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A New State of Mind: Greater Transparency and Accountability in the Middle East and North Africa

(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2022-10-05) Belhaj, Ferid ; Gatti, Roberta ; Lederman, Daniel ; Sergenti, Ernest John ; Assem, Hoda ; Lotfi, Rana ; Mousa, Mennatallah Emam

The MENA region is facing important vulnerabilities, which the current crises—first the pandemic, then the war in Ukraine—have exacerbated. Prices of food and energy are higher, hurting the most vulnerable, and rising interest rates from the global tightening of monetary policy are making debt service more burdensome. Part I explores some of the resulting vulnerabilities for MENA. MENA countries are facing diverging paths for future growth. Oil Exporters have seen windfall increases in state revenues from the rise in hydrocarbon prices, while oil importers face heightened stress and risk—from higher import bills, especially for food and energy, and the depreciation of local currencies in some countries. Part II of this report argues that poor governance, and, in particular, the lack of government transparency and accountability, is at the root of the region’s development failings—including low growth, exclusion of the most disadvantaged and women, and overuse of such precious natural resources as land and water.
Egypt Public Expenditure Review for the Human Development Sectors

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-09) World Bank Group

This Public Expenditure Review (PER) aims at informing government efforts to pursue its commitment to enhancing socioeconomic outcomes through more and better spending on human capital. To achieve this important objective, the Government of Egypt (GoE) aims at creating the fiscal space needed to increase growth-enhancing spending in a way that reflects positively on socioeconomic outcomes. This PER analyzes the adequacy, efficiency, and equity of public spending on the human development sectors. It examines options to create fiscal space by reducing inefficient and wasteful spending within this sector and increasing the impact of existing resources. From an equity perspective, the PER examines how public resources are distributed within the sector, and across income groups and/or geographical regions, and how system-wide reforms can reduce inequality in spending and outcomes. Drawing on a fiscal incidence analysis jointly carried out with the MOF, the distributional impact of potential fiscal measures and other policy changes is simulated to inform the reforms agenda. The first part of the review (Volume I) presents the macro-fiscal context and its constraints. It also presents an analysis of the social protection system in place to mitigate the effects of the challenging macroeconomic environment. The second part of the review (Volume II) focuses on the most difficult challenges facing the core human development sectors, namely health, education and higher education.
Tunisia Economic Monitor, Winter 2021: Economic Reforms to Navigate Out of the Crisis

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-01-20) World Bank

The Economic Monitor examines four possible factors behind Tunisia’s slow recovery. First, the drop in mobility related to the pandemic may have been more harmful in Tunisia. However, mobility in Tunisia has dropped to a similar extent as other countries and it has now returned to pre-pandemic levels following the acceleration in the vaccination campaign since July. If anything, the mobility drop in Tunisia has resulted in a lower reduction in economic activity than in comparator countries as Algeria and Egypt. Second, it could be that the level of public support to the ailing firms and households may have been particularly low. However, at 2.3 percent of GDP, the Covid-19 stimulus package in 2020 was in the same ballpark as other comparators in the region. Third, the structure of the Tunisian economy, particularly its reliance on tourism, may have exposed it to the negative demand shock more than other countries. Indeed hotels, cafe and restaurant and transport are the sectors which have contracted the most since the start of the pandemic. The losses of these sectors explain a significant portion of the negative effects of the crisis in Tunisia, although they do not fully account for such slow recovery.
Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2022: Correcting Course

(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2022) World Bank

Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2022: Correcting Course provides the first comprehensive analysis of the pandemic’s toll on poverty in developing countries. It identifies how governments can optimize fiscal policy to help correct course. Fiscal policies offset the impact of COVID-19 on poverty in many high-income countries, but those policies offset barely one quarter of the pandemic’s impact in low-income countries and lower-middle-income countries. Improving support to households as crises continue will require reorienting protective spending away from generally regressive and inefficient subsidies and toward a direct transfer support system—a first key priority. Reorienting fiscal spending toward supporting growth is a second key priority identified by the report. Some of the highest-value public spending often pays out decades later. Amid crises, it is difficult to protect such investments, but it is essential to do so. Finally, it is not enough just to spend wisely - when additional revenue does need to be mobilized, it must be done in a way that minimizes reductions in poor people’s incomes. The report highlights how exploring underused forms of progressive taxation and increasing the efficiency of tax collection can help in this regard. Poverty and Shared Prosperity is a biennial series that reports on global trends in poverty and shared prosperity. Each report also explores a central challenge to poverty reduction and boosting shared prosperity, assessing what works well and what does not in different settings. By bringing together the latest evidence, this corporate flagship report provides a foundation for informed advocacy around ending extreme poverty and improving the lives of the poorest in every country in the world. For more information, please visit worldbank.org/poverty-and-shared-prosperity.
The World Bank Annual Report 2022: Helping Countries Adapt to a Changing World

