06. Country Strategy Documents

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Systematic Country Diagnostic and Country Partnership Framework documents which identify the key development objectives that guide World Bank Group country programs.

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  • Publication
    Mali Systematic Country Diagnostic
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-08-31) World Bank
    Mali, a landlocked and fragile country in the Sahel, stands out for the way it has become trapped in recurrent cycles of conflict and violence, despite its strategic location, abundant resources, and young population. Its development trajectory has not resulted in sustained progress for its citizens. As in 2015, Mali faces challenges in the economic, social, political, and human fronts. Without addressing these challenges, Mali may not be able to change its development path. The upsurge in violence, political instability after two institutional breaks, and the COVID-19 crisis complicate progress towards inclusive growth. This SCD Update identifies the main changes since 2015 and takes stock of three challenges: a fraying social contract, inadequate job creation, and lagging human capital outcomes. Improving the situation will not be easy. It would be necessary to work with a critical mass of reforms and filtering those interventions with a “social contract” lens to improve the sustainability of reforms. The SCD Update proposes three pathways:1) rebuild the capabilities of the social contract (state capacity, nonstate actors’ capacity, and bargaining interface); 2) invest in human capital accumulation, especially for women and vulnerable groups; and 3) strengthen the ability of the private sector to create more and better jobs.
  • Publication
    Azerbaijan Systematic Country Diagnostic Update
    (Washington, DC, 2022-06-27) World Bank
    The Azerbaijan Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) Update 2022 identifies the most critical challenges facing the government in the effort to achieve the country’s national goals and the twin goals of eradicating extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. It also identifies policy priorities to address these challenges within a changing economic and geopolitical environment. The SCD is a comprehensive evidence-based analysis founded on the latest data and analyses available. The document benefited from comments and feedback provided by stakeholders in Azerbaijan, including national authorities, the private sector, and civil society. By reflecting voices on the ground, the SCD is intended to support the implementation of the country’s development agenda as outlined in “Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socio-Economic Development” (Azerbaijan 2030) (President of the Republic of Azerbaijan 2021). The analysis is built on the findings of the first generation Azerbaijan SCD, which was published in 2015, and also updates the analysis to account for recent developments since 2015. The SCD likewise plays a crucial role in providing an analytical basis for the Country Partnership Framework (CPF), a document that will guide the World Bank’s engagement and partnership with the government of Azerbaijan over the next four to six years.
  • Publication
    Performance and Learning Review of the Country Partnership Framework for Kingdom of Cambodia for the Period FY19-FY24
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-06-22) World Bank; International Development Association; International Finance Corporation; Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
    The Performance and Learning Review (PLR) summarizes progress in the implementation of the World Bank Group (WBG) Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Cambodia for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019-2023 (Report No. 136500-KH). The CPF, discussed by the Board of Executive Directors on May 30, 2019, proposed a joint WBG program of assistance covering three focus areas: (i) promoting state efficiency and boosting private sector development; (ii) fostering human development; and (iii) improving agriculture and strengthening sustainable use of natural resources. A cross-cutting theme of strengthening governance, institutions and citizen engagement underpins reforms in all three focus areas. These areas address the key development challenges identified in the 2017 Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) (Report No. 115189-KH) and are aligned with the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC)’s Rectangular Strategy Phase IV and the National Strategic Development Plan 2019-2023 and remain relevant to support Cambodia’s post COVID-19 recovery.
  • Publication
    Haiti Systematic Country Diagnostic Update: Pathways to Responding to Recurrent Crises and Chronic Fragility
    (Washington, DC, 2022-06) World Bank
    Haiti's economic and social development continues to be hindered by political instability, corruption, and fragility. This Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) Update draws on existing and new analysis, publications, and extensive consultations and ongoing dialogue with public and private sector stakeholders in Haiti. Throughout the discussions, there was broad consensus on the diagnosis of challenges, in particular the country’s weak governance, as well as the priorities ahead. The document is structured as follows: Chapter 1 examines trends in poverty and shared prosperity in Haiti; Chapter 2 analyzes growth trends and challenges; Chapter 3 identifies risks to the sustainability of development; and the final chapter takes stock of these elements and identifies priorities ahead, building on those identified in the 2015 SCD.
  • Publication
    Lesotho Systematic Country Diagnostic Update: Bridging Implementation Gaps to Accelerate Development
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-12) World Bank Group
    The 2015 Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) emphasized the need to shift from a public sector-driven to a private sector-driven, export-oriented, and job-creating economic growth model. This SCD Update revisits the constraints and priority interventions identified in the 2015 SCD and posits that most of the challenges and binding constraints identified in the first SCD remain valid today.
