Sector/Thematic Studies
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Economic and Sectoral Work are original analytic reports authored by the World Bank and intended to influence programs and policy in client countries. They convey Bank-endorsed recommendations and represent the formal opinion of a World Bank unit on the topic. This set includes the sectoral and thematic studies which are not Core Diagnostic Studies. Other analytic and advisory activities (AAA), including technical assistance studies, are included in these sectoral/thematic collections.
Sub-collections of this Collection
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Country Gender Assessment -
Recent Economic Development in Infrastructure -
Energy Study -
Energy-Environment Review -
Equitable Growth, Finance & Institutions Insight -
Debt and Creditworthiness Study -
General Economy, Macroeconomics, and Growth Study -
Legal and Judicial Sector Assessment -
Gender Innovation Lab Federation Causal Evidence Series -
Health Sector Review
Items in this collection
1 - 10 of 258
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Publication
A Blue Transformation for Pacific Maritime Transport: Overarching Regional Transport
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-31)This report has eight chapters. Following the introduction (Pacific Peoples and the Sea), the next six chapters each focus on a separate significant component of Pacific maritime transport, analyzing the major influences and challenges, and, where relevant, key areas for future attention. The topics are: international shipping, gateway ports, domestic maritime transport, four related sectors, cruise ship tourism, tuna fisheries, fossil fuel imports, and bulk shipping, natural disasters and climate resilience, and sector governance and institutions. The final chapter, transforming pacific maritime transport, ways forward, distils the report’s findings into the most significant and far-reaching opportunities to transform maritime transport in the Pacific. These are grouped into three broad themes, infrastructure, services, and governance and capacity building. Ways Forward comes at the end and, for readers unable to view the whole report, is a good place to begin. The rest of this executive summary explains why the Pacific is a special case for investment and provides a summary of the main chapters and findings. But first, it describes which Pacific Island countries contributed to the study. -
Publication
Shaping First Steps: A Comprehensive Review of Preschool Education in Malaysia
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-31)The potential benefits from supporting early childhood development range from healthy development to a greater capacity to learn and increased productivity in adulthood. Despite undertaking various preschool education reforms and initiatives, issues of access and quality remain and continue to grow. The Malaysia Education Blueprint (2013-2025) set a target to achieve universal preschool enrollment by 2020, and Malaysia, along with many other developing countries, has yet to achieve this. Findings from the World Bank’s preschool survey and stakeholder interviews carried out for this report point to a range of issues, such as a lack of preschool seat availability in certain areas, low awareness among parents on the benefits of sending their children to preschools, affordability of preschool expenses, low teacher quality, and concerns over the overlapping roles between the multiple ministries and agencies that oversee ECCE in Malaysia. This review is carried out in collaboration with the Ministry of Education (MOE) and is a comprehensive assessment of Malaysia’s current preschool education landscape. The review aims to identify the gaps between the targets and aspirations set by MOE and the government under various policy documents and the outcomes to date. It also aims to deep-dive into the underlying reasons for these gaps, and seek solutions to close them and achieve the aspirations. This report synthesizes the findings from research, analysis, and stakeholder engagement activities, and is organized by a framework of targets, pillars, and enablers. -
Publication
Plastic Waste in Road Construction - A Path Worth Paving?: Application of Dry Process in South Asia
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-24)As global plastic waste continues to grow, the global community is coalescing to reduce plastic waste. Some stakeholders are also exploring new options to use plastic waste as partial substitute for raw material. The use of plastic waste as a bitumen modifier in road construction, referred to here as ‘plastic roads’, is one option being explored. We reviewed the scientific literature, news articles, and patents; conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis; and interviewed representatives from private companies and independent, scientific researchers to determine the existing knowledge gaps regarding the (1) technology feasibility, including engineering performance; (2) environmental issues; (3) occupational health; (4) economic viability; and (5) industry standards surrounding plastic roads. We found that many companies are starting to implement or pilot this technology worldwide though key gaps in engineering performance, such as cracking resistance, remain. The environmental issues reviewed also have research gaps, including the generation of hazardous air pollutants during production; microplastics and nanoplastics generation during use; and leaching of additives from plastic waste during use. Industry standards for the use of plastic waste in road construction are lacking. In addition, there is prevailing uncertainty in the economic viability of the technology. As a result of these key research gaps, the Ways Forward section presents a roadmap for short- and longterm research priorities. -
Publication
R&D Policy and the Role of Research Institutions in Fostering Green Innovation in Poland
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-18)The diagnostic and analysis presented in this report unveils a complex and challenging picture of Polish R&D capacity and its technological preparedness to engage and deliver green-innovation solutions for regions and industries. The report pinpoints opportunity areas to catch up, as well as the competences that Poland can leverage to address capacity and preparedness challenges. Policy goals should, therefore, ensure that actions by the state, research centers, universities, private sector, and all agents in the innovation eco-system help meet environmental and sustainable development commitments. -
Publication
Greening Public Human Development Buildings in Croatia: Support for the Implementation of the European Green Deal in the Croatian Health and Education Sectors
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-18)The goal of this policy note is twofold: first, to identify and propose how to address some of the key regulatory and implementation hurdles that Croatia and potentially other EU Member States are facing in greening their HD infrastructure while improving HD outcomes; and second, to compile best practices and examples in green design, construction, and renovation of public HD buildings. The Note will also provide guidance and encourage dialogue among relevant policy makers at national, regional, and local levels, and with targeted clients. Furthermore, the recommendations would address the importance of green skills development and other related topics relevant to the implementation of EUGD. Overall, the analysis results and the recommendations on these issues could also be useful for World Bank experts and other external stakeholders focused on the green economy and human development. -