(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2022) World Bank

The Annual Report is prepared by the Executive Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA)--collectively known as the World Bank--in accordance with the by-laws of the two institutions. The President of the IBRD and IDA and the Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors submit the Report, together with the accompanying administrative budgets and audited financial statements, to the Board of Governors.
World Bank Group Press Conference at the 2021 Spring Meetings, April 7, 2021

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-04-07) Malpass, David

David Malpass, President of the World Bank, discussed vaccines, climate, and debt. The World Bank commitments grew a record amount both in percent terms and dollar terms in 2020. The Bank is providing financing for several of the countries and they can be large-scale programs, but the countries are working to arrange delivery schedules from the various vaccine providers. That will be an important part of the recovery. The Bank completed a big vaccination operation through Board, which makes financing available to Bangladesh and also technical assistance from the World Bank, which is very helpful to the countries as they try to enter contract discussions, and also as they work within their health systems in order to vaccinate people. The Bank is working actively on biodiversity and agricultural challenges facing Brazil.
Remarks at the Human Capital Conclave

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-04-05) Malpass, David

David Malpass, President of the World Bank, discussed the importance of investing in human capital for a green, resilient, and inclusive recovery from the Coronavirus disease crisis. He highlighted three important measures: 1) investing in people; 2) efficient expenditures and good governance; and 3) freeing up fiscal space.
Building a Green, Resilient, and Inclusive Recovery

(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2021-03-29) Malpass, David

World Bank Group President David Malpass acknowledged the importance of the United Kingdom within the World Bank Group. He spoke about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) which descended on the poor like wildfire. He highlighted the Bank's approach to the interlinked crises of green, resilient, inclusive development (GRID). The World Bank is working to help countries build “Country Platforms” to engage with wider groups of development actors as they develop the programs with Bank support. He focused on three of the most pressing challenges of climate, debt, and inequality. There is a need for integrated, long-run strategies that emphasize green, resilient, and inclusive development. He concluded we can generate a recovery that ensures a broad and lasting rise in prosperity especially for the poorest and most marginalized.
Towards a More Inclusive Economy: Understanding the Barriers Sudanese Women and Youth Face in Accessing Employment Opportunities

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-01) Etang, Alvin ; Lundvall, Jonna ; Osman, Eiman ; Wistrand, Jennifer

The report is organized as follows. After a brief description of the analytical framing and methodology in section two, section three presents the history and demographics of the labor market in Sudan, focusing on indicators by gender and age across the three main sectors of employment: services, agriculture, and industry. Section four examines formal institutions: the institutional setting, service delivery, and laws and regulations as they relate to economic opportunities. Section five examines informal institutions, where the social norms and networks can be a barrier to women’s and youth’s full economic participation. Section six analyzes how the market is supporting or constraining economic activity, which includes a closer look at the labor market itself and access to assets. Section seven discusses how all of these aspects are considered when it comes to the household- and individual-level decision-making that directly affects women’s and youth’s accumulation of human capital, overall agency, and, ultimately, their economic opportunities. Section eight concludes with considerations for policy and action.
Remarks to the World Food Programme Executive Board

(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-11-16) Malpass, David

World Bank Group President David Malpass spoke about how in its first year, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is pushing one hundred fifty million people into extreme poverty, ending two decades of steady progress on poverty reduction. Coronavirus (COVID-19) has altered every aspect of commercial activity and trade, shrinking gross domestic products (GDP), fueling a debt crisis and triggering severe food crises. He cautioned about the long-standing problems in the global food system, and how World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has estimated that the number of people facing acute food insecurity will double to two hundred sixty-five million people in 2020. He spoke about working along with IMF on effective approaches for debt reduction and debt resolution to address low income countries’ unsustainable debt burdens. He highlighted on establishing a fast-track Coronavirus (COVID) response that has delivered emergency support to one hundred twelve countries so far. He explained that in response to the global food security crisis, the World Bank Group has significantly stepped up investments to strengthen food security in client countries.