  • Publication
    Rebalancing Inclusive and Sustainable Growth to Continue Reducing Poverty in Bolivia: Systematic Country Diagnostic Update
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-12-01) World Bank
    Bolivia made substantial progress in reducing poverty and inequality during the commodity boom, and despite the adverse external context of the past five years, poverty reduction continued, albeit more slowly. Expansionary policies allowed the country to continue growing and reducing poverty until the pandemic but did so at the expense of large macroeconomic imbalances that increased public debt and eroded the buffers. With these challenges exacerbated by the pandemic and limited room to continue fueling domestic demand, igniting other sources of inclusive and sustainable growth calls for addressing both the immediate challenges of the COVID-19 crisis and structural constraints. The three challenges identified five years ago in the first Systematic Country Diagnostic remain, but their urgency has increased.
  • Publication
    Bangladesh Systematic Country Diagnostic, 2021 Update
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-11-08) World Bank
    This World Bank Group Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) 2021 Update presents a diagnostic of Bangladesh’s growth and poverty reduction since the previous diagnostic in 2015. It identifies emerging opportunities and challenges for the next decade as the country recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, graduates from least-developed-country (LDC) status, and aspires to become an upper middle-income country (UMIC) by 2031. This SCD Update identifies four frontier challenges that, if tackled properly, can enable the country to accelerate its transition. This SCD Update identifies eight priorities to tackle these four frontier challenges.
  • Publication
    Unlocking Egypt’s Potential for Poverty Reduction and Inclusive Growth: Egypt Systematic Country Diagnostic Update
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-10) World Bank
    Systematic Country Diagnostics (SCDs) analyze the most critical constraints and opportunities to ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity in a sustainable manner. The first SCD for Egypt was published in 2015. A lot has happened since then, so this SCD Update takes advantage of a longer stretch of reforms and newer data up to 2019 to identify and again assess the set of priorities through which Egypt can most effectively and sustainably achieve the goals of poverty reduction and shared prosperity.
  • Publication
    Prosperity for All Saotomeans: Priorities to End Poverty, Promote Growth, and Build Resilience in São Tomé and Príncipe
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-09) World Bank
    São Tomé and Príncipe (STP), a small island nation of 215,000 people in the Gulf of Guinea off the coast of Central Africa, is in many ways a country of great untapped wealth. One of Africa’s least known countries, its striking volcanic landscape is home to virgin rainforests with rich biodiversity, while its large exclusive economic zone (EEZ), approximately 160 times larger than the archipelago, is a marine biodiversity hotspot and supports high numbers of species unique to the area. It has among the lowest violence and crime rates in Africa and has had peaceful elections and transitions of power since becoming a multiparty democracy in 1991, making it an outlier in the region. It also has a young population, half of which is under 18 years of age, raising the prospect of a demographic dividend to be tapped in the years ahead. Its economy has grown steadily over the past two decades, outpacing its high population growth. This growth reflects strong inflows of overseas development aid (ODA) and revenues from oil exploration that have enabled the government to expand public investments, particularly in infrastructure, social protection, health, and education. This has enabled STP to bridge the gap caused by years of underinvestment in local human and physical capital, a legacy of the country’s colonial past (its first secondary school was established only in 1952). This growth model has not been able to spark the fundamental changes needed for the economy to generate resilient poverty reduction and shared prosperity. Few jobs are being created, and indicators and consultations with civil society reveal a broad sense of social exclusion even as the economy has grown. This model is not sustainable.A new growth model is needed, one that will be able to provide more opportunities for its growing population. In the context of STP, a small nation with low capacity facing increasing vulnerabilities and in need of a new growth model, it is important to think strategically to identify an effective way forward. To this end, this Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) identifies the most critical vulnerabilities and constraints facing the country and, from these, a set of actionable priorities that will contribute to reducing poverty while promoting sustainable growth and shared prosperity.
  • Publication
    Namibia Systematic Country Diagnostic
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-07) World Bank
    Since gaining independence in 1990, Namibia has undertaken an economic transformation and experienced strong economic growth. Despite decades marked by progress, deep underlying challenges remain in Namibia, undermining the prospects for further advancement. Namibia has been in recession since 2016 and public finances have continued to deteriorate. The global COVID-19 crisis is expected to have a substantial adverse economic and social impact.