Publication
Steering the Human Development Strategy for a Sustainable Green Economy in the Slovak Republic
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-17)The rippling effects of multiple overlapping crises on the economy, declining education outcomes, and inability of the education system to meet the upcoming needs of the labor market puts the Slovak Republic in a human capital crisis. There is a misalignment between the supply and outcomes of the education system and requirements of the labor market. Education-to-work pathways through vocational and tertiary education are insufficient to prepare students for the green economy transition. Education-to-work pathways need to be flexible to align worker choices with needs of the labor market. This policy note provides a deep dive into the education situation in the Slovak Republic and proposes specific policy recommendations aiming at the skilling and reskilling toward the green and digital agenda, utilizing European and international experiences in this area. -
Publication
Jobs, Food and Greening: Exploring Implications of the Green Transition for Jobs in the Agri-food System
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-16)The agri-food system (AFS) employs about one third of the global workforce and contributes about one third of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This together with its large exposure to the effects of climate change and environmental degradation makes what happens in AFS central to the green transition and its implications for jobs and the structural transformation. Microeconomic evidence suggests that the adoption of climate smart agricultural practices will increase labor requirements, at least in the short run and at lower levels of incomes, when its mechanization is still limited. Econometric macro-model-based simulations suggest however that especially substantial investment in climate friendly agricultural R&D as well as soil and water preserving practices and market integration will more than offset the negative effects of climate change and even accelerate the structural transformation, especially in Sub Saharan Africa. Overall, the findings underscore the tremendous potential of increasing agricultural and climate friendly R&D investment for brokering an environmentally sustainable structural transformation. Repurposing of agriculture’s current US$ 638 billion support package towards supporting more climate friendly practices, including to overcome the time lag between the moment of investment and the realization of the benefits, provides an important policy entry point. -
Publication
Diagnosing the Binding Constraints to Better Jobs: An Approach and Framework
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-16)The persistent lack of good jobs that is, an inadequate level or quality of jobs, inefficient and/or inequitable jobs outcomes is a key economic issue in developing (and some developed) economies. Yet policy responses often lack an understanding of the causes. While the proximate drivers, such as low productivity growth, slow capital deepening, or a lack of firms and other organized economic actors, may share patterns, the policy roots and circumstances of these outcomes vary a great deal by country. Thus, making progress in a meaningful and lasting way requires, in the first instance, a clear understanding of the binding constraints which, if alleviated, would result in a substantial structural improvement to jobs outcomes. Binding constraints could arise in a host of policies and institutions, including possibly inadequate human capital and labor market policies but also in infrastructure, regulatory, financial, judicial and other areas. This paper provides a data-driven approach and framework for diagnosing the truly binding constraints to better jobs. The approach is to rule out broad categories of constraints using economic logic and data, and to utilize an array of empirical indicators to test whether remaining candidate constraints are binding. While this paper outlines an exhaustive approach, the style of thinking and techniques can also be applied selectively to fill analytical gaps and ensure that key issues are not left unaddressed. -
Publication
Lebanon Economic Monitor - Spring 2023: The Normalization of Crisis Is No Road for Stabilization : Executive Summary
( 2023-05-15)Lebanon’s long economic contraction continued in 2022, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years. The deceleration in economic contraction in 2022 is largely owed to a base effect (referred to as a technical deceleration in economic contraction).Following a cumulative four-year contraction of 37.2 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (2018–2021), real GDP is estimated to have declined by 2.6 percent in 2022. The BLOM-PMI index (purchasing manager's index), which captures private sector activity, slightly improved to 48.4 in 2022, up from an average of 46 percent in 2021 but nonetheless still representing a contraction of activity (<50). A positive development is the growth in tourist arrivals (by 57 percent, 8M-2022). Nonetheless, the widening current account deficit, a long structural imbalance, continue to weigh down on growth prospects. The overall fiscal balance is estimated to have recorded a narrow surplus of 0.3 percent of GDP in 2022, down from 1 percent of GDP 2021. Revenues are estimated to have declined from an already low 13.1 percent of GDP in 2020 to 6.0 percent of GDP in 2022, one of the lowest rates globally. This was more than offset by a larger decrease in total expenditures, which declined from 16.4 percent of GDP in 2020 to a record low of 5.7 percent of GDP in 2022, pointing to a massive hollowing out of the state amid an unprecedented crisis. Testament to the lack of economic stabilization, the Lebanese Pound (LBP) continues to depreciate sharply. By February 2023, the currency lost more than 98 percent of its pre-crisis value. Despite the central bank (Banque du Liban's) (BdL)’s foreign exchange (FX) interventions to attempt to stabilize the BNR (i.e., the banknote rate/parallel market) using its gross reserves starting in December 2021, the BNR averaged 31,102 LBP/US$ in 2022. -
Publication
Assessing the Benefits and Costs of Nature-Based Solutions for Climate Resilience: A Guideline for Project Developers
(World Bank, 2023-05-12)This document aims to guide the design, implementation, and use of studies to value the benefits and costs of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for climate resilience projects. Reliable quantification of the costs and benefits of NBS for climate resilience can facilitate further mainstreaming of these interventions by articulating the value proposition of NBS across sectors, improve impact evaluation, and for identifying additional funding and financing for projects. This report provides an overview of methods and approaches, along with a decision framework to guide the design of NBS cost and benefit assessment. The decision framework presented should enable project developers to come up with a cost-effective approach for quantifying the benefits and costs of NBS that is effective and convincing in the context of climate resilience projects. To illustrate this in practical applications, eight case studies from World Bank projects are also included to better show how different valuation methods are applied in the field.