasing is a viable tool to finance rural assets.
Benin - Decentralized City Management

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-08) Mohan, P.C.

The objective of the First Decentralized City Management project - 2000-2004 (credit equivalent of US$25.5 million) was to provide better quality and more cost-effective basic services to urban residents, especially the poor, of Benin's 3 main cities - Cotonou, Porto- Novo and Parakou. The project was the first phase of a planned 2-phase Adaptable Program Loan (APL) and followed a previously successful project, the Urban Rehabilitation and Management project.
Migrant Labor Remittances in Africa : Reducing Obstacles to Developmental Contributions

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2005-02) Sander, Cersten ; Mainbo, Samuel Munzele

Migrants have received heightened international recognition from the development community in recent times. New World Bank estimates on the volume of remittances show that documented remittance flows continue to increase at a rapid rate, putting global annual flows at US$88 billion for 2002 (revised up from earlier estimates of US$80 billion reported in the 2003 World Bank Global Development Report) and projecting $90 billion for 2003, based on trends in the first half of the year. Actual figures are generally accepted to be much higher. This means that remittance flows constitute the largest source of financial flows to developing countries after Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and indeed in many countries exceed FDI flows.
Microfinance Regulation : Lessons from Benin, Ghana and Tanzania

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-10) Steel, William F.

This article identifies key issues and lessons about how the overall regulatory framework affects the ability of microfinance institutions (MFIs) to become more market-oriented and integrated with the financial system. It is based on a review undertaken by the World Bank of microfinance regulation in Benin, Ghana and Tanzania to better inform advice and project design regarding the appropriate balance between the objectives of promotion, performance, and prudential supervision.
Estimating Financing Needs for Local Services in Madagascar

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2004-06) Febgler, Wolfgang

This note presents the methodology and findings of a field study on the financing needs of Madagascar's communes-the country's lowest but most institutionally advanced level of subnational government. Following a first round of municipal elections in 1995, more than 1,500 communes are now formally responsible for maintaining basic administrative services and social and economic infrastructure, including local waste disposal and sanitation. In addition, communes are responsible for identifying and coordinating local investments and for supporting implementation of the national Poverty Reduction Strategy at the local level.
Urban Transport Microenterprises in Abidjan

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2001-07) Amakoé Adoléhoumé ; Alain Bonnafous

This note analyses the organization, profitability, and financing of private mass transit services in Abidjan, with an emphasis on private companies operating minibuses commonly known as "gbakas". The Abidjan case study is part of a regional study launched early in 1999 under the Urban Mobility Component of the SSATP covering four cities: Abidjan, Bamako, Harare and Nairobi. The regional study was carried out by SITRASS network (Solidarite Internationale sur les Transports et la Recherche en Afrique Subsaharienne).
Ghana - Financial Services for Women Entrepreneurs in the Informal Sector

( 1999-06) World Bank

The Ghana Microfinance Institution (MFI) action research network brings together organizations interested in providing financial services to the poor in Ghana. With World Bank support, the network carried out this study which provides brief descriptions of the innovations that informal, semi-formal, and formal MFIs have developed in providing financial services to female entrepreneurs in Ghana. It also makes recommendations on how such services can be strengthened and improved.